Go Into The Story at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival: January 28

Notes and reflections from Park City, Utah.

From that day in late November 2018 when the Sundance Film Festival announced a lineup of 112 movies to be screened this year (out of 14,259 submissions from 152 countries), I’ve been excited. The reason? This year, I get to attend the Festival for the first time.

I am part of a group from the DePaul University School of Cinematic Arts testing the waters to see if we will make our participation in the famed independent film festival an annual event for our students.

So it was that on Sunday, January 27, our group of faculty and students — Akram Shibly (2nd year, MFA, screenwriting) and Emily Holland (1st year, BFA, directing) — gathered at O’Hare Airport in Chicago for the flight to Salt Lake City, then by van to Park City.

On the flight, I sat with Akram and Emily, and we discussed many topics including movies, of course, and our participation in the Windrider Forum at the Sundance Film Festival, the opportunity to interface with hundreds of college and film school students, an “immersive experience between filmmakers and film lovers designed to facilitate thoughtful conversation, awaken compassion, and inspire change.”

Upon arrival in Park City, we headed to the welcoming event sponsored by the Windrider Institute. Here are some reflections from Emily and Akram on Day One of our journey to the Sundance Film Festival.

Our introduction to The Windrider Forum at Sundance has commenced! It is incredibly exciting. You can feel that same buzz of creativity that you feel at a musical festival. Although it is a little overwhelming and confusing at times, we are all figuring things out and developing a plan.

The rundown of the program and its mission truly excites me. I’m still searching for some bearing of what exactly is to come in the next few days, but I gained a clear understanding of the mission of The Windrider Forum at tonight’s introduction. They are looking to build the next generation of filmmakers, spark thoughtful conversations about films and focus more closely on the film aesthetics. I’m still a little confused about the day-to-day itinerary, but who isn’t at their first Sundance Festival?

The energy at The Windrider Forum is fantastic. It was a little intimidating being a first year student surrounded by many graduate students and accomplished filmmakers, but everyone at the event was extremely kind and welcoming. It is definitely a supportive environment that is going to allow us to learn from amazing filmmakers and help us build our own skills. If I feel this inspired after one night, I can’t imagine how I’ll feel at the end of the week! — Emily Holland

Yesterday was the inaugural occasion for the Windrider institute’s partnership with the Sundance Film Festival. Windrider has been running their own film-related events parallel to Sundance for the last 15 years (by some accounts, sending students to “ambush” notable filmmaker’s like the 2018 Drama Award recipient Burden, coaxing them into long form Q&A’s and in-depth conversations), but now Windrider’s programs are officially incorporated into the Festival. Clearly, Sundance digs what they’re doing.

The faith-based institution gathers filmmakers, universities, and film enthusiasts from across the country to have deeper discussions on the pioneering Sundance films. They presented three basic principles which they hope will foster positive change in the industry, but especially in their participants attitudes as creators and consumers alike.

Raise your Aesthetics

Watching films and discussing them in depth amid the Sundance environment is a surefire way to heighten your understanding of the art form of Cinema. Us writers are certainly adept at deconstructing stories, but talking to others is a great way to understand what aspects of a celebrated peice move people. Watch movies with friends, then take the time to have a deeper conversation on their meaning and aesthetic values.

Elevate your Spiritual Intent

Although this is derived from the faith-oriented focus of Windrider, it can certainly be relevant to all. Cinema has the potential to address the issues of our time. Approaching the medium with full awareness of its impact is only the first step. Telling stories that leave their mark means that the work starts within. What’s your intention?

Invest in the Next Generation

If only we could snap our fingers and bring our cinematic visions to light. Filmmaking requires tons of resources, even on smaller scale projects. Windrider aims specifically to connect filmmakers pursuing deeper stories to potential supporters and investors. However, outside the festival, it’s good to keep in mind that supporting each other is the only way to move the medium forward. Whether pitching in to a crowdfunding campaign, or reading scripts and sharing connections, we can foster the next generation of storytellers. — Akram Shibly

The next morning, it was off to the real treat of our foray to Park City: Movies! First up, a 9:15AM screening at The Ray Theater of Sister Aimee, a wonderfully entertaining film which is equal parts snapshot biopic / fiction / fantasy / comedy / musical. Yes, all of that!

Plot: In 1926, America’s most famous evangelist is a woman. And she’s looking for a way out. Fed up with her own success, she gets swept up in her lover’s daydreams about Mexico and finds herself on a wild road trip toward the border. Based on true events. Mostly made up.

The fact such a hybrid movie which defies genre categorization found funding to get produced speaks to the compelling creative vision of the story. Indeed, it’s a story about stories and how we can use them to sell a product, create a personal narrative, get out of jams, even lie to ourselves about ourselves.

I was so taken by the movie, I reached out to one of the film’s producers Lee Stobby to interview Sam and Marie. Look for that in the coming weeks.

During the day, I tramped all around Park City, obtaining my press credentials for GoIntoTheStory.blcklst.com, checking out venues and a few panels, meeting with some of the folks from the Black List, running into friends and acquaintances from L.A., even stopped a few times by fans of the blog.

The final event of the evening was a Windrider Forum showcase of four excellent short films:

Abu Adnan: Adnan’s Father: Sayid wants to keep his status as a father and the family patriarch in a new linguistic and cultural setting, despite his son’s progress in assimilating into the danish language culture. (Denmark, writers: Mads Lind Knudsen, Sylvia Le Fanu, director: Sylvia Le Fanu).

Period. End of Sentence: In a rural village outside Delhi, India, women lead a quiet revolution. They fight against the deeply rooted stigma of menstruation. “Period. End of Sentence.” — a documentary short directed by Rayka Zehtabchi — tells their story. For generations, these women didn’t have access to pads, which lead to health problems and girls missing school or dropping out entirely. But when a sanitary pad machine is installed in the village, the women learn to manufacture and market their own pads, empowering the women of their community. They name their brand “FLY,” because they want women “to soar.” Their flight is, in part, enabled by the work of high school girls half a world away, in California, who raised the initial money for the machine and began a non-profit called “The Pad Project." (India/U.S., director: Rayka Zehtabchi).

Esta Es Tu Cuba: In the wake of Fidel Castro’s rise to power, over 14,000 unaccompanied children fled to the United States in hopes of a better life. Inspired by their stories, Esta Es Tu Cuba follows Anton, a young boy who is thrust into adulthood as revolution tears his family apart. (U.S./Puerto Rico, writer: Daniel Klein, director: Brian Robau).

Beneath the Ink: A timely sociocultural look into the Appalachia region of Ohio and one artist’s mission of ‘erasing the hate.’ (U.S.), director: Cy Dodson).

Each of these movies speak to the need for empathy and the embrace of our shared human experience, both the challenges and opportunities we have to open conversations across ethnic, cultural, and gender divides.

It’s been an exciting launch to our 2019 Sundance Film Festival experience. Day 2 promises much more.

Onward!

Twitter: @depaulcinema, @sundancefest.