Cynematik • Cyndi Greening

I sure wish I could get a copy of the Bellagio and sports footage that Jody Eldred shot with the HVR-Z1 but I have been unable to find it no matter how hard I dig. I was able to get the JAG footage that was broadcast and shows the intercutting of the HVR-Z1 with the other footage.

You can look at it Large (320×240) or Small (240×160). Small is hardly worth the effort. Eldred’s presentation was excellent and with 30 years of cinematography experience on virtually every type of camera, the information was invaluable.

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I have loved the dark vision of science fiction author Philip K. Dick since Harrison Ford slid through the back alleys of BLADE RUNNER in 1982. Director Ridley Scott was one of the first directors to enter the dark moorings of PKD’s futuristic worlds. Spielberg tapped PKD’s short story for MINORITY REPORT and Verhoeven remembered PKD when he made TOTAL RECALL. Dick died of heart failure shortly before his first film was to debut in 1982. His writing continues to capture readers, filmmakers and audiences alike.

Now, animation aficionado Richard Linklater and rotoscoping genius Bob Sabiston have released the trailer for the newest PKD film, A SCANNER DARKLY. The Austin Chronicle ran an article on the making of the film that features several nice images. It also mentioned that they were looking for artists to work on the film! I can think of lots of folks who’d enjoy that work (not me) although I am thinking I’m going to have to get to Austin one of these days! (Thanks to Jordan Pack for the link!)

In addition to loving PKD, I’m also a BIG, BIG fan of Bob Sabiston. I loved his 2004 Sundance Short Film Grasshopper and his work on Lars von Trier’s 2004 Sundance film THE FIVE OBSTRUCTIONS. I bought the WAKING LIFE just for all of the “making of” information. This film has a “much tighter” style than Linklater’s previous films. I like the look of it A LOT.

Sabiston has been working on a rotoscoping software program (demonstrated on Waking Life) for quite a few years and is now saying it will be ready for release on June 6, 2006! I think he gets so much film work and that he keeps improving his own process and product. I think it may never be released for those very reasons. Earlier this year, I bought a program called Studio Artist that was supposed to Rotoscope life action footage. It was a big disappointment. Guess I’m still waiting for 2006.

(If you’re interested, the PKD story was adapted for the screen by Charlie Kaufman of Adaptation fame. This version of the screenplay is 130 pages long so I don’t think it’s the final.)

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One of the GREAT things about going to Sundance is being able to come back and share what I discover with other folks who love independent film production! This year, there was an awesome panel on MACHINIMA. Basically, it’s using a video game device as a real-time virtual production studio with animated actors. I’m betting they’ll find a way to incorporate Maya models and Photoshop backgrounds soon. While I was at Sundance, I blogged about the process to create your own Machinima movie. Then, when I got back to teaching at MCC, I shared the process with students and other faculty.

Not surprisingly, Ross Ingle took in the information and immediately made a very clever MACHININMA MUSIC VIDEO He used WARCRAFT to cover Duran Duran’s Perfect Day. As usual, the production quality on Ross’s film quite high with an amusing twist at the end!! (Since Ross will be getting married next month, it’s amusing to see the romantic vs. married dynamic between the animated characters.)

Independent Spirit Awards Announced

SIDEWAYS was the big winner on Saturday, picking up six trophies, including one for best feature. Produced by Michael London, the film earned two awards for writer/director Alexander Payne as best director Payne. (co-writer Jim Taylor also earned a writing award for best screenplay.) Not surprisingly, lead actor Paul Giamatti took home honors. Likewise, supporting actors Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen took home prizes.

2004 Sundance Award Winner MARIA FULL OF GRACE garnered best female lead for troubled drug runner Catalina Sandino Moreno. Writer/director Joshua Marston also received an award for best first screenplay.

Also screened at Sundance 2004, Zach Braff’s debut film, GARDEN STATE was named best first feature, while Sundance alum Jacob Aaron Estes‘ MEAN CREEK took the John Cassavetes Award for best feature made for under $500,000.

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Mike Curtis at HD for INDIES has been posting a lot of really valuable production information. Curtis stays on the “bleeding edge” so you don’t have to!! Some of the recent pieces include:

• Considering Digital Intermediate for your Film?

• Encoding Differences on Macintosh
• White Paper on Digital Intermediate
• Magic Bullet 2 Releasing

Blogroll or bookmark his site. The information is great! Curtis was one of the first reviewers of the Sony HRV-Z1 (which automatically moves him up in my eyes!)

Avoiding Distribution Hurdles

He also found a great site about the REAL costs that confront documentary filmmakers when they shoot first and get the rights later. This goes along with something I had previously reported about the film TARNATION, also an award-winning Sundance film. Coverage always begins with something like “Produced with consumer-grade software for a grand total of $218.32 (the cost of videotapes and a pair of angel wings), Jonathan Caouette’s film-festival circuit hit “Tarnation” is redefining the concept of low-budget filmmaking.” Then the REAL story is revealed: Clearances should catapult its budget to about $400,000!. Rights clearance is no small hurdle on the road to theatrical release for this film and the distributor is facing steep distribution costs.

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At Sundance 2005, I had wanted to see LOVERBOY but was unable to get it to work in my screening schedule. I’ve been a fan of Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgewick since LOSING CHASE. When I was blogging prior to this year’s festival, I wrote about the film. I thought the story of an obsessively attached mother would require careful handling to avoid veering into melodrama. A look at the film stills indicated Bacon was crafting a compelling story. The stills were compelling. It looked like the film would be powerful visually.

I recently realized that the cinematographer on the film was Nancy Schreiber. Schreiber, you may recall, won the Cinematography Award at Sundance 2004 for NOVEMBER, the Courtney Cox film. Schreiber’s films regularly appear in the Sundance Film Festival. Her other Sundance films included: MY AMERICA … OR HONK IF YOU LOVE BUDDHA, ROBERT CAPA: IN LOVE AND WAR and GHOST WORLD. Like Ellen Kuras, Schreiber is known for her ability to create compelling visuals on independent budgets. My favorite Schreiber film is SHADOW MAGIC.

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On Tuesday, February 15, the Writers Guild of America inaugurated its new documentary writing award. Producer Brian Grazer presented the award to Morgan Spurlock for his popular and successful independent film SUPERSIZE ME. SUPERSIZE ME debuted at Sundance 2004. Other Sundance films nominated included CONTROL ROOM, IN THE REALMS OF THE UNREAL and HOME OF THE BRAVE. Spurlock and Jehane (director of CONTROL ROOM) will face off again — both of their films are nominated for an Academy Award in the documentary category.

Organizers of the event indicated that the documentary category was added because of the rising popularity of documentary film and the importance that writing plays in shaping those films. In 2003, Michael Moore’s BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE was nominated for and won best original screenplay at the WGA competition. It was the only documentary screenplay that was ever nominated in the history of the award.

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One of the casualties of fame is privacy. NAPOLEON DYNAMITE star Jon Heder is rumored to be dead on the web. The first clue that the information was false is that the site that describes the accident (in some detail) spells his name incorrectly. The site even features a cheesy Photoshop composite of Heder ghosted over a wrecked car with Bambi cartoons cavorting on the road in the distance. I’m surprised at how many sites picked up the news and passed it on. The rumor ran like crazy.

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“Do not try to fight a lion if you are not one yourself.”
    African Proverb

“What nature delivers to us is never stale. Because what nature creates has eternity in it.”
    Isaac Bashevis Singer (1904 - 1991)
    Jewish Author

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Like the summary of the Imaginary Worlds Panel that followed this post, I’ve moved the very lengthy summary of my notes from the Sundance 2005 Distribution 101 Panel Discussion held on January 25, 2005 to a separate page. You can find it at Sundance Distribution Panel.

Moderator Bert Manzari introduced the panelists Steve Friedlander (Executive Vice President Warner Brothers), Mark Urman (ThinkFilm), Marcus Hu (Strand Releasing), Laura Michalchysyn (Sundance Channel), Peter Broderick (Paradigm Consulting), Hal Hartley (filmmaker), Connie White (Balcony Releasing) and Ted Sarandos (Netflix).

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Writer/Illustrator Neil Gaiman whose work on the wonderful film MIRRORMASK was discussed during this Sundance panel, has provided a link for folks who might be interested in the complete summary of my notes. I moved it to a separate page for easier reading, easier printing, and quicker loading. If you’d like to read the full summary, follow the Sundance Digital Panel Summary link.

The Sundance 2005 Imaginary Worlds / Digital Filmmaking Panel Discussion held on January 23, 2005. Sundance Programmer Ian Calderon introduced moderator Leonard Maltin. Maltin introduced the panelists: Jim Rygiel (LOTR), Brad Silberling (Lemony Snicket), Lisa Henson (Waldo, MirrorMask), Dave McKean (MirrorMask), Yair Landau (Sony), James Baxter (Shrek II).

Unfortunately, Mr. Gaiman was not on the panel (I would have LOVED to hear what he had to say). His site is wonderful. You can find him at NeilGaiman.com.

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(This document is a summary of my notes from the Sundance 2005 Distribution 101 Panel Discussion held on January 25, 2005.)

Moderator Bert Manzari introduced the panelists. Manzari came to be the moderator because of his affiliation with Landmark Theatres, one of the premier independent film chainlets. This panel discussion was programmed by Sundance’s John Nein and it began with each panelist summarizing his/her role in the current industry.

Steve Friedlander, Executive Vice President Warner Brothers: While the panel was described as Alternative Distribution 101, Friedlander acknowledged that he was there as the representative for mainstream corporate distribution. Warner’s distributed Before Sunset and We Don’t Live Here Anymore. “Warner’s,” he said, “has a studio boutique that specializes in films with an anticipated box office of ten million or more. We’re not really geared up for the niche film.”

Mark Urman, ThinkFilm: Initially, I was most interested in hearing what panelist Mark Urman had to say. ThinkFilm has successfully distributed many of my favorite Sundance films including The Dangerous World of Altar Boys, Spellbound, I Like Killing Flies and Born Into Brothels. At this festival, they picked up Murderball. Urman said, “ThinkFilm is completely independent. We are a Canadian company and we have distributed 14 Sundance films, thus far.” Throughout the panel, Urman had really meaningful advice for beginning filmmakers.

Marcus Hu, Strand Releasing: Marcus has been with Strand for 16 years. Strand specializes in the gay and lesbian niche. Strand is distributing Sundance 2005’s Tony Takitani. According to Hu, the film is getting good critical reaction and will open in 150 theaters.

Laura Michalchysyn, Sundance Channel: Very new to her position as the director of Sundance Channel, Michalchysyn said that her reference point was pay cable. “Our viewers are film buyers,” said Michalchysyn. Sundance Channel goes into 22 million homes. Sundance films do require a theatrical release to be successfully received. Since Sundance is clearly branded as a source for quality documentary and dramatic film, films like Ondi Timoner’s DIG and Jehane Noumain’s Control Room did very well.

Peter Broderick, Paradigm Consulting: Broderick positioned himself immediately as the “Digital Advocate” on the panel. “We have a crisis in distribution for digital producers,” said Broderick, “A crisis that limits options and often gives the Middleman rights to a filmmaker’s product for 15 years.” Broderick called for the development of more hybrid approaches to licensing. He recommended using the internet to build a direct link to your CORE personal audience. A core audience of 20,000 or more can radically alter a filmmaker’s ability to make an independent film. If a sufficient number of supporters are willing to pre-purchase the DVD of your film, you generate your own production budget. This type of business plan opens a whole new world of options for the filmmaker.

Hal Hartley, filmmaker: Hartley followed such a distribution path with editor Steve Hamilton. Hartley explained that they began by selling CDs of music from their films. It was very popular and generated quite a bit of income. They next marketed a DVD of their short films. While they enjoyed the income, they were dismayed to find that they were spending a lot of time on the logistics of labeling, shipping and managing inventory. Hartley’s film The Girl From Monday was screened at Sundance 2005.

Connie White, Balcony Releasing: Her introduction was very understated but later in the discussion, Connie White had some terrific advice. White said that she was with Balcony Releasing and, formerly, Balcony Booking. White’s focus was getting films into theaters. She said that she had been involved in the distribution of Sundance films Daughter From Danang and The Same River Twice.

Ted Sarandos, Netflix: The opposite end of the table was the opposite end of the distribution chain. Sarandos was from the consumer DVD distribution Goliath, Netflix. Sarandos said that Netflix reaches 2.6 million avid film viewers. Sarandos said that Netflix was also instrumental in the distribution of Daughter From Danang.

At this point, the discussion began.

Manzari: In the past, a theatrical distribution was necessary to create title recognition and provide access to the ancillary markets. Is it still necessary?

Friedlander: “No, it’s not necessary,” said Warner’s Friedlander, “look at HBO.”

Sarandos: No. In fact, the customary four-month gap between theatrical distribution and DVD release actually drives the piracy market and damages a filmmaker’s financial return.

Broderick: Outfoxed demonstrated that a traditional theatrical release isn’t necessary for film’s success. Through the political action group MoveOn.Org, 100,000 copies of the film were sold online in only three weeks. Likewise, Uncovered started as a 60-minute version that was screened in private homes to approximately 200,000 viewers. As word of mouth grew, the longer version screen in 90 theaters. A second DVD was created and sold.

Urman: “We are a theatrical distributor so, of course, we believe theatrical distribution is critical.” Lost In Translation was already in DVD release when it was nominated for an academy award. The theatrical release significantly impacted revenues. Sometimes documentaries like Born Into Brothels require a more flexible distribution plan but, overall, theatrical distribution improves a film’s financial success.

Sarandos: Netflix was used as part of an alternative distribution plan to market Voices of Iraq. The film screened in 10 cities and was simultaneously released on DVD. As part of the plan, Netflix users who had rented and rated 5 or more political and/or war-themed films in the previous three months were targeted for an alert that the film was showing in a nearby theatre. Other users were advised that the DVD was available. The goal was to increase viewer interest and generate strong word of mouth.

Hu: The Sundance film The Cockettes screened on the Sundance Channel before it was distributed theatrically. The Sundance Channel helped increase title recognition and stimulated viewer interest.

Friedman: There are other non-advertising channels that can be used to create title recognition. MTV is participating in generating title recognition for Sundance 2005 films Murderball and The Emperor’s Journey. When a clip of Amelie appeared on MTV, there was a big jump of the interest of that film.

Michalchysyn: Another example of an alternative plan for title recognition is Tim Robbins’ Embedded. About 100 DVD press kits will be distributed for a free screening to generate interest in the March 20 broadcast of the film on The Sundance Channel. It remains to be seen how that will contribute to the broadcast success.

Roko Belic: Director of Genghis Blues: stood to ask a question of the panel. He said that they had tried to market their DVDs directly but found they spent so much time managing DVD sales they were doing that instead of making moves. They decided to use a fulfillment house instead. He offered the following financial breakdown:

$ 3.95 fulfillment house

3.00 production cost

+ 2.00 shipping costs

______________________

$18.00 return on Direct Sales

vs.

$2.50 return on Blockbuster Sales

White: “To listen to this conversation,” said White, “you’d think the theater is disappearing as a distribution source but I have to say that I think that theatrical distribution is better for a film. Most theaters would NOT book a film if the DVD were already out because it would hurt the film’s success.” At an early point in my career, White started by “posing” as a distributor to theater bookers because she needed to get her films screened.

Sarandos: Theatrical distribution has a certain inefficiency in locating its audience, though. The cost of marketing a film to a national audience deeply cuts into the profits.

Manzari: Isn’t the theatrical release a sort of “infomercial” for the DVDs? And, aren’t the DVDs where studios make their money anyway? (There was a long, long, long question from the audience by a director asserting that a film could not get distribution if it did not have a major movie star in the film. Many of the panelists responded to that assertion.)

Urman: ThinkFilm distributed Primer, a Sundance film that didn’t have a single known actor. It didn’t do well in theatres but it was an unusual narrative. It was still an accessible film and a story that we thought deserved attention. Sometimes, a known star can actually hurt the film. Having someone like Jennifer Aniston in a film may be a poison gift to the distributor. The anticipated audience may not accept the actor in this role. The star may be unwilling to fly in to do press. A movie star does not guarantee distribution and may hurt the chances for distribution.

Friedlander: Stars can help with foreign sales, especially if the film is well-reviewed. However, if the film is well-reviewed, a star isn’t necessary. Shine, a Sundance 1996 film starred a relatively unknown Geoffrey Rush. The tremendous reviews drew audiences in worldwide and ignited Rush’s career.

Broderick: How about Napoleon Dynamite? There were no major stars in that film and it was quite successful. It was a film with a core market of NERDs but it was a strong core audience. More important than a star, you need a strong core audience. Dynamite used a strong web campaign along with reviews to very successfully market their niche film.

Audience question: Is there an optimum budgetary range?

Urman: “We don’t care what the film cost, we care about what it will earn.”

Hu: “You want the budget that will allow the film to be the most successful film it can possibly be. Many of our films fall in the $20,000 to $30,000 range.”

Friedlander: Open Water, one of the breakout films of last year was made for less than a million dollars and was very successful.

White: You can book a low-budget film on a number of screens but a film must gross a certain amount to stay on the screen. The theater owners have to generate enough income to cover their operating costs.

Friedlander: A big budget film needs a wide theatrical distribution to make back its money. If a studio knows they have a weak film, they’ll open the movie as wide as possible with a strong marketing campaign because they know the film won’t be able to sustain much more than a four-week run. If they can recoup most of their production costs, they can still make a profit on the DVD sales. The budget doesn’t determine the success but it can certainly ensure the failure.

Audience question: Don’t you need a star to get into theatres?

Hartley: A certain level of visibility of star can help you get into theatres.

Friedlander: The director may also be a big a draw as an actor in the independent world.

Audience question: What about a Producer’s Rep? I read a lot about them lately. If you have no known actors, can they really help you use the “festival heat” to get the conversation going? (It seemed that this was actually a producer’s rep promoting his own agenda. No one on the panel really took the question.)

Audience question: Do distributors still “respect the windows” or have those rules relaxed and expanded. (Note: The “windows” were mentioned early in the panel by Sarandos when he spoke of the four-month gap between theatrical distribution and DVD release.)

Manzari: Yes, those rules are relaxing.

Audience question: What if you don’t get into a festival? A premiere festival like Sundance is certainly difficult. How do you get people interested in your film?

Urman: Go to the second-tier festivals. We send a VP of Acquisition who never unpacks. He is always on the road scoping all of the festivals for new films. (Note: The DVD extras on Open Water tells of how the film was seen at an East Coast festival before it was purchased at Sundance.)

Friedlander: Kissing Jessica Stein was discovered at a festival attended by 300 people.

Urman: You also need to create visibility for your film at the festival. You need a plan for getting attention at the festival; to create recognition and interest in your film. Your team needs to get media, critics, and buyers to pay attention to your film. The most successful film at a festival may not be the best film but the film that was best at getting noticed.

(Note: On the final day of the festival, I overheard someone speaking with a publicist about the awards ceremony the night before and asking how the publicist’s films had done in the festival. “I don’t measure my success by the awards,” he said, “Every one of my films got media coverage, they got good reviews and all but one got distribution. That’s how I measure my success.” )

Audience question: What about “four-walling”? What if you guarantee the house? Can you get a theatrical release that way?

Manzari: It can be done but it’s not very common because of the politics with distributors. A theater owner may be slitting his own throat if he does that sort of thing too often.

Broderick: There are a few theater owners who will look at ANY film and screen it theatrically if they deem it worthwhile. Film Forum in New York City is an example of that.

Sarandos: You just have to call and get the theaters to say, “Yes.”

Friedlander: Ira Deutchman is another resource. Deutchman is a friend to digital films with no distribution.

Urman: If you advertise your film and screen it in New York, the daily papers will review your film as a matter of policy. Film Forum will screen your film for free IF it is good. A good review from a New York daily can launch your film.

White: Emerging Pictures is Deutchman’s company.

Sarandos: The goal is to get key people to take your film on as a “passion project.” A passion project will be given time to grow even if it is slow process.

Audience Question: There are so many other sources for gaining recognition; isn’t it possible to brand your film yourself, find your core audience and successfully distribute your film? Isn’t that the path Hal Hartley has followed? Isn’t he his own brand?

Broderick: You can be very successful if you have a strong, pro-active distribution plan. An example of that is Reversal. Reversal is a college wrestling film with that was made and successfully distributed with no paid advertising. Wrestling publications, clubs and organizations were contacted through the web and other avenues. Over $400,000 in revenues were generated. Another example is Faster, a grand prix motorcycle film that sold 14,000 units at LA Arclight and another 5000 DVDs in just two weeks with targeted audience notification.

Sarandos: Again, you can see how the core audience drives the success.

Audience Question: What about acquisitions?

Michalchysyn: The Sundance Channel buys about 150 dramatic films per year and 50 to 70 documentary films per year. We are always looking for new material. We watch films for a living.

Sarandos: At Netflix, we acquire about 100 titles per year and distribute another 8500 titles.

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Independent filmmaking is hard, and sometimes projects just don’t come together. But very rarely do these “aborted” projects leave behind evidence as fascinating as the remnants of Errol Morris’ The Movie Movie, available on the documentarian’s official site:

The Movie Movie, an aborted project, is based on the idea of taking Donald Trump, Mikhail Gorbachev and others and putting them in the movies they most admire. Isn’t it possible that in an alternative universe Donald Trump actually starred in Citizen Kane?

Watch a video clip of The Donald himself, discussing what Citizen Kane means to him. It is hard to imagine this kind of material sustaining itself at feauture length, but the bite-sized chunks Morris makes available are sufficiently awesome. (from Independent Film Weblog)

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“Today the young actors regard their environment with rage and disgust. They regard their Master not as disciples regard their Master, but as slaves regard their Master.”
    Judith Malina (1926 - )
    U.S. Actor & Stage Producer

“Regret is an odd emotion because it comes only upon reflection. Regret lacks immediacy, and so its power seldom influences events when it could do some good.”
    William O’Rourke
    U.S. Journalist

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While I was at Sundance, I saw an excellent presentation on the new Sony HRV-Z1 camera. The workshop we attended was presented by Sony and featured FIVE (5) different presenters. In addition to presentations on the camera and Sony tape, we also saw a presentation on the Sony Vegas editing system.

Presenter Douglas Spotted Eagle was amazingly fast with VEGAS. He could really make that software sing! Halso shared some of the HD training tools from VASST. Three of the products that were most appealing to me were his two books on DV and Copyright and his DVD on sound fundamentals. He has a GREAT book on HDV and Digital Video (it covers everything about Digital Video from the most basic to the most advanced topics including such things as DV, DVPRO, DVCAM, 3:2 pulldown, compression, progressive & interlaced formats) and another terrific text on Copyright Law for Filmmakers and creative individuals.

While we were there, “Spot” also shared excerpts of training video on sound. The DVD included information in microphones, capture techniques, capture boards, editing software and synchronization. What I saw was really accurate, practical and useful. His tutorial on how to build an inexpensive soundproof box for recording voiceovers is worth the price of the DVD alone! Check them out at VASST.Com!!

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As I am so fond of saying, one of the BEST things about attending Sundance is the Question & Answer sessions (Q&A) that follow the films. Listening to the directors and actors discuss the problems and process is excellent. Cinematographer/Editor Mike Montesa put together two segments from the Saving Face Q&A. In the first segment, the director talks about working with the actors. The second segment, the actors share why they decided to accept their roles. Both pieces are an excellent insight into the process. Rayme Maldonado shot the Hustle & Flow Q&A and Mike edited it together as well.

• Saving Face-2-Q&A

• Saving Face-1-Q&A
• Hustle & Flow Q&A

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(Read the complete article at the link below) “More and more, it seems the American dramatic imagination has curtailed itself, choosing to avoid the horrific events through which we are living today. No fiction film dealt with war. Only Travis Wilkerson’s offbeat improvisational chronicle, WHO KILLED COCK ROBIN?, dealt with issues of economic collapse and political corruption. Instead, the lens of indie cinema performed an iris-in, adjusting its focus to smaller and smaller vignettes. Supple film-making was on offer, to be sure, but devoid of context, stripped of its own historical moment and single-mindedly applying its craft to colour, carefully, only inside the lines. list” who was eaten by his research subjects.

In documentary and foreign films, it was a different story. Eugene Jarecki won the best documentary award for WHY WE FIGHT, a rereading of post-cold-war ideologies that should be required viewing for everyone. As for foreign films, they got their own competition for the first time this year. Its top dramatic prize went to the Angolan film THE HERO, a penetrating look at the toll taken by war. The international documentary jury, meanwhile, gave a special award to THE WALL by French-Moroccan-Israeli film-maker Simone Bitton. A brilliantly simple film that examined life on both sides of Israel’s infamous “separation fence”, it was possibly upstaged by Bitton’s remarks at the ceremony: that she was glad to see that there was another America, apart from the one that invades the rest of the world with “bombs, missiles, and bad movies”.

As Sundance drew to a close, on the day Iraq went to the polls, festival-goers remarked how much further the festival had moved towards being a market. More films than ever had been snagged by distributors for more money than ever, sometimes with a bidding war; nearly two dozen films were bought by closing night. The media presence was as out of control as ever, with mainstream outlets reporting on the celebrities and the deals but not the films themselves.

Perhaps that’s inevitable when American film-makers avoid the big issues. But that can’t last. Sooner or later the times we live in will force their way on to the screen - no matter how much angst and sex and personal dysfunction try to fill the space and keep them out.

War? What war?. Can’t US film-makers think about anything other than sex? B Ruby Rich reports from a frustrating Sundance festival [Film Unlimited]

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