Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which began last week (SUPPORT KCRW HERE). Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s the final day of her report!
DAY SIX
Sleep finally wins and I miss the early morning screenings. It pains me to miss Julie Delpy’s “2 Days in New York,” “Bachelorette,” and Mike Birbiglia’s “Sleepwalk With Me.” Since I had to leave for the airport in the early afternoon, I decided to spend the rest of the day checking out the New …
Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which began last week (SUPPORT KCRW HERE). Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s the final day of her report!
DAY SIX
Sleep finally wins and I miss the early morning screenings. It pains me to miss Julie Delpy’s “2 Days in New York,” “Bachelorette,” and Mike Birbiglia’s “Sleepwalk With Me.” Since I had to leave for the airport in the early afternoon, I decided to spend the rest of the day checking out the New Frontier exhibit, and I am so glad I did. The exhibit showcased eleven different art installations using cutting edge video technology, so while they weren’t films or shorts in the traditional sense, they did use film and video as an artistic medium. My favorite, hands down, was “Evolution,” an astounding “large-scale, stereoscopic, 3-D video collage” by artist Marco Brambilla. I sat in the megaplex with my 3-D glasses and must have watched the 3 minute piece loop at least five times. It’s really hard to describe, but essentially Brambilla narrates the evolution of man using scenes from great films in history, layered one over the other, and sets it to a booming score. It’s as mindblowing as it sounds, and actually premiered right here at the Santa Monica Museum of Art. Hopefully it will return so more people can see it.
Another highlight of the exhibit was Nonny de la Pena’s “Hunger in Los Angeles,” an interactive, virtual piece that uses game development tools, a body tracking system, and a head-mounted goggle display to recreate a crisis that actually occurred at the Unitarian Church Food Bank in LA. De la Pena, a former Newsweek journalist, proposes a daring alternative to television, radio, and magazine journalism, wherein news is not learned through an outlet, but actually witnessing it firsthand. The experience was scary and upsetting for me, although the idea and the execution of it is amazing. I think I’ll stick with Warren Olney for now.
Experiencing “Hunger in Los Angeles” by Nonny de la Pena
Altogether, my first Sundance experience was awesome and hard to digest. I can’t wait to have some of these wonderful writers, actors and filmmakers on “The Treatment.” I saw 11 features, 6 shorts, and 8 amazing art installations, but there are still so many films that I wish I had seen, especially “Your Sister’s Sister,” “Robot & Frank,” and “The Surrogate.” The good news is that all of these films are still in the early stages of their journey, and will eventually be brought to the masses in theaters throughout the year. Still, it can’t compare with this experience – the elusive “industry” is so concentrated in this tiny mountain town that it actually becomes a tangible thing, and just by being here you feel like you’re a part of it. The excitement of making and watching movies is contagious. Celebrities pepper every corner and aspiring writers and actors eat dinner next to A-list movie stars. You have to use your fingers to keep your eyes open during your fourth screening of the day. You might even get to give Ice-T a little fist bump. Sundance, I think I love you. Just put me on the list next time.
Park City at night
Follow me on Twitter @JennyKCRW
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Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which began last week (SUPPORT KCRW HERE). Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s day five of her report!
DAY FIVE
Two hours of sleep. Feeling totally refreshed and ready to take on the day. That is a LIE. But I can’t miss Spike Lee’s “Red Hook Summer,” so I’m up and out in time for the 8:30AM screening. After the film, Lee walked onstage for a Q&A. A woman stood up and essentially asked why Lee hadn’t resolved the film differently, “because it would have made her feel better.” His response was that making her feel better simply wasn’t a priority for him. “That’s not the movie I wanted to make,” he said.
”Red Hook Summer” Q&A from left: Sundance moderator, actor Clarke Peters, writer/producer James McBride, and writer/director Spike Lee.
“Beasts of the Southern Wild” was without a doubt the film to see at Sundance this year. The star of the film is an 8-year-old girl named Quvenzhane Wallis, but she goes by Nazie. Since I had missed the press and industry screening on Saturday, I emailed the film’s publicist, Freida Orange, to see if she could snag me a ticket to the Sundance Resort screening that afternoon. The Sundance Resort is about an hour south of Park City, but by then the film had garnered enough buzz that for me, it was worth the trip. Freida called me back and said that if I could arrange a car service to pick us up so we could ride together, she would have tickets for me and two of my friends. In addition to the four of us, we rode down with the film’s editor, Affonso Goncalves, writer Lucy Alibar, Nazie and her mom. Nazie is certainly a very special little girl and her mom was so proud, protective and loving. She was as sparkly as ever during the Q&A, but once we got back in the car she curled up on her mom’s lap and was fast asleep in minutes. I can’t even begin to imagine what this experience must be like for her. Fox Searchlight won the bidding war on this one, and you can bet you’ll be hearing about it for the rest of the year and perhaps even into the 2013 awards season.
Q&A after “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” from left: moderator, editor Affanso Goncalves, writer Lucy Alibar, and star Quvenzhane Wallis.
Tonight KCRW favorites The Civil Wars are playing at Tao. This place is like Fort Knox. If you’re not on the Almighty List, just keep walking or risked getting chewed out by the doormen. KCRW DJ Chris Douridas to the rescue. He gets me and my friends in the door and we take in a lovely performance by The Civil Wars and then dance the night away with giant glowsticks while DJ Samantha Ronson plays a set that was, in Chris’ words, “truly elevating.”
The Civil Wars at Tao
Check back later today for Day 6 – my last in Park City.
Follow me on Twitter: @JennyKCRW
Like ‘The Treatment’ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCRWTheTreatment
Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which began last week (SUPPORT KCRW HERE). Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s day four of her report!
DAY FOUR
Festival director John Cooper and director of programming Trevor Groth mentioned a few movies they were especially excited about in our Sundance special edition podcast of The Treatment, including “That’s What She Said,” one of the female-driven comedies that seemed to be everywhere at the festival this year. Anne Heche was indeed hilarious as bitter, cynical Dee Dee, and Marcia DeBonis was the perfect parallel as her altruistic best friend Bebe. This is definitely a comedy by women, for women, and what happened inside the theater was perhaps even funnier than the action on screen. I sat back in my stadium seat amused as men walked out of the theatre in droves. I think for the most part, guys could handle the diarrhea scene in “Bridesmaids,” but this film really turns that R-rated raunchy female thing up a few notches.
Time to get down. Ice-T makes his directorial debut with the doc “Something From Nothing: The Art of Rap.” I’m going on very little sleep at this point but this movie is so high energy I’m having trouble keeping myself from dancing in the aisle. Imagine all the most revolutionary MC’s, passionately spewing rhymes about three inches from the camera, intercut with electric shots of the cities that bred them. I ran into Ice-T out on the street later that night (he was with Coco) and told him I’ll never listen to rap lyrics the same way again. He gave me a fist bump, which was obviously the highlight of my festival experience. I’d love to have him come into KCRW to record an interview for “The Treatment” this year.
I loved Rebecca Hall in “Vicky Christina Barcelona” and it was fun to see her take such a 180 degree turn from the sensible, serious woman she often portrays. In Stephen Frears new film “Lay the Favorite” she plays bubbly bookie Beth Raymer, and really holds her own on screen with heavy hitters Bruce Willis, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Vince Vaughn. ”Lay the Favorite” had a lot of buzz coming into the festival, which no doubt had a lot to do with the cast, and was ultimately scooped up by The Weinstein Company.
Sunday night I got a look inside the house party scene. In addition to private events at clubs and restaurants, there are also a slew of things happening every night in private residences around Park City and Deer Valley. The parties are hosted by agencies or production houses or companies trying to promote their products. If you want to score a free florescent onesie or make your own organic tacos, this is your scene. My friends and I gladly helped ourselves to the free dinner and headed back to Park City for the HBO party, where I met the filmmakers of V/H/S and sent them a link to our Sundance podcast, in which Trevor Groth talks about really liking their film in particular.
More to come!
Follow me on Twitter: @JennyKCRW
Like ‘The Treatment’ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCRWTheTreatment
Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which began last week (SUPPORT KCRW HERE). Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s day three of her report!
DAY THREE
Rashida Jones brought her A-game to Sundance this year with “Celeste and Jesse Forever.” She co-wrote the script with Will McCormack (who plays a supporting role as Celeste and Jesses’ weed-toting buddy) and fearlessly plays Celeste, a control freak who goes from total type-A to dressing like a bag lady and passing out at her best friend’s wedding shower with ranch dressing smeared all over her face. Both she and Andy Samberg display great range and the supporting cast, including Elijah Wood and Emma Roberts, is a real highlight. No surprise this one was quickly snapped up by Sony Pictures Classics.
I decided to take a little movie break and head down to Main Street to check out the ASCAP Music Café. I arrived just in time to hear Jenny O. play some songs from her 2011 EP “Home” as well as a few new ones from her highly anticipated 2012 album. I also ran into KCRW DJ Dan Wilcox, who was at the festival to DJ a couple private parties and offered to get me in the door. In your face, List!
The next film I saw was the most unexpectedly moving of my festival experience: “Marina Abromovic: The Artist is Present.” I came in with very little understanding of Abromovic as a performance artist, and almost no familiarity with her body of work. I left completely blown away by this woman and humbled by the purity and power of her art. The film follows Abromovic as she prepares for a huge milestone in her career: a retrospective of her work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, including a brand new piece featuring the artist herself in an incredible feat of focus and endurance. Without giving too much away, I will say that I especially recommended this film to anyone who complained about sitting still through a few movies in a row.
Although I wasn’t there, I heard the after-party for “Abromovic” was just as avante-garde. Upon arrival, guests were given white lab coats and asked to deposit their cell phones in a safe box and keep absolutely silent. Abromovic emerged after about an hour, and broke the silence with a warm welcome. Apparently, only one voice could be heard chatting away during the silent hour, and it belonged to Robert Redford, but who was going to tell that guy to shut up?
More to come!
Follow me on Twitter: @JennyKCRW
Like ‘The Treatment’ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCRWTheTreatment
Alas, I was unable to go to Sundance because of KCRW’s Membership Drive which begins today…SUPPORT KCRW HERE.
Luckily, The Treatment producer Jenny Radelet was able to sneak off for a few days…here’s day two of her report!
DAY 2:
First full day of the festival and I’m up at 6:30 and heading to the Sundance HQ to pick up my press credentials. Riding the shuttle, I have my first look at Park City in the daylight. Main Street is quaint and lovely, and despite the hustle and bustle of the festival, you can tell that most of the year, it’s a quiet little place filled with salt of the earth, rosy-cheeked mountain people. I have no idea how they manage the swell that Sundance brings, but they certainly capitalize on it, charging cover for most bars as early as 8PM and more than doubling the typical cab rates. I am happy to pony up as a thank you for hosting us all. Everyone is friendly and gracious and it’s obvious that Sundance is a huge chunk of Park City’s revenue each year.
The majority of films I’ll be seeing will be press and industry screenings at the Holiday Village Cinema, which is conveniently right across the street from the condo I’m renting with 5 other girls. One bedroom, one bathroom. Theoretically, a recipe for disaster, but not really when the only time I’m there is for 3 hours of sleep and a shower.
My first film is “California Solo,” written and directed by Marshall Lewy. A brief introduction by a cheery volunteer is followed by the Sundance intro that I will see another 11 times in the next four days (it’s played before each film). The movie is about Scotsman Lachlan MacAldonich, a washed-up musician living in America who gets a DUI that threatens his immigration status, and forces him to seek out past relationships he has long since buried. It has solid performances by Robert Carlyle and Alexia Rasmussen, a fresh face who is also featured in “The Comedy” at this year’s festival.
Paolo Sorrentino’s “This Must Be The Place” had three major things going for it, in my mind: Sorrentino’s first feature follow-up to 2008’s ‘Il Divo,’ Frances McDormand, plain and simple… and Sean Penn wearing lipstick. The premise was as bizarre as I could have hoped for, and Penn was hilarious as veteran rocker Cheyenne, a cross between Ozzy Osbourne and Edward Scissorhands.
By day two, documentary “The Queen of Versailles” had already amassed a lot of hubbub due to an impending legal battle brought on by the film’s subject, Westgate executive David Siegel. Siegel announced earlier this month that he is suing Robert Redford’s Sundance Institute and the film’s husband and wife filmmakers, Lauren Greenfield and Frank Evers, for defamation. The film’s premiere the night before only escalated the hype, and as a result the press and industry screening is packed to the gills. After seeing it I can only say I’m not surprised it was one of the first films at the festival to be snapped up for distribution (by Magnolia). The story of the Siegel family is a fascinating look into the very real addiction to cheap money that our culture is facing, and David’s wife, Jackie Siegel, emerges as the star, a loveable trainwreck with a heart just as big as her enormous fake breasts.
In search of a drink I inadvertently wandered into the afterparty for “Simon Killer,” written and directed by Borderline Films member Antonia Campos. The Borderline guys: Sean Durkin, Antonio Campos, and Josh Mond were at Sundance last year as well, when Durkin stepped up to the plate with “Martha Marcy May Marlene.” They also stopped by KCRW this year to sit down with Matt Holzman for and episode of The Business, and Durkin rode solo to talk with Elvis about “MMMM” for The Treatment. Unfortunately I did not get to see “Simon Killer,” but from what I heard, it’s creepy and captivating.
One of the highlights of my weekend was following the success of “Fishing Without Nets,” a short film that was produced and written by my friend from college, John Hibey and directed by Cutter Hodierne. “Fishing Without Nets” is a story about a group of pirates in Somalia, told from the perspective of the pirates. The scope of the film, for a short, is astounding, especially considering that John and Cutter essentially flew to Kenya with a bunch of equipment, not knowing the people or the language. They left having produced a film that was made possible only through the participation, support, and protection of the people. Technically, the film is awe-inspiring, but what’s even more amazing to me is how the filmmakers gained the trust of this community in order to tell their story. On Tuesday, “Fishing Without Nets” won the Grand Jury Prize for Short Filmmaking, which means that of the 7,675 shorts submitted and 64 selected, theirs was the best. John tells me that with their success at Sundance, they plan to return to Kenya and re-shoot the film as a feature.
All of the shorts were so impressive, and ranged from hilarious to perplexing to downright disturbing. My other favorite was “Las Palmas,” a film that cast a baby as a middle-aged woman on holiday having a crazy night out on the town. Through January 27th, Yahoo is streaming a select group of shorts online. Watch them here and vote for your favorite.
More to come!
Follow me on Twitter: @JennyKCRW
Like ‘The Treatment’ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCRWTheTreatment
Matt Holzman is the host of Matt's Movies, KCRW's film series for subscribers showcasing mostly smaller, indie and foreign film. He's also producer of The Business, public radio's program about the business of show business and has contributed stories about art and culture to PRI'S Studio 360 and more general pieces to Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Marketplace.
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