Finding New Talent In Focus as Sundance Returns… ‘Less Emphasis on Stars’…
After two years of being virtual-only, the Sundance Film Festival returns — at least, partially — to an in-person format. And the return to Park City comes with a whole lot of questions.
“We’ve been back at Cannes, we’ve been back at Toronto, but we haven’t yet been back to Sundance. And, for us, Sundance is the Super Bowl of festivals. It’s really the most important festival for domestic buyers,” notes IFC Films president Arianna Bocco.
The Hollywood Reporter spoke to some two dozen Sundance veterans — including distributors, producers, and sales agents — and top of mind for attendees are questions about the festival’s commitment to a hybrid format, the shake-up in the programming team, and, of course, what a return to in-person screenings will mean for the market. Ask Sight Unseen’s Julia Lebedev, “Is it gonna be the same feeling in the room?”
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Like the rest of the industry, COVID-19 prompted changes for the Sundance Film Festival. Since 2020, outside of pivoting to a digital format, the festival has seen turnover within its ranks, with New York Film Festival’s Eugene Hernandez coming in as festival director, replacing Tabitha Jackson, who stepped down after only two years.
While other festivals have abandoned digital offerings as festivalgoers return to on-the-ground attendance, Sundance announced that the …