The scene

Share this page

Korean Film Festival photograph courtesy of Clayton Chase

Lights on Park City

Lucire returns to the Sundance Film Festival, the first time since 2004. Lola Saab reports on the event’s festivities

Top The Korean Film Festival was one of the events at Sundance. Centre Michael Foster with the mayor of Park City, Utah, Dana Williiams, courtesy of Eco Hideaway and photographed by Zach Johnson. Above The Emerging Women in Independent Film panel, sponsored by Acura.

Vincent de Paul, the actor and producer of Walk a Mile in My Pradas and Silver Case, once explicitly described the main purpose of the Sundance Film Festival: ‘Sundance is a celebration for filmmakers, writer’s actors, cinematographers and artists …’ It unites films from various genres and allows filmmakers to express their inner creativity.

In many ways, fashion and film are one of the same; while a model sets the scene on the runway, an actor does the same on the big screen. Movies reveal intensely detailed descriptions, or at least unique interpretations of them, that books tend to conceal.

A number of guests impatiently wait for the popular American annual event to take place in Utah, situated west of the United States. The event is considered one of the largest film festivals in the country. It opened its doors in 1978, promoting American films, expanding attendees’ horizons from beyond the Hollywood scene.

Sundance is a great opportunity for many independent filmmakers to receive recognition for their artistic ideas on the silver screen. The talented American actor, film director and producer, Robert Redford, founded the Sundance Film Festival and the event lives on to this very day, attracting people in and around the industry to discover a new take on films.

No matter how cold it gets, or even how much it snows in Utah, the show must go on! This year, the unforgettable event kicked off on Thursday, January 17 for an 11-day sensation. Amongst the hustle and bustle of the busy week, the event brings people together to discover new endeavours that hide behind cameras. Guests had the opportunity to sit back in between their busy schedule and mingle in a number of lounges, including the Eco Hideaway Lounge.

There were almost 120 films screened, a number of which were world premières. There were 19 members of the jury selected from the film community, choosing their desired big screen features. American actor–producer Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the host of the 2013 awards’ ceremony on January 26. To begin, the US Grand Jury Prize in the Dramatic category went to 26-year-old filmmaker Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale.

Other prizes went to:

Documentary: Blood Brothers, directed by Steve Hoover
World Cinema Dramatic: Jiseul, directed by Muel O.
World Cinema Documentary: A River Changes Course, directed by Kalyanee Mam

The Audience Awards went to:

US Dramatic: Fruitvale
US Documentary: Blood Brother
World Cinema Dramatic: Metro Manila, directed by Sean Ellis
World Cinema Documentary: The Square, directed by Jehane Noujaim
Best of NEXT: This Is Martin Bonner, directed by Chad Hartigan

Additional prizes in other categories were announced, including directing, cinematography, and editing, and the Special Jury and Short Film Jury awards.

As this year’s event comes to a close, we already look forward for next year’s Sundance Film Festival to take centre-stage in its hometown of Park City, Utah. •

Top Rami Jaffe taking a look at the Minky Couture blankets and scarves (photograph courtesy of Eco Hideaway). Centre Shar Jackson on the Eco Hideaway red carpet. Above Julianne Moore at Sundance, having had a gluten-free lunch at Udi’s Gluten Free Table, a pop-up restaurant.



Related articles hand-picked by our editors
Translating Grammy glamour to year-round enjoyment The Grammy Awards and the party scene were back in a happy place this year, with good cheer and upbeat fashion finds, reports Elyse Glickman	Winning habits Celebrities kick off 2013 and its awards’ season with a variety of luxurious products benefiting skin, hair, inner health and inner peace, observes Elyse Glickman photographed by the author and by Carell Augustus	The sound of concern Elyse Glickman and Elva Zevallos attend GBK’s 2012 American Music Awards lounge, with relief efforts for Hurricane Sandy and the American Red Cross in focus

The global fashion magazine

Lola Saab is Paris editor of Lucire.