Sundance 2011

Thursday, January 20, 2011.

Wecome to our 2011 Sundance Blog! Kristine and I flew in on Thursday afternoon and met up at the Salt Lake City airport. It was a beautiful day in Utah, cold and crisp but not uncomfortably so. We arrived at the Hampton Inn in Park City to find a member of Snoop Dogg's posse, Tha Dogg Pound, at the front desk checking in. His name was MacShawn100 and he was wearing some impressive bling. We chatted with Mr. Shawn and tried to score tickets to the sold out Snoop Dogg and Lil' Jon show at Harry O's. He said he would ask his manager Pam for some tickets for us, but we had to leave for a movie before Pam arrived back at the Hampton. You can see MacShawn100 here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaVIBRteG9M

Turns out that Snoop Dogg himself, Lil' Jon, and their respective posses roll Hampton Inn-style, yo.

We arrived in our room to find another fabulous gift basket from the Ryneska family.


As usual, we were starving and tore into it with glee. We then left to go to the Eccles Theatre to check out the opening night premiere of Pariah by director Dee Rees. We saw the short film version of Pariah at Sundance a couple of years ago, so it was good to see how it evolved into a feature. Dee Rees is a Spike Lee protege and very impressive young woman. Pariah is a semi-autobiographical film about a teenager named Alike living in New York City with her family and trying to figure out her identity. She is gay but doesn't fit into the lesbian community or the straight community around her. Ultimately, she finds freedom through her writing and figures out that she can just be herself. Dee Rees said during Q&A that she dealt with many of the same issues growing up and that her parents stopped having anything to do with her after she came out as gay. She said that recently she has been back in contact with her mother, but her father still refuses to acknowledge her or the film.

We'll post some video of the Pariah Q&A here soon.

After the film, we headed down to Main Street for a post-midnight dinner at Main Street Pizza and Noodles. Apparently, a lot of people had the same idea because we saw Ben Lyons from E! Entertainment News (son of movie critic Jeffrey Lyons), Lake Bell from the Meryl Streep film It's Complicated (she has a short at the festival this year), Cisco Adler, and Michael Rapaport. I have had a special dislike for Michael Rapaport ever since I read a really mean article he wrote about Natasha Lyonne in the May, 2005 issue of Jane Magazine. You can check out a copy of "Evicting Natasha" online if you want to see what a jerk he is. He also apparently stalked and harrassed the fabulous Lili Taylor a few years ago when she broke up with him. I had told Matt that I might have to hit him if I ran into him at Sundance, but I was able to restrain myself. He directed a doc about A Tribe Called Quest that is at the festival this year. He and his lady friend walked out at the same time we did, so we eavesdropped on their conversation as they walked down the street behind us. He sounded pretty friendly and was talking about how he didn't need to go shopping while he was in Park City because he had enough winter clothes. Hopefully he has reformed his jerky ways, but I still don't trust the guy.

We arrived back at the Hampton Inn to the overwhelming pungent smell of smoke, thanks to the Snoop Dogg and Lil' Jon posses. Kristine realized that when she had complained to the front desk about the odd herbal smell in our hallway earlier in the evening ("it smells like a fragrant cleaning agent or something"), MacShawn100 was sitting at the lobby computer right behind her and must have gotten pretty nervous. Kristine pressed the front desk hard enough to get a bottle of Febreze, but it occurred to us later that if she had pressed any harder she could have single-handedly brought down the whole Dogg Pound par-tay. Holla!

QUIZ EXTRA: Can you name that celebrity?

So...while wandering down Main St. after dinner on Saturday, we ran into this kind gentleman--a rather famous and prolific actor (mostly TV, I think). He gladly let us snap a photo with him. Sadly, for the life of us, neither Kathy nor I could remember his name.
Still can't.
Any guesses?

Saturday, January 23rd - Part 1

We started Saturday morning back at the Library Theater to see Shorts Program #1. There are four different short film programs at Sundance this year, but Shorts Program #1 has had the most buzz. The Sundance programmers even decided to show it on opening night, which is usually reserved for just one feature film. The four films in the program were: I'm Here by Spike Jonze, Seeds of the Fall by Patrik Eklund, The Fence by Rory Kennedy, and Logorama by Francois Alaux, Herve de Crecy, and Ludovic Houplain. All four films were excellent.

My clear favorite was Spike Jonze's film I'm Here. It was a brilliant, emotionally poignant story of a world inhabited by human beings and robots. The story revolves around the relationship between a male robot immersed in a humdrum existence and a female robot who introduces him to a more spontaneous and creative life. It was absolutely amazing that the filmmakers were able to capture such intense emotion through the eyes and interactions of creatures that basically looked like phone booths.

Kristine here: Honestly, I liked them all. But Logorama rose to the top for me. It broke through the other three with a bang--visually and aurally. It's basically a 15 min. animation where the world is made of logos, including the people. In fact, I've read they represented anywhere from 2,500-3,000 logos in the short (according to a Google study, the same number of logos we're exposed to each day). The look of the film is stunning. They combined very clean, simple lines and solid, bold colors with an animation style that gave the 2-D logos a very 3-D feel.

And then there's the story line, which read like a parody of any blockbuster action flick (think "Die Hard" or "Lethal Weapon" on steroids), with no shortage of sex, profanity and violence. Actually, the press write-up says it best:

"Logorama is...rife with car chases, natural disasters, and hostage-taking, but created entirely out of real world logotypes and brand characters. In it, you'll see the Michelin Man, the Haribo kid, Bob's Big Boy, Mr. Pringle and Ronald McDonald, but in some very unfamiliar roles playing the classic movie archetypes of good guys, bad guys and foils.”

What I found interesting was how some logos/brands were used literally (e.g., Hotwheels was actually a car) and some completely out of context (e.g., the MGM lion was just another animal in the zoo and not related to the film industry). Also, Kathy and I were both curious to know how the film-makers could've possibly gotten permission from the various corporate brands to use and manipulate the 3,000 trademarked logos. Hmmmm...maybe they didn't. (Unfortunately neither the producers nor directors attended the screening, otherwise we would've asked.)

And then, of course, there's the question of a bigger commentary the movie is likely trying to make-- about how brands have completely saturated our daily lives, or, perhaps, how Hollywood, specifically, has become a slave to the brand master.

Even if you don't get a bigger message out of the movie, it's worth at least one (or several viewings) simply for the entertainment value--and to see how many brands you can actually identify.

Kathy again: Rory Kennedy's film was a documentary about the so-called "fence to nowhere" the U.S. has built on the Mexico/Arizona border. The film illustrated the literal and figurative holes in our border with Mexico. Rory Kennedy was present at the screening and participated in the Q&A afterwards. She looks just like her dad, Bobby Kennedy. While she was speaking, it was hard not to think about all the tragedy she has experienced as a Kennedy. In addition to all the obvious losses, it was her wedding that JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy were headed to when their plane crashed. Such a sad history, but she seems like a resilient person. It is impressive that she has continued to make challenging documentaries that shed light on important social issues.

Seeds of the Fall was a sweet and quirky Scandinavian film about an older couple whose house is shaken off of its foundation when an ice cream truck crashes into it. In the aftermath of the crash, they meet their mysterious neighbors and end up getting a new lease on life.

After the Shorts Program, we headed down to the Egyptian Theater on Main Street to see the film All That I Love. The Egyptian is the quintessential Sundance venue: small, historic, and lots of character. As an added bonus, Cafe Bustelo had a stand set up inside the Egyptian where they were giving out free toboggan hats, espresso, and cafe con leche. All That I Love is a Polish film about teenagers living in Poland and coming of age in the early eighties. The main protagonist forms a punk band and falls in love in the midst of the political revolution taking place in the country. His father is a Communist general, and he falls in love with the daughter of a Socialist. His band, All That I Love, play songs that are critical of the status quo. The cinematography was stunning, with muted tones that suggested the dreariness of the times and damp, chilly weather of Poland. At the Q&A after the screening, the director said the film was basically autobiographical and that he drew directly from his memory of those times in his country. He said that fortunately, Poland is a much better country today and the dreams of the revolution have mostly been realized. The lead actors were all present for the Q&A. Kristine said the lead actor reminded her of a young Leonardo DiCaprio. They all seemed very excited to be at Sundance.

After the film, we headed over to one of our favorite Park City restaurants, The Eating Establishment, for an early lunch--and to fuel up for the the Joan Jett & the Heartbreakers show that night.

More about the Joan Jett show to come in a separate post. In the interim, here's a video extra.

VIDEO EXTRA:
Here's a bit of video Kathy captured of Paris Hilton and her BF at Harry O's during the Nas show. You'll see Paris in between the Cuervo signs towards the left of the screen during the first :20. Her head is above the crowd. (NOTE: Shots of the Harry O's go-go dancers during the last part of the video are bonus--no charge).

Friday: Video Extra

Main Street in the snow

The Fray at the ASCAP Music Cafe

Hoochie go-go dancers at the Nas show

Nas at Harry O's

Friday, January 22nd

Friday morning was brisk, snowy, and beautiful. We headed to the Library Theater in the morning to see the documentary Catfish. As we were walking in, we saw Morgan Spurlock, director of Super Size Me, who is also one of the Sundance judges this year.

I would encourage everyone to see Catfish as soon as possible. I don't want to go into too many details about the film because the twists and turns are what made it so great. I'll just say it delves into the complexities of internet relationships and is a touching testament to the bonds of friendship and brotherhood. The filmmakers were present, as was the subject of the film, Nev Schulman. It was absolutely riveting. The audience gave it a very long standing ovation--the only one of all the movies we attended. It has also been getting some of the best buzz among the folks here at Sundance.

After Catfish, we stayed at the Library and saw Life 2.0, a documentary about the video game/alternate reality site Second Life. The filmmaker made his own documentary filmmaker avatar and went throughout Second Life following certain characters both in and out of the game. Three main characters were featured: a man and woman who started a relationship in Second Life and left their respective spouses, only to find that real life is not as idyllic as a video game; a woman who lives in her parents' basement and makes a six figure salary as a Second Life merchant selling luxury houses, clothing, and skin care products to avatars; and a man who became addicted to Second Life after creating an avatar of an 11 year old girl, which ultimately cost him his relationship with his fiance and completely consumed his life. It was a fascinating concept for a documentary, but was not edited as well as we felt it could have been. It dragged in parts, but I was still glad I saw it because I didn't realize how detailed Second Life has become. It is fascinating that SL has its own economy that can be transferred to real money. The film also addressed the emerging legal issues related to new media. I would recommend that you see Life 2.0 before you decide to log on to Second Life, because SL can apparently change your life in ways you never expected.

After Life 2.0, we went to the ASCAP Music Cafe at Main Street to see The Fray. While we were waiting in line to get in, we made some new friends, Harry and Keegan. Harry and Keegan have a production company. Harry has been producing films for quite a few years, and Keegan recently got his MBA and now works with Harry at the production company. Harry produced The Eyes of Tammy Faye, one of my all-time favorite documentaries. He also produced Werner Herzog's recent film Rescue Dawn with Christian Bale. Harry and Keegan were very down to earth and funny. We enjoyed talking with them about the LA scene and the ups and downs of living and working with celebrities. Kristine also had a good time bantering with them about sports as she is wont to do.

The Fray gave a great show. As we were leaving the show, we were invited (read: hustled) into this room above the Music Cafe. We were plied with the promise of food and drinks, but it turned out that the only drinks were a variety of flavors of Vita Coco, one of the most disgusting drinks of all times. There are quite a few Vita Coco reps running around Sundance giving out samples of this nasty stuff. But the Vita Coco was far from the most surreal thing in the room. I asked Kristine how I should describe the reception, and she aptly pointed out that it was like a timeshare for Pieta molds. The folks hosting the reception have a license from the Vatican to recreate sculputures of the Pieta, the famous Michelangelo sculpture of Mary holding Jesus. So they have started producing 800 pound bright white resin sculptures of the Pieta. I guess they figured "what better place to sell resin Pietas than the Sundance Film Festival?" One of these sculptures was prominently displayed in the room, and we were informed that for a mere $250,000 we could have our very own. I am dying to know if they have actually unloaded any Pietas.

After the Pieta reception, Harry and Keegan offered to use their fabulous connections to get us in to Harry O's to see Nas. We all went out to 350 Main for dinner and then on to Harry O's. A little while after we arrived at Harry O's, Paris Hilton arrived with her entourage. Paris sashayed up to the very front next to the stage, spilling her drink on Kristine as she passed. Paris sat on someone's shoulders next to her boyfriend Doug Reinhardt, who was also sitting on someone's shoulders. Thinking back on this, it strikes me as odd that some guy let Doug Reinhardt, who is not a small man, sit on his shoulders all night. I wonder if there are people who get paid to let celebrities sit on their shoulders, sort of like those personal umbrella carriers. Nas gave a great show and there was much dancing and merriment at Harry O's.

After the Nas show, we split up with Harry and Keegan and went down Main Street to say hi to our friend and fellow Sundance enthusiast from Nashville, Clayton Cummings, and Clayton's friends from St. Louis, Charles and Abbie. We were tired by that point, so we pretty quickly got into a cab driven by the grumpiest cabbie in the world and headed back to the Hampton Inn. We are planning to get together with Charles and Abbie next time they come to visit Clayton in Nashville. We are going to take them to the Belcourt to prove that we have independent film in Tennessee, too.

Through all the excitement at Sundance, I am on pins and needles awaiting the impending arrival of my new niece/nephew, currently known as Purvis.

Sundance 2010, Day One

Sundance 2010 is here! Kristine and I met up in Denver and flew together to Salt Lake City. We took the shuttle into Park City with a guy who is going to write about his experiences at Sundance for a piece in the New York Observer. After we checked into our hotel, we went into town to pick up our tickets and have dinner. Today is the official opening day of Sundance. It looks like attendance is going to be up this year, and there is a definite buzz of excitement in the air. In addition to the film festival, the skiers are all excited because of the excellent snow. It was snowing tonight, and we are supposed to get another foot of snow tomorrow. As we were walking down Main Street, we passed Catherine Keener. Kristine and I recognized her at the same time, even though she was wearing a nondescript black jacket with the hood up and was walking by herself. I saw this as clear proof that our celebrity-spotting skills have been honed to perfection. Kristine and I are Catherine Keener fans, but we fought the urge to say "Catherine, we love you!" You may know her from Your Friends and Neighbors, Lovely & Amazing, Being John Malkovich, or the 40 Year Old Virgin, among many other fine films.

We are looking forward to a full day tomorrow of watching films and taking in the scene.

**Huge thanks to the Ryneska family for another fabulous Sundance goodie basket. Cheese, chocolate, fruit, wine, prosecco...mmmmmmm. And even truffled popcorn!

Gearing up for Sundance 2010!

Hi everyone! Kristine and I will be blogging again from Sundance 2010, from Thursday 1/21 to Sunday 1/24. Hope you will join us virtually to share in our celebrity sightings, movie reviews (we promise to do more this year) and general merriment in Park City, Utah. See you soon!

Day 5: Spongebob Squarepants and more T.O.

(by Kristine and Kathy)

To be honest, since we were traveling back to NC and TN on Day 5, we didn't think there'd be much to blog about. We were wrong...

The day started out a whirl of activity. Functioning on about 3 hours of sleep, we had to get showered, ready and pack--quickly--so that we'd have time to stop by the gifting/swag lodge before we headed to the airport (photo above is us wearing our access badges). Our schedule was tight, but thankfully a cab got us over to the Village at the Yard in a matter of minutes. Before we knew it, we were standing amidst a motley mix of brands (Fred Segal, Spongebob Squarepants/Nickelodeon, Drugstore.com/Beauty.com, T-Mobile, etc.) encouraging star endorsement and press coverage through generous swag bag giveaways. Being neither stars nor the media, vendors were less inclined to give us common folk anything of significant value, though we did score a bag full of drugstore.com beauty product samples and a T-Mobile bubble-wrapped s'more's kit, complete with graham crackers, marshmallows and a chocolate bar.

But the highlight for us was a very tasty lunch compliments of the T-Mobile Cafe. Feasting on a fancy chicken salad (me) and burger (Kathy), we took in the scene: a rather small and bare sun-filled room chock full of industry folk. Interestingly, though perhaps not surprisingly, we saw a lot of the same people who were at Tao the night before--including Terrell Owens (or "T.O." as Kristine the sports fan refers to him), who sat at the table right next to us. A couple of very nice gentlemen producers (whom Kristine had met at Tao) were also there and, recognizing Kristine from across the room (!?), came over for the requisite cheek-kiss greet on their way out. Oh, and Olivia Thirlby (you'd know her as Ellen Page's best friend in "Juno" and the lead in "Snow Angels") was also there looking very, well, starlet-esque, with a peaches & cream complexion and understated attire. She's one that lets her natural beauty serve as the telltale marker of her celebrity status.

As we headed to catch our cab back to the Hampton Inn & Suites, Kathy talked the Spongebob Squarepants rep into giving her a stuffed doll. That Evans charm works every time.

Our Sundance 2009 experience came to a close with one final celebrity encounter, this time with Mark McGrath, formerly lead singer of Sugar Ray and most recently a TV host. As he was heading in, we decided for once we should get a 'proper' celebrity photo--one with us in it as well. The best was when Kathy asked Mark "Can we be really cheesy for a minute and get a photo with you?" and he replied, "You're in luck, I happen to be in the cheesy business." He was much cooler and more down to earth in person than we would have imagined given his rock star heartthrob image.

After that, Kathy and I caught the shuttle back to the airport and very reluctantly parted ways.

Day 4: Tao and T.O.

post by Kathy

After sleeping in again, we headed to Main Street to see what was happening. We schmoozed our way into the Stella Artois Lounge, which is attached to the Tao nightclub where we saw all the stars the night before. There wasn't too much going on in the lounge, but there were free drinks and yummy steak and fries to snack on.
(Kristine snuck this self-portrait to prove we were really there!)

We then walked over to Tao--the nightclub hot spot that had been impossible to get into the night before. We overheard someone say that Ewan McGregor had just left, but we didn't actually see him.

We hung out at Tao, sipping drinks, watching the Steelers/Ravens game and making new friends before going over to the Eccles Theater to see "I Love You Phillip Morris", starring Ewan McGregor and Jim Carrey. Ewan and Jim were both present at the showing and stayed for the Q & A afterwards. Jim's girlfriend, Jenny McCarthy, was also there. Jenny is very, very blonde. You could see her hair glowing all the way from the back of the theater:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2v0o4FYko0

Here's Jim talking about the character he plays in the movie, which is based on a true story (warning: spoiler alert):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OB4Nw8DA0c


That's Ewan McGregor at the mic answering a question. Jim Carey is in the beige jacket and glasses to his left.

After the movie, we went over to Michael Lohan's party at the Butera Barclay lounge. The doors to the lounge were open, so we didn't have to use Michael's cell phone number after all. There were a lot of beautiful people at the party, but no famous faces. We stayed for a few minutes and then decided to move on. On our way out of the party, we stopped to talk to Michael, who was again very pleasant. He told us about some of his charitable causes, including assisting/rescuing child victims of human trafficking in Cambodia.

We went back over to Tao and, with some careful maneuvering and impeccable timing, we were amazingly able to get back in. The party was in full swing when we arrived. At Tao, we rubbed elbows with Terrell Owens, Ian Ziering, Slash, Danny Masterson, Alan Cumming, and Matisyahu. Kristine stood next to Terrell Owens for most of the night and, yes, he is that cut and his eyebrows are that coiffed--but he's not that tall. There were probably a lot of other stars there, but it was pitch black, packed full of people, and about 90 degrees, so not very conducive for celebrity spotting--or photo-taking. Kristine was chatted up at length by Alex Frost, star of Gus Van Sant's film, "Elephant" (he played one of the school shooters). Alex is headlining a movie at Sundance this year called "The Vicious Kind", which was produced by Neil LaBute. I'm a huge Neil LaBute fan and both Kristine and I love Gus Van Sant's films--but the topic of conversation with Alex focused more on his Portland, OR upbringing and his first Sundance experience and less on his work with these two masters, unfortunately. Maybe next time...
(For reference, here's a link to Alex's bio on IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/name/nm1372713/)

Tao was an amazing experience, but we decided that if we had the millions $$ that these celebrities have, we might choose to spend our time somewhere that is more climate-controlled and less permeated with hair product.

Day 3

post by Kathy

Saturday turned out to be a star-studded day for us. Kristine and I met up on Main Street, and she saw Tom Arnold on her way in. Tom was speed-walking and oddly not wearing a coat. Soon after that, we spotted Perry Farrell walking down the street with a Hollywood-looking young blonde woman. Perry looked surprisingly conservative, dressed in a J-Crew-esque turtleneck sweater.

We then went to see the film The Greatest, starring Susan Sarandon and Pierce Brosnan. Susan and Pierce both attended the screening and stuck around afterwards for the Q & A. Both of them looked amazing, and were even better-looking in person than they are in the movies (which is rare).

Zoe Kravitz, daughter of Lisa Bonet and Lenny Kravitz, also had a small role in the movie, and she was present as well.

We will review all the movies in a later post, since we are eager to get back downtown.

After The Greatest, we stayed at the Eccles Theater to see 500 Days of Summer, starring Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. We stepped over Emily Blunt to get to our seats, and Kristine asked Emily if the seats next to her were taken. Emily indicated that they were taken, and we later saw that one of them was occupied by her boyfriend, John Krasinski, who you will know as Jim from The Office. When people realized that John was in the audience, a couple of ladies went up and had their pictures taken with him. He seemed friendly but looked like he is not quite comfortable with his star status yet.

We completed our three movie marathon at Eccles with Spread, starring Ashton Kutcher and Anne Heche. Because we had been at the earlier movie, we were close to the front of the line to enter the theater for Spread, so we had fantastic seats near the front. As we were waiting for the movie to begin, Kristine pointed out that Anthony Kiedis from the Red Hot Chili Peppers was standing and talking to a short woman with long dark hair. Kristine again demonstrated her newly honed star-spotting acumen by noting, "I think Anthony is talking to Soleil Moon Frye." Sure enough, Kristine had correctly identified Punky Brewster just by seeing 1/3 of her face in profile.

The next person to enter the theater was Demi Moore, followed by Anne Heche and James Tupper from Men in Trees. Anne and James are expecting, and Anne was glowing. Demi also looked fabulous in person. The people sitting next to us commented that she "has had a lot of work done," but I must say that it was very good work. Ashton entered the theater and took the stage to introduce the movie. Ashton looked exactly like you would expect him to look--well-dressed in designer clothes topped off with a toboggan.

After the movie, we went downtown and saw that there was some hubbub going on at the Park City incarnation of the nightclub Tao that is built just for the festival. We stood outside of Tao for almost an hour as the stars streamed by us. We saw Ashton, Demi, and Anne Heche again, but this time it was super close-up. Ashton stayed outside and smoked a cigarette with Joe Francis (the weird Girls Gone Wild guy) while Demi went inside. We also saw Nicky Hilton and David Katzenberg, Slash from Guns and Roses, Alan Cumming, and Gael Garcia Bernal. The highlight of the Tao experience, however, was undoubtably Kristine's up close and personal exchange with Sting as he was walking right by us with his wife Trudie Styler. Kristine pulled up her camera to take a picture, and Sting saw her with the camera. Sting looked surprised (since there was no actual paparazzi present), but he then stopped and graciously posed for her. Kristine got a bit flustered and said to him, "I'm so sorry, but I am just completely starstruck." Sting looked amused by her honest comment and then walked on into Tao with Trudie.

Some videos for your viewing pleasure:

Athony Kiedis at "Spread":

Here's Anne Heche taking her seat at the "Spread" premier (wait for it...wait for it...):

Ashton Kutcher responding to an audience question about what attracted him to the role of an L.A. lethario who uses his youth and good looks to con wealthy--and beautiful--women into giving him sex and money. Really?

Demi Moore at the "Spread" premier:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PHT3V9-2Lw

John Krasinski heading back to his seat just before the start of "Spread". It's pretty dark since we're in the very back of the theater, but he's the tall guy in the ball cap. And to think we almost ended up sitting right next to him...*sigh*...

Cast from "500 Days of Summer", including the ever-charming Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, answer questions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw-1NqY-uak

Day 2: Movies, sushi and...Michael Lohan?

Day 2: Movies, Sushi and...Michael Lohan?
(from Kristine)

Today was the first, full day of the festival, so, naturally, Kathy and I slept through half of it (we were out until 2 a.m. on Thursday, what do you expect?). But it was much needed rest, since, thanks to a clueless bus driver, we ended up having to literally sprint to the premier showing of "Brooklyn's Finest"--a movie we did NOT want to be late for. (That's the one starring Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke, Don Cheadle and Wesley Snipes. More on that later...)
Our first movie was a documentary called "Boy Interrupted" written, shot and directed by the parents of the movie's subject: their 15 year-old son--a wonderfully interesting and creative boy whose battle with bipolar depressive disorder tragically ended in suicide. Yes, it was depressing, but it was also enlightening and moving. I actually experienced two Sundance 'firsts' at that screening:
1) I got to see the first documentary to be premiered at the brand new Temple Theatre.
2) I got to see an audience clap in appreciation and agreement when a fellow audience member (in this case KATHY!) made a comment to the director after the movie.

After the show we took the (errant) shuttle to go see "Brooklyn's Finest". It was a full house at the Eccles Theater, but thankfully Kathy and I found two seats together. This movie was a "corrupt cop" drama by the same director who did "Training Day." It was good and entertaining, though more mainstream-feeling. We were hoping to see all the lead actors there, but Richard Gere and Ethan Hawke didn't show. However, Don Cheadle and Wesley Snipes did--and Spike Lee was also in the house.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFA0Lz0FnbA

By the time we got out of that show we were starving so we headed to Oishi for a sushi dinner. Yum! (Sidenote: On the shuttle back to Main St. we chatted with some AP/Wire photogs who said that the festival has definitely downsized this year. Apparently sponsorship has fallen nearly 75% and attendence is lower as well. Venues and restaurants are not as crowded. There are still quite a few people, but it does feel more low-key. It seems the recession--plus the pending inauguration--have changed people's priorities this year.)

Since we didn't get a chance to stroll Main St. and celebrity-search before our movies, we decided give it a look-see after dinner before we headed back to the hotel.

Quick observation: Despite the fact that it gets down into the teens here at night, some people (read: ladies) choose to go with form over function when dressing for a night on the Park City town. See photo at left.

Kathy's new BFF--Michael Lohan

(post by Kathy)

We were strolling down Main Street when Kristine said, "Hey, isn't that Lindsay Lohan's dad?" She nodded toward a little coffee shop. Sure enough, Kristine had spotted a celebrity's father through a window. I was so proud of how she has honed her celebrity-spotting skills and knowledge since last year ("Cisco Adler--who is that??") In my world, you are a bona fide celebrity if you have ever graced the pages of In Touch magazine.

I immediately remembered that one of the hottest celebrity parties this year is the Michael Lohan charity bash on Sunday night. People were selling invites to this party online for big bucks. Thinking quickly, I said, "Hey, why don't we go in and see if he has any extra tickets to his party?" We entered the coffee shop and got in line, which positioned us right next to Lohan and the guy he was talking to.

As soon as there was a break in his conversation, I walked over to Michael Lohan and said, "Hi, I was wondering if you happen to have any extra tickets to your party?" He smiled really big and said, "Oh, we were so surprised at how fast it booked up, so there aren't any tickets left." We chatted for a couple of minutes, and he was very nice. He said his publicist is from Nashville. At the end of the conversation, he said, "Well, come by the party Sunday night and ask for me, and I'll come out and let you two in." I thanked him and started to walk back over to Kristine. He then said "Kathy" and motioned me back over. He said, "Hey, let me give you my cell phone number so you can call when you get there, because they might not be able to find me." He then had me program his number into my phone and call his phone to make sure it was entered correctly.

So Michael Lohan is now included in the Contact list on my cell phone.

I told Kristine later that I am now Michael Lohan's Number 1 Fan. Don't believe anything you read on D-Listed about him, Josh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1twxG5azeP0

Day 1, continued

We took a cab to Main Street with a glamorous LA girl who was going to get her nails done. She lamented that "I decided to take cabs this year instead of getting a car and driver like I have in the past. It was always just so many thousands of dollars when I got the bill...I would forget that it was $150/hour, even when you just had the driver sitting and waiting for hours." Wow, tough life.

We arrived on Main Street and picked up our tickets. Park City was very quiet. Instead of the usual festive activity, we saw people setting up the party tents and arranging interview areas. This is the first time we have been there on opening night, and it was a much different vibe. There were no celebrities around, but we did get to eat at a great bistro that usually has lines out the door.

We went to the opening night movie (2nd showing) of Mary and Max, the claymation movie with voices by Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Toni Collette. The filmmakers were there and spoke before the movie, but Phillip Seymour and Toni did not show up. We thought they had probably been there for the earlier showing, but we found out they were not at that one either. It turns out that the filmmakers were the real stars anyway, because the stop-action claymation and story were incredible. We'll do a separate posting where we review the movies. As someone was leaving the theater, he aptly commented, "If the festival ended right now, I would be happy." We were in complete agreement with that sentiment.

We then decided to take the shuttle to the Opening Night Gala at Legacy Lodge, even though we had not been able to score tickets beforehand. Since it was already midnight, we thought we might be able to finagle our way into the party. As luck would have it, we were walking in right behind some crew members from Max and Mary. They saw that there was a line to go into the party and decided to bail. As they were walking out, I asked if we could have there tickets and they said "Sure!" So we got into the opening party!

Since it was so late, we did not see any celebrities at the party, but there was good food, drink, and of course amazing people-watching opportunities. As I always imagined, if you can get into these parties, you get to sample great things like baklava-flavored ice cream.

Check out the video below that Kristine took from the balcony of the party:

As a quick aside, I encourage everyone to go out and immediately purchase a box of Carr's Ginger Lemon Cremes. There were some included in our basket from the Ryneska family, and they are my new favorite cookie. Cindy P., I know you like those Newman ginger cookies, but imagine the same thing but 10 times better!

We're here!

posted by Kathy

Flying over Salt Lake City

Day 1:

Kristine and I flew into Salt Lake City this afternoon. The view from the plane was stunning. We then took a shuttle to our hotel, the Hampton Inn in Park City, with some other festival-goers. One of the ladies, who had to be in her 80s at least, said "yeah...you can get hooked on cocaine, or you can get hooked on film festivals."

on the shuttle

our cozy room--thanks Matt!

When we got to the hotel, we checked in and received a suprise delivery from the Ryneska family which we immediately attacked with glee. Thanks Ryneska family!

Gift basket--before and after

Now that we've settled in, we're going to catch the bus into town to pick up our tickets and check out the 'haps'. More updates once we have a lay of the land.

P.S. from Kristine:

The Beautiful People

Seems like they're everywhere here--even in the airport. Check out the "model boy" chilling on the bench outside Terminal 1. Don't worry, Matt, Kathy didn't even notice him.

An Appetizer (from 2008 Sundance)

post from Kristine

Here's a quick, little video we took of Paris Hilton shopping (read: picking up swag) at Fred Segal last year. A couple of things to note:

1) I took this with my digital (3.1 MP) camera, hence the poor quality. I'm going armed with a much better camera this year, thanks to my sister Kim and her BF Ashby. So unless user error gets in the way (as it did when I attempted to take a photo of William H. Macy and, amidst all my fumbling to get my camera powered up and focused, all I could say was "I would take a picture, but I'm too nervous." Way to capture the moment. Uggh.), then we should be good to go.

2) That's me you hear shouting "C'mere, give us something. Gorgeous! Gorgeous!" Obviously I'm just playing along with all the other paparazzi that surrounded us. I mean, c'mon, 'gorgeous'?Really?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yiRSx-rO1s

T minus 3 days and counting!

Kristine and I leave for Park City, Utah, on Thursday, January 15th to attend the Sundance Film Festival for the second year in a row. I first attended Sundance in 2005 and have been back every year since. Last year, I convinced Kristine to accompany me. We had an amazing time, even though I was in the throes of my pregnancy. The belly actually served us quite well in getting seated at the best restaurants. Somehow, an obviously pregnant woman loudly proclaiming "I'm hunnnngggry" tends to make hosts very uncomfortable and eager to seat you at a table at the back of the restaurant--which happens to be the best location for celebrity-watching. I didn't think I would be able to go to Sundance again this year for obvious reasons, but my wonderful husband and his mom have agreed to assume full time Lyla duty while I get my much-needed indie film and Kristine fix for the year.

After the adventures we had at Sundance last year (Paris Hilton! William H. Macy!), Kristine and I thought it would be fun to include our friends in the excitement through this blog. We'll keep you updated on the films, the buzz, and the celebrity sightings (fingers crossed), as we travel once more to Park City, Utah, where the weather is cold but the action is hot!

We have tickets for Thursday night--the Opening Night film, Mary and Max--starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Toni Collette.

Sundance Film Festival Guide review of Mary and Max:

{Mary and Max} is unique. A claymation animation by Academy Award–winning filmmaker Adam Elliot (Harvie Krumpet), it tells the simple story of a 20-year pen-pal friendship between two very different people: Mary Dinkle, a chubby, lonely 8-year-old girl living in the suburbs of Melbourne, and Max Horowitz, a 44-year-old Jewish man, who is severely obese, suffers from Asperger’s syndrome, and lives an isolated life in New York City. It is very much a triumph of emotion, insight, and eccentricity—a complete delight.Animation's ability to capture the intricate complexity of life has never been on display in as absorbing fashion as with the storytelling of this Australian filmmaker, who truly makes you forget what you are watching. The originality of the voices in this ever-spinning kaleidoscope of innocence and idiosyncrasy comes straight from an incredibly rich imagination and complete artistic vision. This desire for acceptance and love amid the pain of existence is masterfully narrated by Barry Humphries and fleshed out by the voices of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Toni Collette.This film that explores friendship, autism, taxidermy, psychiatry, alcoholism, where babies come from, obesity, kleptomania, trust, copulating dogs, sexual and religious differences, agoraphobia, and more, and is rooted in a very personal relationship, is proof of why we go to the movies and a truly exceptional portrait of compassion and love.CASTToni Collette, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Barry Humphries, Eric Bana
Adam Elliot - Academy Award–winning writer/director Adam Elliot is a celebrated independent animator. His films—Uncle, Cousin, Brother and Harvie Krumpet—have participated in more than 500 film festivals and won more than 100 awards, including the Academy Award for best animated short film in 2004 for Harvie Krumpet. The film also won a FIPRESCI Prize and an honorable mention at Sundance, where it screened in 2004. All four films have won the Australian Film Institute's award for the best short animated film of their year. Mary and Max is Elliot's first feature film.