The 2016 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 21st through the 31st in Park City, Utah. The festival is a destination for both up-and-coming and veteran filmmakers, and has earned a reputation as a showcase for some of the most critically acclaimed and Oscar-worthy films of the year. This year, out of the 12,793 submissions they received, the Sundance committee has selected just over 200 feature length and short films to play at the festival. From all of this, there is sure to be plenty of studio deals, bidding wars, trailers, clips and news — and we’re here to give you a daily wrap up of all the big developments from Park City. (And don’t forget to check out our exclusive party and event grid!)
Some studios and distributors couldn’t wait to get their hands on certain films, so plenty of acquisitions were made before the festival even started. The days leading up to the festival also presented a host of trailers and clips from some of the most anticipated films including a look at the Sandy Hook doc, Newton, the unconventional father-son Cuban drama, Viva and the first trailer at the nerdy sex comedy from India, Brahman Naman. Read about all the deals and watch the trailers below.
DEALS
COMPLETE UNKNOWN
Synopsis: When Tom and his wife host a dinner party to celebrate his birthday, one of their friends brings a date named Alice. Tom is convinced he knows her, but she’s going by a different name and a different biography— and she’s not acknowledging that she knows him.
Category: Premieres
Director: Joshua Marston
Cast: Danny Glover, Kathy Bates, Michael Chernus, Michael Shannon, Rachel Weisz
Purchased by: Amazon (U.S. rights only)
THE FITS
Synopsis: In this psychological portrait, Toni, an 11-year-old tomboy, is assimilating into a tight-knit dance team in Cincinnati’s West End when a mysterious outbreak of fainting spells plagues the team, and her desire for acceptance is twisted.
Category: NEXT
Director: Anna Rose Holmer
Cast: Alexis Neblett, Da’Sean Minor, Inayah Rodgers, Lauren Gibson, Makyla Burnam, Royalty Hightower
Purchased by: Oscilloscope Laboratories
FUNDAMENTALS OF CARING
Synopsis: Having suffered a tragedy, Ben becomes a caregiver to earn money. His first client, Trevor, is a hilarious 18-year-old with muscular dystrophy. One paralyzed emotionally, one paralyzed physically, Ben and Trevor hit the road, finding hope, friendship, and Dot in this funny and touching inspirational tale.
Category:Premieres
Director: Rob Burnett
Cast: Craig Roberts,Frederick Weller, Jennifer Ehle, Megan Ferguson, Paul Rudd, Selena Gomez
Purchased by: Netflix (Worldwide subscription VOD rights only, theatrical still open)
JIM
Synopsis:The public execution of American conflict journalist James Foley captured the world’s attention, but he was more than just a man in an orange jumpsuit. Seen through the lens of his close childhood friend, Jim moves from adrenaline-fueled front lines and devastated neighborhoods of Syria into the hands of ISIS.
Category: U.S. Documentary Competition
Director: Brian Oakes
Cast: Brian Oakes, Chris Chuang, Heather MacDonald
Purchased by: HBO Documentary Films
LOVE & FRIENDSHIP
Synopsis: From Jane Austen’s novella, the beautiful and cunning Lady Susan Vernon visits the estate of her in-laws to wait out colorful rumors of her dalliances and to find husbands for herself and her daughter. Two young men, handsome Reginald DeCourcy and wealthy Sir James Martin, severely complicate her plans.
Category: Premieres
Director: Whit Stillman
Cast: Chloe Sevigny, Emma Greenwell, Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Fry, Tom Bennett, Xavier Samuel
Purchased by: Amazon and Roadside Attractions
SAND STORM
Category: World Cinema Dramatic Competition
Synopsis: When their entire lives are shattered, two Bedouin women struggle to change the unchangeable rules, each in her own individual way.
Director: Elite Zexer
Cast: Haytham Omari, Jalal Masarwa, Khadija Alakel, Lamis Ammar, Ruba Blal-Asfour
Purchased by: Beta Cinema
TALLULAH
Synopsis: A rootless young woman takes a toddler from a wealthy, negligent mother and passes the baby off as her own in an effort to protect her. This decision connects and transforms the lives of three very different women.
Category: U.S. Dramatic Competition
Director: Sian Heder
Cast: Allison Janney, Ellen Page, Evan Jonigkeit, Tammy Blanchard, Uzo Aduba
Purchased by:: Netflix (VOD rights only, theatrical rights still open)
UNDER THE SHADOW
Synopsis: Tehran, 1988: As the Iran-Iraq War rumbles into its eighth year, a mother and daughter are slowly torn apart by the bombing campaigns on the city coupled with the country’s bloody revolution. As they struggle to stay together amidst these terrors, a mysterious evil stalks through their apartment.
Category: Midnight
Director: Babak Anvar
Cast: Arash Marandi, Avin Manshadi, Bobby Nderi, Narges Rashid, Ray Haratian
Purchased by: Netflix (VOD rights only, theatrical rights still open)
WEINER
Synopsis: With unrestricted access to Anthony Weiner’s New York City mayoral campaign, this film reveals the human story behind the scenes of a high-profile political scandal as it unfolds, and it offers an unfiltered look at how much today’s politics are driven by an appetite for spectacle.
Category: U.S. Documentary Competition
Director: Elyse Steinberg and Josh Kriegman
Purchased by: IFC and Showtime
ACQUISITION TALLY AS OF JANUARY 22, 2016:
Amazon: 2
Beta Cinema: 1
HBO: 1
IFC: 1
Netflix: 3
Oscilloscope Laboratories: 1
Roadside Attractions: 1
Showtime: 1
TRAILERS AND CLIPS
AGNUS DEI — Official Trailer
Synopsis: 1945 Poland: Mathilde, a young French doctor, is on a mission to help World War II survivors. When a nun seeks her assistance in helping several pregnant nuns in hiding, who are unable to reconcile their faith with their pregnancies, Mathilde becomes their only hope.
Category: Premieres
Director: Anne Fontaine
Writers: Alice Vial, Pascal Bonitzer, Sabrina B. Karine
Cast: Agata Buzek, Agata Kulesza, Joanna Kulig, Katarzyna Darbowska, Lou de Laage, Vincent Macalgne
LO AND BEHOLD: REVERIES OF THE CONNECTED WORLD — Official Trailer
Category: Documentary Premieres
Synopsis: Does the internet dream of itself? Explore the horizons of the connected world.
Director: Werner Herzog
VIVA — Official Trailer
Synopsis: In contemporary Cuba, a father and son struggle to escape from each other’s expectations, duty, and the burden of past sins.
Category: Spotlight
Director: Paddy Breathnach
Writer: Mark O’Halloran
Cast: Alberto Garcia, Hector Medina, Jorge Perugorria
GREEN ROOM — Official Trailer
Category: Spotlight
Synopsis: This wickedly fun horror-thriller tells a story about the owner of a neo-Nazi club who squares off against an unsuspecting but resilient young punk band after they witness a horrific act of violence.
Director/writer: Jeremy Saulnier
Cast: Alia Shawkat, Anton Yelchin, Callum Turner, Imogen Poots, Joe Cole, Patrick Stewart
UNCLE HOWARD — Official Trailer
Synopsis: Howard Brookner’s first film, Burroughs: The Movie, captured the cultural revolution of downtown New York City in the early ‘80s. Twenty-five years after his promising career was cut short by AIDS, his nephew sets out to discover Howard’s never-before- seen films to create a cinematic elegy about his childhood idol.
Category: U.S. Documentary Competition
Director: Aaron Brookner
Cast: Jim Jarmusch, Madonna, Robert Wilson, Sara Driver, Tom DiCillo, William S. Burroughs
SNOWTIME! — Official Trailer
Synopsis: To amuse themselves during their winter break from school, the kids in a small village have a massive snowball fight. But what starts out as pure youthful fun and enthusiasm deteriorates into a more serious conflict as the children learn the role that love and friendship play in their lives.
Category: Sundance Kids
Director: Francois Brisson and Jean-Francois Poullot
Cast: Angela Gallupo, Don Shepherd, Lucinda Davis, Ross Lynch, Sandra Oh, Sonja Ball
SING STREET — Official Trailer
Synopsis: A boy growing up in Dublin during the ‘80s escapes his strained family life and tough new school by starting a band to win the heart of a beautiful and mysterious girl.
Category: Premieres
Director/writer: John Carney
Cast: Aidan Gillen, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Jack Reynor, Lucy Boynton, Mark McKenna
EMBRACE OF THE SERPENT — Official Trailer
Synopsis: This blistering, poetic story is inspired by the original journals of scientists Theodor Koch Grünberg and Richard Evans Schultes, who meet lone survivor Karamakate, an Amazonian shaman. Over 40 years, they develop a friendship while traveling through the Colombian Amazon in search of the sacred, psychedelic yakruna plant.
Category: Spotlight
Director: Ciro Guerra
Writers: Ciro Guerra, Jacques Toulemonde Vidal
Cast: Antonio Bolivar, Brionne Davis, Jan Bijvoet, Miguel Dionisio Ramos, Nibio Torres
NEWTON – Clip
Synopsis: After joining the ranks of a growing club no one wants to belong to, the people of Newtown, Connecticut, weave an intimate story of resilience. This film traces the aftermath of the worst mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history as the traumatized community finds a new sense of purpose.
Category: U.S. Documentary Competition
Director: Kim A. Snyder
THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE — Official Trailer
Synopsis: Law student Christine Reade is introduced to the world of transactional relationships
in this original anthology series. Providing “The Girlfriend Experience”—an emotional and sexual relationship offered at a high price—gives Christine a rush of control and intimacy, but she soon finds herself juggling two very different lives.
Category: Special Events
Executive Producers: Amy Seimetz, Gary Marcus, Jeff Cuban, Lodge Kerrigan, Philip Fleishman
Directors/writers: Amy Seimetz, Lodge Kerrigan
Cast: James Gilbert, Kate Lyn Sheil, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Paul Sparks, Riley Keough
SOPHIE AND THE RISING SUN — Clip
Synopsis:In a small Southern town in the autumn of 1941, Sophie’s lonely life is transformed when an Asian man arrives under mysterious circumstances. Their love affair becomes the lightning rod for long-buried conflicts that erupt in bigotry and violence with the outbreak of World War II.
Category: Premieres
Director/writer: Maggie Greenwald
Cast: Diane Ladd, Joel Murray, Julianne Nicholson, Lorraine Toussaint, Margo Martindale, Takashi Yamaguchi
BRAHMAN NAMAN — Teaser Trailer
Synopsis: When Bangalore University’s misfit quiz team manages to get into the national championships, they make an alcohol-fueled, cross-country journey to the competition, determined to defeat their arch-rivals from Calcutta while all desperately trying to lose their virginity.
Category: World Cinema Dramatic Competition
Director: Q
Writer: S. Ramachandran
Cast: Chaitanya Varad, Shashank Arora, Sid Mallya, Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy, Tanmay Dhanania, Vaiswath Shankar
See all of our preview posts for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, and catch up with our full coverage of the festival in our other Sundance Spotlights!
For a complete list of festival films and details, visit sundance.org.
