Talk is a public forum where you can ask questions and share your commentary with fellow Shootout fans.
I'm out of town during the festival, but I wish i could be there. I love how you can "celebrity-watch" just by walking down the street when everyone is out in the evening. Has anyone gone to premieres? Seen celebs? Been at the parties?
Let me live vicariously through you!
With Sundance behind us and Tribeca, Toronto and Cannes approaching quickly, we're entering the heart of film festival season. Time was, film festivals were a venue for independent filmmakers to show off their chops to an audience of professionals -- a chance to bring their work mainstream and find a modicum of success in such a brutal industry.
But for the past several years, this year being no exception, the buzz has all been focused on mainstream stars. At Sundance the big draws were Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind, which needed no further publicity given Gondry's credentials and the film's billing, and In Bruges, driven by A-listers Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson. At AFI Dallas much attention has been paid to Josh Brolin, the No Country for Old Men star whose short film X also played at South by Southwest. Even high-profile festivals like Cannes now tout the premieres of blockbusters like Indiana Jones in their lineup.
Do you think film festivals have become too Hollywood, or are they still accessible to independent filmmakers? Are festivals still valuable in showcasing independent films?
I am a big fan of No Country for Old Men, so I was obviously curious what Josh Brolin would do now that he's made a name for himself.
I have to say the video you have on your website of Brolin talking about the short film he directed, which played at South by Southwest, sounds pretty fascinating. I hadn't really heard anything about it, but in many ways it sounds like the same kind of movie as No Country -- a point Brolin even speaks to. I'm usually not into short films, but this one sure has me intrigued. My only complaint? After listening to Brolin talk about it, I want him to star in it!
Anyways, that's definitely the coolest thing I've seen come out of SXSW so far (other than the stuff that was also in Sundance, which I'm not counting). What do you guys think?
Now that the festival's over and the winners have been announced, it's fairly clear which indie films we'll be seeing in theaters this year. But we're still interested in what you thought of this year's festival -- did any of the winners surprise you? Which films are you most looking forward to seeing?
Here is your opportunity to talk about anything you want related to the Sundance Film Festival. What are you looking forward to? What films do you think will be disastrous? Which new actors deserve recognition, and which returning ones need to go? The sky's the limit. Talk it up.
On Shootout this week, Peter Guber and Peter Bart discussed film actresses breaking into television, and thus potentially damaging the indie-film industry. Interestingly enough, if you look at the crop of films at Sundance this year, the opposite could be taking place as well. Consider the case of Mischa Barton, who left a lucrative gig as the troublesome teen on FOX's The O.C. to pursue a film career, and has since been pretty much invisible. But now she's starring in one of the most talked-about films of the festival, Assassination of a High School President co-starring Bruce Willis of all people.
Adrian Grenier is in the same boat. Known as Entourage's leading man, Grenier is starring in Adventures of Power, a new film written and directed--and I swear I'm not making this up--by a man named Ari Gold.
What do you think? Are film artists flocking to television or is it the opposite? Who would you most like to see jump into another medium?
Sundance is often considered a place of discovery for new actors and filmmakers. But can a well-known actor be rediscovered here as well? Consider the case of Winona Ryder, who arguably hasn't had a commercially successful film since Girl, Interrupted.
In the meantime she's suffered embarrassments like Mr. Deeds and even more embarrassing personal dramas like the infamous shoplifting episode. Her Sundance film, The Last Word, has drawn significant buzz and is expected to be one of this year's crowd-pleasers. Factor in her upcoming turn as Spock's mother in the Star Trek prequel and you've got the makings of a Winona resurrection.
Sharon Stone is in a similar situation. Previous attempts to revive her career--Basic Instinct 2, anyone?--proved to be unmitigated disasters. She stars in The Year of Getting to Know Us, a dark comedy featuring such B -listers as Jimmy Fallon and Tom Arnold. Will three careers suddenly re-ascend?
Tom Sizemore, who made a name for himself a decade ago as the war hero in Saving Private Ryan, Pearl Harbor and Black Hawk Down then hit rock bottom with a heroin and methamphetamine addiction, documented in his VH1 reality series Shooting Sizemore. He's in Red this year, a film starring the always-excellent Brian Cox.
Who would you like to see make a comeback?
