Breaking News Breaking Down

Mike Receiving Award at Sundance

Sundance. All you have to say is that one word. It conjures up so much for so many. It’s our Cannes. I must say it is quite daunting. So much snow, and so cold. There are buses to catch, lines to enter…and the list goes on and on. 

It’s a unique place. At one time I’m standing in a restaurant gazing at the ingredients available at the Bloody Mary bar. There is a woman standing next to me. She glances at me, and I don’t pay attention. I’m surprised at all the items, jalapenos, green olives, asparagus, it’s an impressive spread. I elect to go to the bathroom and mull over whether or not I want to take the plunge and get one, or order something else. When I return to our table I have finally made up my mind. I’m going to get a beer I say. 

My wife says, “Do you know who was standing next to you?” 

“No just some woman” 

“It was Katherine Heigl.” 

That’s Sundance for you. People you would only see in a tube or on the big screen are everywhere. I’m not sure any of them like it. My wife said that Heigl looked at the ground as she made her way back to her table. She was trying not to call attention to herself. Just a day later, there is a look of annoyance on the face of Collin Hanks, as he makes his way across the street right in front of us. Cameras and gawkers are everywhere. We make our way down Main Street and a collection of women coo….they are delighted to get their picture taken with three big strapping men. One woman asks me, “Who are these guys?” I utter “I don’t know.” She shrugs her shoulders. You can tell looking at her that it doesn’t matter. She hands her camera to a friend. She’ll get her picture taken with the guys and figure out who they are later. 

I’ve come to Park City to pick up an award from Moving Pictures Magazine. Breaking News, Breaking Down has been selected as one of the three best documentary shorts of 2009. The Party is a great deal of fun. The Magazine has already posted some material to their website, with more to come. http://www.movingpicturesfilmcontest.com/winners2009.html  

View more images from the awards ceremony:

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This is the latest wonderful surprise supplied by this short film. Just last month I was asked to write an essay on the film and the reaction to it for the Nieman Reports published by Harvard. http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/reportsitem.aspx?id=101961  

The film to me has become even more timely with the images emerging from Haiti. It’s obvious the journalists there watching the horror unfold will carry those images with them forever. The Party is wonderful, and like most film festivals…it’s the chance to talk to other writers and directors that is the most fun. It’s one of two parties we attend while we are here. We get a chance to meet the people who program the Zurich Film Festival in Switzerland. They ask for copies of my work, which I dutifully drop off at their hotel the next day. 

Of course a lot of people want to catch the premieres of the big new feature films. For me I’d much rather take in a steady diet of documentaries. We see four films in all. We really enjoy two of them, but two we don’t like so much. But I guess that’s what the programmers are after. They want to offer a wide array of thought provoking material. But I have to say one film we watched midday was so bad that both Kate and I fell asleep. Not once, not twice, but three times. Fortunately neither of us snored. I won’t mention the name of the film…but it wasn’t just bad, it was brutal. My favorite film was “The Red Chapel” http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60P0FN20100126 

Tomorrow we head to Salt Lake City and then we will fly back to D.C, after a remarkable four days here in Park City.