The Local Side of Sundance
January 23, 2009
Utah Stories shines the spotlight on the local side of the Sundance Film Festival.
by Jonny Glines
Once a year, Utah becomes the world's star-studded, celebrity hang-out. For one week, celebrities, filmmakers and fans all gather on one tiny mountainside in Park City for the Sundance Film Festival. And every year, Utahns attempt to get in on the action.
The past week, Utah Stories has interviewed celebrities, models and pro-athletes. (Watch Interviews Here) Sticking to our roots, we wanted to bring you the local side of the festival. We spoke to local residents, volunteers, fans, local merchants, media members and filmmakers to find out what drives so many Utahns to wait out in the freezing cold, just for the chance of a glimpse of a celebrity.
Our interviews give insight to the often hectic tone of the festival. We spoke to Film Director/Writer Larry David Dudine who believes the festival has become too "commercialized" and has lost its independent spirit. We also caught up with paparazzi photographers who explained a little about their work and who ironically didn't like being filmed.
So if you attended the festival, you can re-live the experience here. If you didn't, take a look and decide whether or not next year you'll be one of the crazy nuts in the cold.
