Sundance Blog: Midnight at the Egyptian

Hilary Hart, Main Street, Park City: It’s my 14th year at Sundance, and I’m back on the midnight shift at the Egyptian Theatre—so if you’re a fan of late shows or strolling along Main Street after 10 pm stop by for a chat.

I arrived on Wednesday; the weather has been clear and cold everyday and is expected to continue the same through the festival. The sun is warming during the day and black ice is a real danger particularly at night. So dress warmly and tread carefully.

Yesterday I worked at the annual opening press conference with Robert Redford and Geoffrey Gilmore. Pam Grady and Cathleen Rountree, Bay Area film journalists, were both in attendance. I heard Redford say that he’s hopeful that under the incoming administration support for the arts will increase. Second that. Everyone here that I’ve talked to is very excited about Inauguration Day. A jumbotron screen is going to be installed at the bottom of Main Street so we can soak in the wonder of it all and enjoy a collective big screen experience.

Ran into Brian Gordon formerly of SFIFF, recently departed from Nashville FF and as of a few weeks ago settled in Newcastle, England as executive director of the fairly new Northern Lights Film Festival.

Last night two SFF films were previewed for the volunteers. I’ve been asked not to blog about them by title until they have their world premieres, but I will say that they were both great. One seemed particularly in sync with the new America that will dawn on Tuesday. Ask me in person and I’ll tell you specifics.

This morning my Film Society colleague Michele Turnure-Salleo and I manned a Film Society table at the Filmmaker Lodge for a few hours talking to a number of Bay Area filmmakers including Brant Smith and Adrian Belic, a great group of folks from On Native Ground in Sacramento and Penelope from the true Northern California who’s in postproduction on a documentary about environmental terrorists. Off to the ITVS/PBS party which should be chock-a-block with Bay Area folk.

Films that I’m looking forward seeing to include La MISSION, Crude, Burma VJ, and every Bay Area project.