Sundance 2010 Winners

Will non-film festival audiences like Josh Radnor’s “happythankyoumoreplease” as much as the Sundance crowd? 

The Sundance Film Festival wrapped up this weekend. While the awards themselves (see list below) may seem like the most important part of the final weekend, the real question is what effect these awards have on getting the winners into the theaters and making money.

Of the winning films, audience narrative film choice “happythankyoumoreplease,” directed by Josh Radnor of TV’s “How I Met Your Mother” seems like it has the best commercial prospects. Featuring a young, attractive cast, it’s about young adults who are struggling with being adult and things like love. It’s a topic that’s been done to death, but every generation think they are the first ones with this problem and feel like they should have their own movie about it. Jury prize winner “Winter’s Bone,” about a girl in the Ozarks trying to find her father, may be a more ambitious film, but it’s probably a harder sell. Both films got distributors, though, so we’ll have a chance to see which wins out. “Restrepo,” about US soldiers in Afghanistan won the grand jury documentary prize and “Waiting for Superman,” about the US school system, won the audience award for documentary.

Here are the top winners, courtesy of the New York Times:

World Cinema Jury Prize Dramatic: “Animal Kingdom,” directed by David Michôd. After the death of his mother, a seventeen year-old boy is thrust precariously between an explosive criminal family and a detective who thinks he can save him.

World Cinema Audience Award Documentary: “Wasteland,” directed by Lucy Walker. Looks at how international art star Vik Muniz interacts with garbage pickers in the world’s largest landfill in Rio de Janeiro.

World Cinema Audience Award Dramatic: “Contracorriente” directed by Javier Fuentes-Leõn. An unusual ghost story set on the Peruvian seaside in which a married fisherman struggles to reconcile his devotion to his male lover within his town’s rigid traditions.

Best of Next, a new category for low and no-budget movies: “Homewrecker,” directed by Todd Barnes and Brad Barnes. About the last romantic in New York City, an ex-con locksmith on work release.

Go here to see the rest of the winners.

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 31st, 2010 at 3:30 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Will non-film festival audiences like Josh Radnor’s “happythankyoumoreplease” as much as the Sundance crowd? 

The Sundance Film Festival wrapped up this weekend. While the awards themselves (see list below) may seem like the most important part of the final weekend, the real question is what effect these awards have on getting the winners into the theaters and making money.

Of the winning films, audience narrative film choice “happythankyoumoreplease,” directed by Josh Radnor of TV’s “How I Met Your Mother” seems like it has the best commercial prospects. Featuring a young, attractive cast, it’s about young adults who are struggling with being adult and things like love. It’s a topic that’s been done to death, but every generation think they are the first ones with this problem and feel like they should have their own movie about it. Jury prize winner “Winter’s Bone,” about a girl in the Ozarks trying to find her father, may be a more ambitious film, but it’s probably a harder sell. Both films got distributors, though, so we’ll have a chance to see which wins out. “Restrepo,” about US soldiers in Afghanistan won the grand jury documentary prize and “Waiting for Superman,” about the US school system, won the audience award for documentary.

Here are the top winners, courtesy of the New York Times:

World Cinema Jury Prize Dramatic: “Animal Kingdom,” directed by David Michôd. After the death of his mother, a seventeen year-old boy is thrust precariously between an explosive criminal family and a detective who thinks he can save him.

World Cinema Audience Award Documentary: “Wasteland,” directed by Lucy Walker. Looks at how international art star Vik Muniz interacts with garbage pickers in the world’s largest landfill in Rio de Janeiro.

World Cinema Audience Award Dramatic: “Contracorriente” directed by Javier Fuentes-Leõn. An unusual ghost story set on the Peruvian seaside in which a married fisherman struggles to reconcile his devotion to his male lover within his town’s rigid traditions.

Best of Next, a new category for low and no-budget movies: “Homewrecker,” directed by Todd Barnes and Brad Barnes. About the last romantic in New York City, an ex-con locksmith on work release.

Go here to see the rest of the winners.

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 31st, 2010 at 3:30 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.