How to Do Sundance Film Festival Right
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It’s mid-January. Award season is well under way, and snow is dumping on Park City, Utah, which must mean: It’s time for the Sundance Film Festival. Since its founding by actor Robert Redford in 1978 as the Utah/US Film Festival, the annual event has historically championed independent films and artists. Sundance remains a launchpad for offbeat work that resonates with audiences: After premiering at the Utah fest, where it won prizes including Best Director, the Audience Award, and the Grand Jury prize, Sian Heder’s CODA went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture of 2021; and last year history was made when Chloe Domont’s thriller Fair Play sold to Netflix for a record-breaking $20 million, after premiering at Sundance.
Ahead, the films we’re excited to see this year at Sundance, the talent we’re keeping an eye on, and our favorite places in town to rest and eat—though, as every regular knows, there’s typically little time for either.
Where to Stay
The Timberline
A new property from world-renowned broker Pacaso, the Timberline is not up for rent—but it is available for purchase. Located along the heart of Park Avenue, just south of Main Street, the brand-new building puts you a perfect distance from screenings, events, and the ski slopes. Note that you don’t have to cough up the full amount for a vacation home of this caliber, if you want a piece of the Timberline: It’s a co-ownership property, meaning this second home can be yours for exactly one-eighth of the sale price.
Where to Eat & Drink
Harvest
Open for breakfast and lunch, Harvest is the closest thing you’ll find to Los Angeles in Park City—which is to say it can and will accommodate nearly any food allergy or aversion. Grab the restaurant’s paleo banana bread or a smoothie if you’re on the go, or the best BLTA you’ve ever had, in the rare event you have the time to stay and eat between screenings.
Butcher’s
Think of Butcher’s as Ruth Chris’s fun, younger sibling, where you can trade in the big screens and after-parties for football and beer. If you have time for a proper meal, take a seat in the main dining room for steak frites and people-watching.
High West
Founded nearly 20 years ago by a biochemist and his wife, High West Saloon is a restaurant and distillery. (Fun fact: It’s the world’s only ski-in gastro distillery.) On the menu is its self-described “alpine-inspired western fare”; the schnitzel and the bison tacos are local favorites. The cocktail menu is long and varied—don’t sleep on the Manhattan.
On the go? Grab a local beer and slice of pizza at Davanza’s or a lobster roll at Freshie’s, where the lobster is flown in daily from Maine.
Time to spare? Head to Yuta at Auberge Resorts Lodge at Blue Sky; try to snag a reservation at Handle, in the heart of Park City; or visit Matthew Harris’s Tupelo for the buttermilk biscuits and so much more.
What to Watch
Freaky Tales
Before they directed Captain Marvel, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck were Sundance darlings, thanks to their Grand Jury–winning 2004 short film Gowanus, Brooklyn, which became 2006’s Oscar-nominated Half Nelson, starring Ryan Gosling. Now comes the mysterious Freaky Tales, which takes place in Northern California in the late ’80s and features four wildly different intertwining storylines: “Teen punks defend their turf against Nazi skinheads, a rap duo battles for hip-hop immortality, a weary henchman gets a shot at redemption, and an NBA All-Star settles the score,” the description reads. The cast is a lineup of all-stars including Pedro Pascal, Ben Mendelsohn, Jay Ellis, and the late Angus Cloud.
The American Society of Magical Negroes
The trailer for the mystical rom-com and social satire has already raked up 6.4 million views on YouTube, since its release last month. Justice Smith, who stars as Aren, a young man recruited into a society of magical Black people, has long been one to watch—and from the trailer alone, it appears he can easily hold his own alongside comedy legend and costar David Alan Grier.
Daughters
An entry in the festival’s U.S. Documentary competition, Daughters follows four young girls and their incarcerated fathers as they get ready for a daddy-daughter dance in Washington, D.C.
Hit Man
It’s a far cry from the Before trilogy, but we’ll take him in any capacity: Richard Linklater is back! The writer-director returns to Sundance for the first time in a decade, teaming up with recent muse and leading man Glen Powell for Hit Man. Based on a Texas Monthly profile by Skip Hollandsworth, the action-comedy is billed as the “somewhat true” story of a fake hit man, recounting the tale of the real-life Gary Johnson, but taking creative license to imagining his inner life.
Presence
Speaking of legendary directors: Steven Soderbergh returns to the festival that launched his career, 35 years after the debut of Sex, Lies, and Videotape. Psychological thriller Presence takes place in a suburban home taken over by a mysterious, well … presence. The film leans into the horror genre—a first for Soderbergh—and stars Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, and Chris Sullivan.
Will & Harper
Josh Greenbaum directs Will Ferrell in this documentary, which could turn out to be the comic actor’s most surprising work yet. The doc follows Ferrell and his best friend of 30 years, Harper Steele, as they set out on a road trip across America. But there’s a bit of a twist: Steele—a former senior writer at Saturday Night Live and Emmy winner—has just come out as a trans woman. With friendship, identity, and discovery at its core, we imagine this film will bring the laughs, and a lot of heart.
Who to Watch
Dolly De Leon
De Leon was a force in Ruben Östlund’s 2022 Palm d’Or winner Triangle of Sadness. She was a standout in the role of Abigail, endearing herself to American audiences and critics alike. At Sundance, she returns to the big screen in Nathan Silver’s Between the Temples, and Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson’s Ghostlight.
Justice Smith
Since breaking out in the beloved 2015 adaptation of Paper Towns, Smith has been a sought-after actor among Hollywood’s younger ranks. He has gone on to star in Netflix’s The Get Down, HBO Max’s Generation, and the Jurassic World franchise. As we noted above, his new film The American Society of Magical Negroes is one of the most anticipated entries at this year’s Sundance festival.
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