Well today was basically just a travel around Park City with some Germans and shoot Harry doing Park City things. You know... Taking pictures, talking with filmmakers, entering a theater, getting my picture taken with RAY BRADBURY!!!! YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!! HAHAHAHA!!!! This'll soon be making a permanent placement on the front page of the site in the background.
Then I had the Germans drive me to the Awards Banquet which was going to happen in the big ol Racquet Ball Club place. I was dressed nice, but warm in dark green slacks, cool black Frankenstein shoes, Titanic effects crew t-shirt and a sweater that covered up all that Titanic effects crew stuff. We pull up to the place and I say my (about to misspell badly) afederzines.
I walk under the big canopy (tent without walls but classy looking) and into the building. Immediately I am shown the door and told not to return for thirty minutes. More people arrive, they are given the same treatment. GOOD!!! I say. If I can't get in, at least all these legetimate types can't either! Oh yeah, I didn't have a ticket for this thing, so I was very very nervous about this. I wanted in. I begin talking with this Toronto reporter, he kinda grilled me in the panel yesterday, but I handled myself like Jimmy Stewart and came out victorius.
Finally they let us in from the cold. I am instantly handed my ticket, and ended up as like the 12 person into the awards. I didn't want to sit in the first 3 rows, and I didn't want to be in the middle, so I looked for where the filmmakers began on the non-press row, and was sitting about row 6 of the center press section. GREAT SEAT!!! I had my little camera with me, and I was set. The sections began filling and filling and filling. More and more people. Tons of people. And the babes that were sitting in here. WOOF WOOF AHHHHHWOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
The filmmaker of WICKED came over to talk, as did a couple of reporters. This one from Brazil came over to tell me how much he appreciated my site, because it gives him something to get info from. I asked him to be my eyes and ears in Brazil for cool Brazilian or Latin American film. He said he would. Coool, Miramax has been busy down there, so it looks like a cool film scene is springing up. It's good to have some eyes in some of these other countries.
Then the whole shabang began. Redford was cutting THE HORSE WHISPERER and couldn't make it, but he sent these other guys. And these were the actual real life festival dudes and dudettes. They literally thanked some 1100 people or so, and had a fascinating short film created to thank the volunteers. After about an hour of thanking the people that made Sundance 98 possible... well the show was underway.
The first thing of the evening to be announced was the SUNDANCE/NHK INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKERS AWARD. There are four categories to help these developing filmmakers with their next screenplays. United States, Europe, Japan and Latin America.
The first to be announced was for Europe, and the award went to Tomasz Wiszniewski for his script WHERE ESKIMOS LIVE. I couldn't really catch what it was about, but that Tomasz guy was so excited he wanted back in the audience, but nope he had to await all the winners.
Next was for Latin America, and the award went to Fernando Perez with LA VIDA ES SILBAR (Life is Whistling). It's about three women in Cuba. That's all I know... I'm sorry.
Then came Yoshiyasu Fujita of Japan for his script THE BLEEP BROTHERS which has something to do with stand up comedy.
Then came the US with the award going to DeMane Davis and Khari Streeter for their project entitled LIFT. I have no idea what this is about.
These awards seemed to elicit little to no response from the press, whom didn't really see the significance of the award. Of course when SMOKE SIGNALS won later, the filmmakers of that film explained the significance.
Then came the CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARD. Which goes to a Documentary as well as a Dramatic film. The Documentary went to Tom Hurwitz for WILD MAN BLUES the documentary on Woody Allen's Jazz playing. Then the Dramatic Award went to Declan Quinn for "2BY4". Well when he was announced he LAUNCHED onto the stage like an out of control pogo stick, bouncy bouncy bouncy. Energy crashing through the hall and really got everyone fired up. Declan's immortal quote about the filmmakers "putting their balls on the line" was well received.
Next came the FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AWARD which goes to the documentary film that informs and educates the public on socialogical and political issues. The award went to THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION, PART III by Penelope "Wayne's World" Spheeris. She came strutting up my aisle in black leather looking like she was ready to kickass. She went up on stage, talked about how all the money made from this film will go to getting homeless youth off the streets, off drugs and back on their feet. Then she marched off stage, only to have the head honcho say, "Peneeeelllllopeeeeeeeeeee... Did you forget something?" Penelope turned to see that she had not taken her award with her. As she is headed back to the stage she shouts out, "I try to give everything away!!!"
Next came the WALDO SALT SCREENWRITING AWARD for outstanding writing. The award went to Lisa Cholodenko for HIGH ART. She looked a bit like "deer in headlights" up on stage, as if someone had hit her on the noggin with a sledgehammer. I was distracted by this girl with a dress cut up to the top of her head (mild exagerration) that was sitting in the ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY section. While I was distracted I believe I heard Lisa say her mentor was Milos Forman (oh you know who he is).
Next came a SPECIAL JURY PRIZE FOR ACHIEVEMENT BY AN ACTOR to Andrea Hart for MISS MONDAY. Well Andrea wasn't here, because well she was off being an actress, so her director Benson Lee was. He was flabbergasted. You see, this isn't a normal award, they don't give this every year. He wasn't prepared. He smiled, and said, "I wish Andrea was here," about 5 times. Really touchingly funny.
Next came the SHORT FILMMAKING AWARD. I didn't catch the names of the directors, but the honorable mention went to HUMAN REMAINS and the actual award went to SNAKE FEED.
The next award was the SPECIAL RECOGNITION IN LATIN AMERICAN CINEMA AWARD. This went to WHO THE HELL IS JULIETTE? The fella who won this looked like my sister's boyfriend, and it was all I could do to not yell out "YO LOBO!!!"
Then came the FILMMAKERS TROPHY which is voted on by peer filmmakers. And once again they give one to documentary and one to dramatic. The Documentary Award went to DIVINE TRASH by Steve Yeager, yeah that Divine. Wish I could of caught this film, I bet it was...ummmmm....different. Ol Steve was stunned, as he walked past me I heard him gasp... WHOA!!! Then for the Dramatic Award it went to SMOKE SIGNALS by Chris Eyre. When this award was announced the audience went bonkers. Everyone was talking about this film, no doubt because Father Death loved it.
Next came the DIRECTING AWARD, which again was divided into two categories. Now the one thing about this was Mr I Wrote Taxi Driver and a lot of other cool stuff gave the award. He almost died up here by choking on a rib bone that he swallowed at Robert Redford's local restaurant...Zoom. He was cured and was in very good cheer this day. The first award, the documentary went to MOMENT OF IMPACT directed by Julia Loktev. She was stunned. Then the Dramatic award went to PI (I would use the symbol, but I don't know how to get my keyboard to make it happen.) directed by Darren Aronofsky. The room exploded. I mean it just plain went bonkers. What a thrill, you could feel electricity in the room. This was the independent science fiction film. Dammit I didn't get to see it. His roommate was his producer, and this was shock to me and very welcomed because most people don't reward science-fiction in this country. Hopefully this'll be a trend!
Then came THE AUDIENCE AWARD which also went into two categories. The first went to OUT OF THE PAST by Jeff Dupre. This was a very popular winner, but it's an audience award so of course it was popular. Then the Dramatic winner was SMOKE SIGNALS, it's second award of the evening. BOOM!!!! Went the room, I felt an emotional attachment to this film and I hadn't even seen it. I almost started crying and I don't even know why. Power of the moment, the pure expression of gratification, I don't know. Whatever it was I was blown away. The entire cast and crew (well the ones allowed into the main room anyway) was up on stage.
And finally the GRAND JURY PRIZE came to be announced. The documentary winner was a tie (the audience gasps) a tie between THE FARM and FRAT HOUSE. Strangely enough I had people tell me during my journeys that they didn't like THE FARM, but they loooooooooved FRAT HOUSE. I was happy as could be over FRAT HOUSE, because... well you see Ain't It Cool News declared FRAT HOUSE the documentary to beat, before Sundance even announced it was a finalist. Isn't it great when something like that happens...
Next came Alfre Woodard to announce the Dramatic winner. Well she musta had a 30 minute speech, cause it went on and on and on and on. It was good, a good speech, but many people were feeling a bit antsy. They wanted the winner declared, then they wanted to go party next door. But the speech refused to die, it continued...
Then the GRAND JURY PRIZE for Dramatic Film went to...... SLAM. Utter shock. I knew it was between SLAM, PI and SMOKE SIGNALS because that was the buzz out here. The entire cast ran to the stage high fiving everyone on the way to the stage. Some of them even jumped on people. It was very exciting. But as they were up there and I realized that Sundance was finished giving out awards that I hadn't seen a single winning film. Now I'm not upset because I had a gooooood time.
Well, I have to pack up my room, cause I'm on my way back to Austin. I'll do some more updates about Sundance when I'm in Austin, there is one day missing and a couple of films. But for now, I have to pack, catch my bus, catch my plane, and ... oh yeah....
At the party after the awards, the food was not real food, but that decorative stuff that should be lacquered and used as refrigerator magnets. My Dad and his group of friends are throwing a party tomorrow that will kick this one's ass. I can't wait to eat real food, buffalo, deer, duck, possum, goat, basset hound, midgets, cattle, etc etc etc... My dad's friends should really do these parties, because they would have real musicians and real food. You'd still have them durned cellular ear people, brain cancer my friends, that's what the birdie told me. Anyway, Falk, Giles, Sunshine, RoRo, Barchus and Dad, I'm coming. I"ll eat 10-15 pounds of meat. Up here I just been eating yellow snow...
