So I know everyone has already reported on the Sundance Film Festival..blah blah blah. The reason I’ve held out is that I’m in a perpetual state of confusion when it comes to figuring out how I feel about the festival. Ever since the Sundance craze that came about in the 1990’s, it has become increasingly harder for true independent film to flourish. Narrative filmmakers (things are a bit different for documentaries these days - I’ll explore this later on) that get into Sundance seem to need big stars and bigger and bigger budgets as the years progress. This years winner for dramatic audience award went to Jonathan Levine’s The Wackness - it stars Ben Kingsley, Famke Janssen and Mary-Kate Olsen.

Of course there are exceptions - but ever since Sundance became the brand name for independent cinema and a place “to buy” up supposedly independent films, it has become harder and harder for folks who are really independent - ie. filmmakers who want to own their work and those who experiment - to get their work seen. What it comes down to is that Sundance treats films as a business and not as an art.. (I explain this in more detail on one of my old blogs - go here to read more - and after you’ve read, take note that Quentin Tarantino was at Sundance this year).

This usually amounts to films that are predictable, and while they may not be as bad as whatever film was crowned box office victor, they still follow the same basic patterns in how they are made and how their stories are told.

That being said, everyone usually needs some money to make movies and the Sundance Institute (different than the actual fest) is a really great resource for up and coming filmmakers. This year they provided 10,000 dollars each to four filmmakers from different parts of the world as a part of their 2008 Sundance/NHK International Filmmaker Award. Alejandro Fernandez Almendras - Chile, for Huacho, Braden King - United States, for Here, Aiko Nagatsu - Japan, for Apoptosis, and Radu Jude - Romania, The Happiest Girl in the World were picked as part of Sundance’s more recent efforts to promote World Cinema.

The other area where Sundance does well is in the documentary world. They’ve helped to make documentaries more popular and have great resources for filmmakers looking to find money for their project. One of the top documentary winners this go around at the festival was Trouble The Water, an intimate look at what it means to survive in post-Katrina New Orleans. Another doc that is getting buzz after its festival appearance is called Fields of Fuel and examines the state and future of biodiesel. And as the films get more buzz - so do the issues behind them.

In that spirit, watch the trailer below and to join the Fields of Fuel filmmakers as they start to use the power of film to help create change in world of fuel.

Also, if you are a filmmaker, to learn how you can take advantage of the Sundance Institute.