Sundance in Utah바카라�s Mountains | A Reporter's Diary

Blame it on the movies, but I바카라�d always romanticised snow. Watching those cosy holiday rom-coms set in London/New York around Christmas 바카라� with beautiful people wearing trench coats, beanies and mufflers 바카라� I didn바카라�t realise the dangers of attempting to walk on fresh snow without 바카라�proper바카라� snow shoes. On my fourth day in Park City (Utah), I walked with the concentration of a rock climber, especially after an overnight blizzard having resulted in three feet of snow on the ground. Covering my maiden Sundance Film Festival this year 바카라� one slip-up could end things (or make it exceedingly unpleasant) for me. I hadn바카라�t paid too much attention to snowshoes or winter wear, resulting in some tantalising walks on slippery pavements for only a few hundred metres, which felt like kilometres. Using all my willpower to not fall and hurt myself, I did sigh with relief on the day we left Park City to spend two nights in Salt Lake City 바카라� where screenings were also taking place. I finally did manage to navigate my way through the snow unscathed, but I made a vow to never ever tempt fate after this.

Sundance is a sort of a pilgrimage for most cinephiles. Taking place in the mountains of Utah in January every year, it might be among the most physically arduous festivals to attend, while still enjoying a sought-after profile like Cannes or Berlinale. Founded by actor Robert Redford in 1978 to primarily showcase American indie films, the festival has grown to become a mecca for films from all over the planet, making it an exciting place for filmmakers seeking distribution. Divided between Park City and Salt Lake City바카라�s almost a dozen venues, it바카라�s probably not the ideal festival for someone travelling to the United States for the first time. The pressure of watching as much as you can 바카라� on average four to five films a day, writing about them or constantly being riddled with the guilt of not doing enough, battling jet lag which results in you nodding off in the afternoon films while being wide awake at night after three hours of sleep 바카라� being at Sundance is akin to being in the middle of a tornado, completely helpless, full of adrenaline, simply praying for it to tide over. 

And yet, the festival gave me a unique opportunity to attend among the last few editions of the festival in Utah. After nearly five decades of Sundance taking place in the mountains, the organisers have decided to move it to another place in 2027. Rumours told me that Cincinnati (in Ohio) is among the frontrunners to inherit the festival바카라�s illustrious legacy. It made me savour my time in the heated tents outside the venues all the more. At first, intimidated by the NFL and NBA small talk in queues (I wasn바카라�t clued into American football or basketball to participate), I did gather the courage to speak to some people in the queue 바카라� ranging from film critics to festival volunteers and employees of Hollywood studios, who were there for a film that was premiering.

Apart from meeting colleagues from India, this was an opportunity to also watch the American contemporaries closely. One of them (let바카라�s call him 바카라�S바카라�) was born in Florida and now lives in Texas, and I became well-acquainted with him over the festival. A quality I바카라�d discerned about S even before I met him in person was how he was wired into the festival. The way he바카라�d memorised the schedule by going through it many, many times and figured out alternate sequences of films to garner the highest footprint at the festival encouraged, overwhelmed and annoyed me. Still in his 20s, S had a spring in his step, which my jaded, early-30s version had clearly lost. Soon, S became my pace-setter as news about how 바카라�he바카라�d just filed two reviews in three hours바카라� urged me to get to work despite being close to unconsciousness. I managed to convince him to watch the Marathi film premiering at the festival (which wasn바카라�t on his radar until he heard me raving about it), so we made sure it was a fair exchange.

Another 바카라�friend바카라� I gained over the festival was a veteran journalist (let바카라�s call him 바카라�A바카라�) who I split a hotel room with during my stay in Park City and Salt Lake City. Very different pace and at very different stages in our respective careers, we overcame our differences to discover a fondness for each other over the eight days. This included bumping into each other in between movies and accompanying the other to the nearest grocery store to pick up sushi bowls, cold sandwiches and endless coffees before rushing back for our next screening.

바카라�What are you watching?바카라� 바카라� was the usual ice-breaker at Sundance, like it is at most festivals. It was followed by the brief line-up of films you바카라�d watched, which one you might recommend, and you바카라�d hear their recommendations, what they did/didn바카라�t like, and which ones you or they바카라�d heard good things about 바카라� and were looking forward to catching at some point in the festival.

A treat I managed to sneak for myself, amidst all the bustle of Sundance, was watching Nickel Boys at a local cinema 바카라� a film I wouldn바카라�t get to see on the big screen in India. Between two screenings, where I had around five hours, I saw RaMell Ross바카라�s film about two Black teenagers in a youth correctional institute amidst the simmering civil rights movement in the early 1960s. An Oscar hopeful, it reminded me how film-viewing can often be monotonous and dreary. But a great film can humble you, lower you from your own pedestal 바카라� and bring back the wide-eyed wonder to it.

I ended the trip in Salt Lake City with Benedict Cumberbatch바카라�s The Things with Feathers 바카라� which didn바카라�t affect me as much as I thought it would. Taking A out for lunch because he had been kind enough to book my cabs the day before (since I didn바카라�t have Internet on my mobile), we picked a Mexican grill place. Lobbing our plates with unlimited salad and beans, we bid adieu to each other. A had planned on staying in Salt Lake City for another few days before travelling to another film festival. I barely had enough energy to gather my things and go back home 바카라� but we promised to stay in touch.

Wide awake on my bed despite being exhausted is one of the more amusing (in hindsight) dichotomies of returning from a film festival 바카라� especially one situated in a ski-resort town. There are lots of pieces to be written, films to be seen, and many more miles to go before I sleep.