Festival Dispatch: Quadrangle at Sundance & Rotterdam

Another in our on-going series of festival dispatches from those filmmakers who take advantage of our Texas Filmmakers’ Travel Grant, this time a day-by-day update from Amy Grappell, who took her 2009 TFPF-funded documentary short QUADRANGLE to Sundance this year, where it won an honorable mention. Amy then went straight to the Netherlands from Utah for the Rotterdam Film Festival.

From Amy…

I had been to Sundance before but never as a director with a film in the festival. My film QUADRANGLE is a 20-minute short that was in competition.

Day 1

The experience began soon after landing in Park City while riding on the shuttle. An actor from another short film called RENEGADES broke the ice by asking me if I had any crackers in my purse. Soon after we were talking to the director from London and exchanging contact information as we drove through a blizzard. It was awesome. That night we went to the shorts premiere at the Egyptian where Robert Redford gave a talk about the importance of short films and Sundance’s commitment to make a place for films that don’t fit into a 5 -10 min or 1-hour slot, but are just as long as they should be. Most of the shorts were not that short (15- 30 min) and I felt lucky to be a part of this movement. Spike Jones’s long short I’M HERE was visually stunning but my favorite was called SEEDS OF THE FALL, by a Danish director named Patrick Eklund. Think Bergman with a funny bone.

Day 2

We had our Sundance premiere at 11am at the Racquet Club. I arrived early and did a sound check before the shorts directors had photos taken. I met local filmmaker Steve Mims’ daughter Elizabeth, who was the producer of a short in my program called THOMPSON. The house was full, nearly 700 people, and it was the first time I had seen my film projected in a theater of this size. It was amazing to see it with such a big audience – they were laughing and totally engaged. I was relieved and happy. We had struggled with the up-res and the sound and it looked and sounded great. I didn’t know my film was a comedy. The other films in my program were really strong and I felt lucky to be in the company of such talented directors. To name a few – DRUNK HISTORY (which won Best Short) with John C. Reilly and Crispin Glover and a drunk guy whose name I forgot. This film was hysterical and wonderfully executed. It was so great to laugh in a documentary showcase. Cynthia Wade’s film BORN SWEET was more on the serious side and an exquisite and heartbreaking depiction of a boy in Cambodia suffering from arsenic poisoning who becomes a karaoke star and helps other people in the fight against arsenic. We did the Q&A as a group and shared the experience.

Day 3

Went to Sundance headquarters at the Marriott to catch the bus to the director’s brunch at the Sundance Resort and serendipitously sat next to the director of MY PERESTROIKA. I had been hoping to meet her as I shot my last film in Ukraine during the fall of communism and had recently returned. The 1.5-hour bus ride each way was an amazing opportunity to connect with other directors. Lunch was the same because anywhere you went or sat down you would meet another director and learn about their film. I sat with the Duplass brothers. It was nice to have a taste of home close by. It was also a great honor to have Robert Redford speak about renewing Sundance’s mission and spirit and welcoming us to the Sundance family.

Day 4

We went to a panel on international film financing, a very confusing and important topic, given the state of film financing these days. There were very established producers and film companies both domestic and international on the panel discussing the state of things, which sounded pretty pessimistic. Later I went to our screening in Salt Lake and in the shuttle connected with the producer and editor of BORN SWEET and made fast friends. I was a little concerned about the screening given the nature of my film and what I heard about the town being conservative but the audience was enthusiastic and after the film someone’s grandma came up to me and thanked me for telling the truth about my family and their sexual experiment. “That takes courage,” she said, “Nobody does that.” I had discovered a new demographic. Then, off to the HBO Party where we had great food and I managed to hand off my screener to an HBO executive who I am now in contact with.

Day 5

I didn’t have time to see many films, so was excited to see THE IMPERIALISTS ARE STILL ALIVE!, an interesting film that looks at race and discrimination as it relates to the Middle East and was edited by my friend Michael Taylor. I was glad to take it in before my meeting with a new distribution company called Indieflix and another alternative on–line distribution company called Indie a Go-Go, all worth looking into. These are the off spring of this new world of non-exclusive self-driven distribution, which is in development.

Day 6

Had lunch at Robert Redford’s restaurant Zoom with a producer who is interested in developing my doc into a feature narrative. Sat behind Harvey Weinstein who had declared independent film dead earlier in the day. We discussed that his model of it might be dying but it’s far from dead. Then we went to see Bryan Poyser’s funny and smart new film LOVERS OF HATE and reveled in our amazing community that we are so proud and lucky to be a part of. That night we went to the shorts reception and awards. The party was in a bowling alley and they projected stills from out films along the bank of lanes. It was visually stunning and fun to bowl to. We further bonded with the shorts film teams in our programs and met others. QUADRANGLE was announced as honorable mention first and I was overwhelmed and elated – the acknowledgement was really powerful and important and I was soon after joined by Cynthia Wade and from our program who also won honorable mention.

Day 7

I walked through a snowstorm to meet with the Sundance writers and director’s lab to talk about applying for the feature I am developing based on the group marriage story. Afterwards, the filmmaker press party was buzzing and I met a few film festival directors and got interviewed by a local network in Park City on a deck in the snow.

Day 8

Winding down at the patrons circle reception, we had gourmet Asian cuisine and learned about the Lab’s indigenous program before heading off to the Austin Sundance party which was a little like coming home. So amazing to be in our community within the context of Sundance and we were so well represented at the festival. This was a gathering about fostering the work of our community and it was grounding and supportive. A great way to end our Sundance journey because the next day at 5am we left for Rotterdam Int. Film Fest.

Day 9

We arrived in Amsterdam at 8am jet-lagged and frazzled. Took a train to Rotterdam where we went to the film office – a huge industrial building with an image of a big tiger out front. The festival headquarters were quite large and took up the floors of this industrial building/complex, where they also had two theaters. We found our way to check in where we got purple bags and film listing books thick with descriptions of close to 1000 films, it was overwhelming. Unpacked a bit and set out to the shorts directors’ reception hosted by Oberhausen Film Fest which I learned is the biggest shorts film fest and market in Europe. Met some Bulgarian filmmakers and made our way to the shorts dinner where 250 shorts directors drank red wine and had a vegetarian feast. Projected images of 30’s musicals from Hollywood surrounded us as we sat with some intense filmmakers from Israel. The feel was international and more focused on art not industry – that was clear.

Day 10

Dim Sum to start the day. Our premiere in Rotterdam was small in a cool art house movie theater where you can drink wine and eat in the lobby. The audience was small and the atmosphere really low key. The audience was serious and didn’t seem to get the humor of the film. It’s cultural, I realized. They had really evocative questions in the Q&A. Afterwards we went to the filmmaker’s cocktail hour where we met the directors of a film fest in Denmark.

Day 11

Had industry meetings set up by the festival with a woman from the Toronto Film Fest and a very knowledgeable woman who works for Withoutabox and adapts scripts. Went to the Vietnamese/Dutch doctor to see if I couldn’t get something to shake the Sundance cold. Met with some old friends from Amsterdam who attended my screening. The audience was bigger and more expressive. Went to filmmaker’s party after in a big disco. It was packed and smoky.

Day 12

Went to a film called CONTROL, which was self-indulgent and artsy in a bad way. Found myself longing for a romantic comedy. Met with an Austin producer, recently moved to New York, who was in Cinemart this year. We talked about my feature project and planned another meeting at SXSW. I learned more about the Cinemart program that helps filmmakers develop international projects & get co- production funds. Set up a meting with Cinemart. Big Chinese dinner. Good Asian food in Rotterdam.

Day 13

Saw a couple movies. They have press and industry screenings at IFFR that are easy to get in, no lines, no waiting, can come at the last minute. First Screening was VITAL SIGNS a very good French Canadian film in the competition. Later in the afternoon saw ALOMAR, a narrative film that seemed like a documentary, lyrical and visually arresting. Dropped letters and screeners in boxes for a few companies, producers and international film festivals. Had a meeting with Cinemart to talk about applying for my feature narrative for next year and met with the Binger Lab, a program that supports writer/directors to develop their scripts in residence in Amsterdam over a 5-month period. They seem interested.

Day 14

Went to the airport exhausted and inspired. Follow –up has been an ongoing process. I have learned so much from this festival journey; it has changed my career and my life.

…to keep tabs on Amy’s journey with the film, check out the QUADRANGLE website.

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