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Sundance Institute Announces Projects for January Screenwriters Lab

The Sundance Institute has selected 12 projects for the annual January Screenwriters Lab, which takes place January 14-19, 2005 at the Sundance Village in Utah. The Screenwriters Lab is a five-day writer's workshop that gives independent artists the opportunity to work intensively on their feature film scripts with the support of established screenwriters. Participating writers have problem-solving story sessions with creative advisors, engaging in individual dialogues that encourage and embrace the vision of the writer/filmmaker and help them get to the most compelling version of the story they want to tell.

This year’s participating writers have the opportunity to work under the guidance of the Lab’s Creative Advisors, an extraordinary group of screenwriters, including Allison Anders, Guillermo Ariaga, David Benioff, Anthony Drazan, Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, Nelson George, Todd Graff, Larry Konner, Craig Lucas, Walter Mosley, Frank Pierson, Jeremy Pikser, Tom Rickman, Howard Rodman, Susan Shilliday, Zachary Sklar and David Veloz.

"We are thrilled to be supporting such a diverse and distinctive group of emerging filmmakers. Chosen for their authentic voice and unique talent, each writer is offering a window into their singular perspective on the world we live in,” said Michelle Satter, Director, Sundance Institute Feature Film Program. “With this Lab, the program continues its commitment to international artists whose stories and aesthetic ideas are an inspiration to filmmakers here and abroad. We are delighted to feature four international projects from New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Brazil, and eight North American projects at the lab, providing a rich environment for cultural exchange."

The participants and projects selected for the 2005 January Screenwriters Lab are:

Andrea Arnold (writer/director), England, RED ROAD: A woman obsessed with the loss of her family uses her job as a closed-circuit television surveillance operator to confront the man responsible for their death.

Taika Waititi (writer/director), New Zealand, CHOICE – In rural New Zealand, a young Maori boy struggles to find his place among his peers while learning what it means to be a man as he reconnects with his estranged father.

Cruz Angeles (co-writer/director) and Maria Topete (co-writer), U.S.A., DON'T LET ME DROWN – In a post-September 11th world filled with fear and hate, sometimes the only thing that keeps you from drowning is love.

Dante W. Harper (writer/director), U.S.A., DREAMLAND – A compelling look into the heart and mind of a domestic terrorist, Dreamland is the tragic story of Tim McVeigh, from his days as a boy dreaming of being a soldier to a man at war with his own country.

Tom Gilroy (writer/director), U.S.A., LOCATION – Hired as a location scout for an indie film version of Kerouac’s “On The Road”, a middle-aged idealist pretends he’s living a comedy and ignores he’s documenting a tragedy.

Darci Picoult (writer) and Andrew Dosunmu (director), U.S.A., MOTHER OF GEORGE: Torn between her African culture and new life in America, a woman struggles to please her husband and give him the son that will carry on his family's legacy.

Adam Bhala Lough (writer/director), U.S.A., NEAR AS FAR: A surreal, subjective portrait of a troubled teenaged girl who suffers through the death of her best friend and desperately searches for someone to take care of her.

Philippe Barcinski (writer/director), Brazil, NOT BY CHANCE – Two men obsessed with control are put to the test when they realize they aren’t in command of their loved ones or the circumstances and events of their lives.

Vald Lazar (writer/director), U.S.A., PIETA – Born of a holy war, a child has but one choice – how he dies: defending those he loves or killing those he hates.

Stew and Heidi Rodewald (co-writers), U.S.A., THE SEVENTY-THIRD SUMMER: The vibrant and authentic story of the deeply intimate and complex relationship between two families – one black, one Jewish – living in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles circa 1973.

Catherine Stewart (writer/director), South Africa, GIRLS, GIRLS, GIRLS: Set in post-apartheid South Africa amid a volatile landscape of fear, hybrid cultures, and shifting identities, three unusual love stories intertwine with startling results on the streets of Johannesburg.

Cam Archer (writer/director), U.S.A., WILD TIGERS I HAVE KNOWN: A lyrical telling of the coming of age of a 13-year-old boy who learns to cope with his newfound sexuality and his unrequited love for the cool kid in school.

The Sundance Institute Feature Film Program has supported many signature independent voices and films, including Josh Marston’s MARIA FULL OF GRACE, Peter Sollett’s RAISING VICTOR VARGAS, David Gordon Green’s ALL THE REAL GIRLS, John Cameron Mitchell's HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, Darren Aronofsky's REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, Kimberly Peirce's BOYS DON'T CRY, Gina Prince Bythewood's LOVE AND BASKETBALL, Tony Bui's THREE SEASONS, Walter Salles' CENTRAL STATION, Chris Eyre and Sherman Alexie's SMOKE SIGNALS, Paul Thomas Anderson's HARD EIGHT, Tamara Jenkins' SLUMS OF BEVERLY HILLS, and Quentin Tarantino's RESERVOIR DOGS.

Included in the 2005 Sundance Film Festival are seven feature films supported by the Sundance Feature Film Program Labs: ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW (Dramatic Competition), written and directed by Miranda July; FORTY SHADES OF BLUE (Dramatic Competition), co-written and directed by Ira Sachs; THE MOTEL (American Spectrum), written and directed by Michael Kang; SWIMMERS (American Spectrum), written and directed by Doug Sadler; CRONICAS (World Cinema Dramatic Competition), written and directed by Sebastian Cordero; STRANGERS (World Cinema Dramatic Competition), written and directed by Malgorzata Szumowska; and MYSTERIOUS SKIN (Premiere), written and directed by Gregg Araki.

Updated: 12/24/2004

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