[NEohioPAL]Sundance review

[M.A. Norton]

Hello all,

Here's a quick summary of Lauren's and my adventure in Park City, Utah last week:

Day 1.  100 Miles outside of Park City we blow a flat tire, just outside of the town of Fillmore.  The pleasant-natured officer who assists us informs us that Fillmore was a U.S. President.  After an hour delay, we arrive in Park City with a new tire, and spend an hour searching for the address of the condo we planned to stay in.  The address does not exist.  We enter an Internet cafe to check email and sitting two stations down from me is Mike, an L.A. filmmaker whom I met through the Project Greenlight Screenwriting contest.  He kindly directs us to our condo, where we drop our things and go out for drink, then to bed.  I dream of pitching a movie that may work as a modernized version of "Easy Rider 2" to a group of people. 

Day 2.  We have breakfast at a quaint cafe and meet the director of "A Foreign Affair", Helmut Shleppi, who expresses curiosity regarding our relationship with one another.  He invites us to a screening of his film, starring David Arquette and Timothy Blake Nelson.  After our meal, Lauren and I pass Peter Fonda on Main Street, our first dose of star-struck.  I approach one in his entourage, pitch him my "Easy Rider" idea, and hand him a card to give to Mr. Fonda.  Lauren and I then enter the restaurant where they're eating and order a salad.  Later, we go back to the condo for a short film festival put together by our roommates.  We see Shawnee Walker's golden "Mirror Lake" and a very intriguing reel by Allen Martinez, one of PGL's Top Ten Directors this year.  Tonight we attend the screening of "Masked and Anonymous", a cluttered, disturbing romp through America as a third-world country at civil war, featuring the musical and theatrical support of Bob Dylan and an all-star cast, whom adorns the stage after the screening.  They curiously state that they would not delve into details regarding the writing behind the movie.  Upon reading Robert Redford's speech that kicked off the festival, about how it is a platform for free expression for artists, I am delighted by the film, which one audience-member bluntly stated in response, "I got it."  Great what-if film, but probably not a blockbuster hit.  That evening, we run into two of the cast members, Val Kilmer and Christian Slater, and hand them both our contact info.  

Day 3.  Again we run into Christian Slater.  Lauren approaches him and says, "We need you!"  He laughs and I take a picture of them.  I tell him his performance was bold and that "Heathers" was awesome and he should do something again with Wynonna Ryder.   That evening, we attend the screening of "A Foreign Affair", and this is the crux of our trip.  The film, shot on high definition video, reaches out and talks to us in an intimate way that seems to make such a festival so special.  The cast & crew take the stage after the screening, and they feel like family to us.  Hopefully, they will get a great distribution deal for their film, about a mail-order catalog of Russian brides.  Lauren talks to Timothy Blake Nelson afterwards and discovers he's a Libra--he even looks like Wiedl!--and he tells her to send his manager a script.   Later, in the No-Name Saloon, we meet Rachel Dratch of Second City and Saturday Night Live acclaim.  We ask her her sign and she tells us Pisces, a near-perfect match for our Pisha the pisces in The Zodiac.  She tells us to send her script to her agent.  

Day 4.   Early in the morning, we see Minnie Driver emerge from her condo looking not like a morning person, but still looking pretty.  We attend Bret Carr's screening of "Two Birds With One Stallone" at Slamdance, watching it next to David Allen Grier.  The movie's a tear-jerking, emotional journey of a stuttering boxer in New York City who overcomes his disabilities by joining an unlicensed communication guru who plays with hypnotism and past-life regression.  Talked to the director afterwards about collaborating and watched Phillip Seymour Hoffman give an interview to the BBC.  Leaving the building, we also see Maggie Gyllenhal (sp?) of "Secretary" fame, and head to lunch.

Day 5. At midnight, we go into Salt Lake City to view a screening of "Spun", which may be more aptly titled "A Line in the Crystal Meth".  The film is sharply photgraphed and vigorously edited, with a story that leaves the characters (played by Brittany "Nikki" Murphy, John "Spider Mike" Leguizamo, Mena Suvari, Mickey Rourke..) under-developed but still humorously played.  We decide the director, Jonas Aukerland, would be a perfect attachment to The Zodiac production team.  We head home with a stop in Vegas, tired, relaxed, and with a slate of meetings in L.A. among filmmakers, producers, directors, etc.  Wish us luck!

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All the best,

Mike Norton
author, "A Line in the Sand"
http://www.ncgmedia.com

"There are only two ways to live your life. 
One is as though nothing is a miracle. The 
other is as though everything is a miracle." 
--Albert Einstein

~~

What do Avery Evanstridge, a Bengali 
physicist, a poet, a Shamanic healer, a sexy 
Mexican-American prophet, and an American spy 
have in common?  

They are all "In Ire With Love"  
~A comical new novella~ 
by M.A. Norton

Email Norton for an advanced peak!

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