Watching Sundance movies isn’t always a walk in Park City8212;it’s homework, too.
The Sundance Film Festival has been premiering and marketing independent films for about 30 years. It is also the center of two courses offered here at the U.
This coming Spring Semester, Film 1900 starts and will take students to Sundance, where they will watch an array of films and write a paper about each one they see. This is the bulk of the course, which consists of only three class sessions. The cost of the course is the price of their tickets.
Students are required to watch five films, then write a critical analysis on them. In addition, students must attend one discussion group, which can be about any subject, from music to marketing films.
Even though this might seem like a simple class, “I wouldn’t say it’s easy,” said Brian Patrick, the film studies professor who oversees the course. “Students must see (the films) from a critical point of view, not just watching the movie with popcorn.” Students are expected to take notes on themes, acting, cinematography, editing and more.
“It’s a fun class, and I’ve had many students that repeat the class,” Patrick said. The first class meeting will be in October and is mandatory. The class will discuss how to get tickets. Patrick said Sundance accommodates students with student passes and even accepts volunteers who might be able to see free screenings.
Dale Elrod, a film studies professor, and Sam Dunn, an academic outreach coordinator, teach Film 4210, a course that studies independent films that have come out of the annual film festival. The course consists of a variety of screenings of independent films, each one with a different theme or ethnic background. The class visits an array of categories such as films from filmmakers who are gay, lesbian, black or another minority. These ethnic films are Sundance’s specialty, Dunn said. Both he and Elrod have been organizers of the festival as well as film submitters for 20 years.
