At the new Grand Hyatt Deer Valley in Park City, Utah, the Sundance Institute held its annual fundraising gala on Jan. 24. The gala, aptly titled “Celebrating Sundance Institute Gala Presented by Google TV” is designed to honor and uplift keystone members of the film industry. This year, its program was a nexus of praise and recognition for the newly christened Oscar nominees: Cynthia Erivo, James Mangold and documentary production team Emily Kassie and Julian Brave Noisecat.
The night began with the recognition of Michelle Satter, the founding senior director of artist programs at Sundance Institute, for her decades of dedication to jumpstarting the careers of young filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino.
“I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the filmmakers I’ve had the privilege of working with, whose storytelling has ignited profound change in our world,” she said in her acceptance according to a Sundance press release.
Sundance Nurtures Storytellers
Since its genesis in 1985, the Sundance Film Festival has remained a beam of light that audiences and storytellers seeking new voices are drawn to. Many of the films that caught their debut in the theaters at Sundance, have gone on to gain critical acclaim and worldwide recognition as transcendent representations of the industry.
The annual Vanguard Awards Presented by Acura recognized Sean Wang, NoiseCat and Kassie as examples of success bolstered by Sundance.
On Thursday, Noisecat and Kassie, co-directors of “Sugarcane,” said on their Instagram that they were “overjoyed and filled with gratitude” after receiving their Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature Film. While on Friday, they were able to give Sundance their thanks as well.
“Sugarcane” debuted at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, and in just one year, has garnered an Academy Award nomination.
“Thank you Sundance, from the bottom of our hearts,” they said in their acceptance for the Vanguard Award in Non-Fiction. Noisecat and Kassie represent two storytellers propelled into success by the connections that the camaraderie at Sundance is able to build.
Wang, writer and director of “Dìdi (弟弟)”, was honored with the Vanguard Award in Fiction for his work on the 2024 coming of age film. After debuting at Sundance in 2024, “Dìdi (弟弟)” went on to gain 37 award nominations and 16 wins at film festivals worldwide.
According to the press release, in his acceptance, he ensured that the Sundance Film Festival was recognized for taking part in his curation as a writer and director.
“I wouldn’t be the filmmaker I am today without Sundance,” he said.
Spotlight on The Stars
Erivo, Grammy, Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress, was honored with the Sundance Institute’s Visionary Award and a tiara presented by Olivia Colman. Even on the heels of her recent nomination for best actress for the role of Elphaba in Universal Pictures’ “Wicked,” Erivo remained selfless in her acceptance according to the Sundance press release.
“So many of us artists only have the drive of a wish, or a dream to point us in the right direction and the rest is sheer will, to keep following those wishes and dreams, as though they are the north stars in our personal skies,” she said. “If that is what makes me a visionary, then I have been, and am surrounded by visionaries constantly, and I am lucky and grateful for it.”
The newly three-time Oscar nominated Director, James Mangold, was honored with the Trailblazer Award for his continual desire to better the film industry. From “Girl, Interrupted,” to his new Bob Dylan biopic, “A Complete Unknown,” Mangold has changed the way that audiences experience film. His award, presented by Joel Edgerton, was accompanied by an ode to his directorial prowess.
Mangold’s acceptance speech was littered with praise for the Sundance Film Festival and all of the good it has brought to the world of film.
“We can battle the sleepwalking of our culture not only with issue-oriented films but also entertaining ones, feeling ones, emotionally unashamed films,” he said according to the press release. “Anyway, I hope that is how my work is remembered. And I am sure it is how Sundance will be.”
This event served as a catalyst for the 2025 Sundance Film Festival which ran Jan. 23–Feb. 2 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah.
