We are a couple of weeks away from the Sundance London film and music festival hitting the O2 arena in the capital. The full lineup of panels, music events and films was announced last week and we’ve decided to dive in and surface here with our picks of the festival.
As you’ll see we have chosen a number of films to keep an eye on, noted a couple of the panels and highlighted an event or two. You can find more information on all of these events right here at the Sundance London homepage or keep an eye here on HeyUGuys as we’ll be bringing you the best coverage of one of our favourite festivals.
FILM – Frank
It’s hard to pass up the opportunity to see Michael Fassbender take on one of the oddest figures in the last thirty years of British popular culture. Papier Mâché head or not Jon Ronson’s affectionate tribute to the world of Chris Sievey has gone down very well across the pond where it played at Park City to great acclaim.
Ronson is also doing some Q&As across the country as the film travels so have a look if you want to find out more about the man beneath the mask.
Find out more and book your tickets here.
PANEL – The Art of Film Music
Alex Heffes and Javier Navarrete are our panelists for the 26th of April’s Art of Film Music event. With the haunting melodies of Pan’s Labyrinth and the aural landscapes of The Last King of Scotland and Byzantium in their previous work Heffes and Navarrete are well placed to take us through the shifting sands of film composition.
Under discussion will be the changing role of the film composer and the success (or otherwise) or a film score. Peter Golub moderates.
Find out more and book your tickets here.
FILM/EVENT – Axiom
Destined to be one of the most talked-about events of the festival the Opening Night party will feature South London’s Archive playing live at the Brooklyn Bowl, there to kick off their promotion of Axiom – the film to their new album.
Working with NYSU under the lead of director Jesus Hernadez the band have made good on their desire to make a film based on their music. Archive’s Darius Keeler said this,
Every time we make an album somebody says it sounds like the soundtrack to a movie that hasn’t been made, well this time we decided to make the movie.
Check out the trailer below and click here for more info and tickets.
FILM – Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
One of the jewels of the festival circuit so far this year the film from brothers David and Nathan Zellner has charmed audiences all the way from Park City to Berlin with its heightened reality and the strange story of our titular treasure hunter.
Rinko Kikuchi is our lead Kumiko who, upon unearthing a copy of The Coen Brothers’ Fargo, sets out to uncover the suitcase of money buried in the (fictional) film. It’s a wonderful premise, full of hope and whimsy, and yet there is something deeply touching about the determination of our heroine. Read our review here, and get ready to be charmed.
Find out more and book your tickets here.
PANEL – Hybrid Vigour: when music, art, and documentary collide
One of the reasons Sundance London does so well is that it hosts panels which get to the heart of where modern filmmaking is going. This is not mere marketing for the latest big screen sensation – Hyrid Vigour looks to explain the changing face of the documentary film with The Art of Killing and Stories we Tell being two of the examples used.
With a panel including Jarvis Cocker, Martin Wallace and Edwyn Collins you can expect a focus to fall on the musical side of documentary filmaking but the remit is far more wide-ranging. The heart of the discussion looks to be the relationship between filmmaker and subject as well as filmmaking and audience. It should make for a fascinating discussion.
Find out more and book your tickets here.
FILM – The Trip to Italy
It’s easy to see the appeal of travelling around Italy with Messrs. Brydon and Coogan. Their first Trip, led as is this new jaunt by Michael Winterbottom, was a cavalcade of bitterness, one-upmanship, impressionistic face-off (or voice-offs) and a blurred line of reality present throughout. It was hilarious and uncomfortable viewing.
While we in the UK had a full six half hours of the pair the US were served up a condensed version and so it is here for The Trip to Italy. We reviewed the film from Park City and you can read that here. It’s another wonderful go around with two immensely talented comedians. What more could you ask for?
Find out more and book your tickets here.
SHORT FILMS – Dawn/Notes on Blindness
The Short Film programme looks as promising as ever with Dawn in particular holding its hand up for attention. Written by M.A Fortin and Joshua John Miller this short marks the feature debut of Rose McGowan and tells the story of a young girl desperate to break free from the life she has.
Another short film which looks to be well worth your time is Notes on Blindness from Peter Middleton and James Spinney which leads the audience through the process of becoming blind from the perspective and aural recordings of writer John Hull.
Find out more and book your tickets here.
SUNDANCE CLASSICS – Reservoir Dogs.
One of the best ideas Sundance have had since jumping the pond is their recent notion to screen important films from the festival’s past. So it is that Quentin Tarantino’s debut film joins Christopher Nolan’s Memento and Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone on the O2’s big screens next month.
It is a great way to celebrate the impact Sundance has had on independent film. Launching careers and helping to spread the word to eager young movie goers that there was more to a cinematic life than seven degreees of Spielberg. The chance to see these films on the big screen is too good to pass up – you know what to do.
