By Sandy Cohen, Entertainment Writer
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) --Most of the 117 feature films screening at this year's Sundance Film Festival were missing just one thing: Distribution.
As a showcase for independent cinema, the Sundance festival shows movies made outside the studio system through private financing. Without studio distribution, the festival is often the only place to see these films.
But distributors and exhibitors come to the festival in droves, looking for hot properties that will resonate with moviegoers across the country and around the world.
Below is a list of some of the films that found distribution at Sundance and will be coming to theaters (or computer screens) near you:
— "Whiplash," director Damien Chazelle's debut feature starring Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons, was picked up by Sony Pictures Classics for distribution in North America, Australia, New Zealand and Germany.
— "Wish I Was Here," the film Zach Braff co-wrote, directed and stars in with Kate Hudson, Mandy Patinkin, Josh Gad and Ashley Greene, will be distributed in North America, Poland and South Africa by Focus Features.
— "I Origins," an existential drama by writer-director Mike Cahill that stars Michael Pitt and Brit Marling, found worldwide distribution with Fox Searchlight Pictures.
— "The Skeleton Twins," which reunites "Saturday Night Live" alums Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, was acquired by three companies: Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions will handle U.S. distribution and Sony Pictures Worldwide is taking care of international territories.
— "God's Pocket," John Slattery's directorial debut starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Christina Hendricks and John Turturro, was picked up by IFC Films for U.S. audiences.
— "Calvary," writer-director John Michael McDonagh's dramedy about a well-meaning priest, will reach U.S. theaters and some international territories thanks to Fox Searchlight Pictures.
— "Cooties," starring Rainn Wilson, Elijah Wood and Jack McBrayer, secured North American distribution through Lionsgate.
— "Land Ho!" a road-trip comedy about Reykjavik nightlife, will reach worldwide audiences through Sony Pictures Classics.
— "Dinosaur 13," a documentary about the discovery of the most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex, was picked up by Lionsgate and CNN Films for North American distribution.
— "Cesar's Last Fast," a documentary about Cesar Chavez's 36-day water-only fast to draw attention to the plight of farm workers, will air on TV in English and Spanish thanks to Pivot and Univison News.
— "Sepideh: Reaching for the Stars," a documentary about an Iranian girl who wants to be an astronaut, is available in the U.S. and Canada on iTunes.
— "MITT," Greg Whiteley's documentary about the former Republican presidential candidate, will premiere on Netflix on Friday.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this โ and those many "Babadook" memes โ unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables โ "Bah-Bah-Doooook" โ an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More