Here It Comes... (views)
More on the actual movies to come, but the tone of Sundance 2009 is being set from a distance.
There are daily e-mails about who isn't coming this year.
An e-mail about Entertainment Weekly's beefed up presence was mostly about celebrities.
I hear that the festival itself is concerned about how much "serious" press is coming this year... the only people left with jobs that can cover the cost of hotel rooms and airfare are paparazzi and celebrity reporters.
Who will be the biggest star at Sundance this year? Spongebob Squarepants. He couldn't be much more indie... or less indie... but he's having a birthday party at the festival.
The studio Dependents know that there will be great bargains to be had... but are also afraid there will be nothing really worth buying. Hamlet 2 cooled the room much as Happy, Texas did in its era. Keep in mind that deals for The Wrestler and Slumdog Millionaire both cost Fox Searchlight well under $10 million.
The true indies are already very nervous. And while Sundance may offer opportunity, at least one indie chieftan who has scored well out of fests is talking about being very, very cautious about buying anything this year. My sense from a number of them is that they will be waiting for the prices to drop post-fest and that we could see most of the actual buying from Sundance in February.
No one is excited by the not-already-sold celebrity films at the fest. They are suspect from the biggest star down, making the Jim Carrey movie the one with the biggest target on its back. The MIchael Cera/Charlyne Yi psuedo-doc is the Celebrity Film Most Likely To Be Overpaid For. (It could also be the most sucessful film to emerge this year, if the stars align.)