It’s that time of year again, and this time it is safe to say that Sundance is back in full effect (after the last two editions happened digitally only) in Park City, Utah, with the customary additional screenings in Salt Lake City and at the Sundance Mountain Resort. One of the (rare) positive consequences of the pandemic is that the festival has kept a significant online access to its program, with the competition films and the short film screenings available throughout the US. But if you’re like me, it’s the full experience that you’ve been missing the past few years, and I never thought I’d say it, but I can’t wait to get tired of seeing the Sundance 2023 trailer over and over again before each screening. As usual, the release of the program was exciting and we were, as we are every year, eager to see the new projects from our S/W alums, in both the features and shorts programs. Here are the films we are either lucky enough to be able to say that we already love, and those we look forward to discovering.

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Features

Present in the US Dramatic Competition, World Cinema Dramatic Competition, World Cinema Documentary Competition, Next, Midnight and Spotlight screenings, this year’s program contains eleven features directed by S/W alums:

  • A Thousand and One by A.V. Rockwell (Feathers) – In her stunning debut feature, which she wrote and directed, Sundance alum A.V. Rockwell tells a deeply American story of a mother and son living for each other in a gentrifying city often uninterested in the reality of their lives.
  • birth/rebirth by Laura Moss (Fry Day) – Rose is a pathologist who prefers working with corpses over social interaction. She also has an obsession — the reanimation of the dead. A reimagining of a classic horror myth with such a complete, contemporary understanding that it becomes something exciting, terrifying, and singularly new
  • Bravo, Burkina! by Walé Oyéjidé (After Migration: Calabria) – Walé Oyéjidé’s imaginative debut feature is the story of a Burkinabè boy who migrates to Italy but later discovers a way to go back in time to regain what he lost. It’s a lyrical experience and one that flows beyond the frame.
Divinity - Eddie Alcazar

A still from Divinity by Eddie Alcazar, an official selection of the NEXT section at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

  • Divinity by Eddie Alcazar (FUCKKKYOUUU, The Vandal) – Divinity is the type of true visionary work the Next section has become celebrated for showcasing. Writer-director-producer Eddie Alcazar dazzles with this uncompromising vision that pushes a retro sci-fi styling forward to a stunning and grotesque future.
  • Fantastic Machine by Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck (Jobs for all!) – A meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society, directors Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck use a mind-boggling array of archival footage to collage this sociological study by tracking the transmogrification of photographic philosophy and technology over human history.
  • Joyland by Saim Sadiq (Darling) – A festival darling (pun unintended), having won two awards at Cannes 2022, Sadiq’s feature debut is simply gorgeous. A nuanced, delicate and beautiful expansion of the universe of his short Darling, Joyland is currently shortlisted at the Oscars.
POLITE SOCIETY Nida Manzoor

Priya Kansara appears in Polite Society by Nida Manzoor, an official selection of the Midnight section at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | Photo by Parisa Taghizadeh.

  • Polite Society by Nida Manzoor (7.2) – Another highly anticipated feature debut, Polite Society is pure fun. An action movie with a touching core, Manzoor’s film is beautifully choreographed, with a sharp and witty screenplay.
  • Scrapper by Charlotte Regan (Standby, Fry Up, Drug Runner) – The feature debut of this multiple S/W alum brings to the screen a narrative set in a universe rooted in an effective authenticity, similar to the one that Regan had crafted in her many shorts.
  • Sometimes I Think About Dying by Rachel Lambert – The feature adaptation of Stefanie Abel Horowitz’s short of the same name sees the original director credited as a screenwriter and looks to build on the success of that original story (a real favorite here at S/W).
The Starling Girl Laurel Parmet

A still from The Starling Girl by Laurel Parmet, an official selection of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute

  • The Starling Girl by Laurel Parmet (Spring, Kira Burning) – In her deeply compelling feature debut, Parmet delivers a powerful coming of age story set in a deeply religious rural community and featuring Eliza Scanlen in the main role, .
  • Young. Wild. Free. by Thembi L. Banks (Suitable) – A courageous and well-crafted feature debut, writer-director Thembi Banks’ Young. Wild. Free. draws you in and takes you along for the ride. The bold and saturated color scheme and precision cinematography combine to create a unique visual experience that elevates this relentless story of adolescence and independence.

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Shorts

Sundance is widely known as the festival that receives the most short film submissions, but a common misconception leads many to think that premiere status is important for a film to be selected. And this year is no different, while many films will be having their world premiere at the festival, many films are already favorites of the festival circuit and one is already online – on S/W. If it were up to me, I’d say watch all the shorts but I’ll only highlight here the new projects of S/W alums.

  • A Folded Ocean by Ben Brewer and produced Emily Murnane (Outside) – Part body horror, part psychological thriller, this is not your typical genre film, with the practical effects and the subtlety of the performances turning a conventional metaphor into a deeply powerful and disturbing one.
  • Airhostess-737 by Thanasis Neofotistos (Patision Avenue) – The last instalment of his “on route” trilogy, which started with Patision Avenue, this dark comedy evolves into a heartbreaking drama and is another testament to Neofotistos’ control of tone and directorial voice.
Christopher at Sea Tom CJ Brown

A still from Christopher at Sea by Tom CJ Brown, an official selection of the Shorts program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

  • Christopher At Sea by Tom C J Brown (Teeth, co-directed with Daniel Gray) – Venice 2022 selection, Christopher At Sea takes you on a voyage, both emotionally and visually, as Brown crafts magnetic imagery to draw his viewers into his world of solitude, fantasy, and obsession.
  • Mirror Party by Bridey Elliott (The Starr Sisters) – Featuring Elliott herself and I Know You From Somewhere’s Angela Trimbur, the two actresses embody friends rehearsing a breakup. Through a surprisingly surreal and captivating approach, paired with a striking visual aesthetic, the evening takes an (un?)expected turn.
Nocturnal Burger Reema Maya

Bebo Madiwal and Millo Sunkha appear in a still from Nocturnal Burger by Reema Maya, an official selection of the U.S. Shorts program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute

  • Nocturnal Burger by Reema Maya (Counterfeit Kunkoo) – Previously credited as Reema Sengupta, Maya’s follow-up to her 2018 Sundance selected Counterfeit Kunkoo is a very different kind of social drama still set in India. Frustrating, infuriating, the injustice she captures shakes to the core thanks to a powerful screenplay and stellar performances.
  • The Family Circus by Andrew Fitzgerald (I Know You From Somewhere) – Fitzgerald is back at Sundance with a new and completely different short to his last. As the title suggests, this hectic and chaotic family drama captivates it audience by immersing them in the house of a family, as they try to cover up their son/brother’s latest mistake.
The Flying Sailor Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby

A still from The Flying Sailor by Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, an official selection of the Shorts program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

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See our favorite short films from this year’s festival on Letterboxd.

To view more shorts from the festival, check out our dedicated Sundance Channel.