Slamdance focuses on low-budget independent films from emerging artists; its slogan is “by filmmakers, for filmmakers.”
It was founded in 1995, and notable festival alumni include "Parasite" director Bong Joon Ho and Ari Aster, director of "Midsommar" and "Hereditary."
Slamdance’s program this year consists of roughly 30 feature films and 70 short films, and includes entries from 30 countries.
One film is “Cash Cow,” a documentary that focuses on a financially struggling actor who camps and explores early Mormon historical sites as he waits to see his Domino’s Pizza commercial air on national TV.
Another feature called “Cisco Kid,” tells the story of Eileen, who lives in the desert ghost town of Cisco, Utah.
The festival will begin with “Punk Rock Vegan Movie,” which is the directorial debut of the electronic music artist Moby.
For the first time this year, Slamdance will be offering its Unstoppable program in-person at the University of Utah for free at the Union Theatre.
Unstoppable is a showcase of films made by filmmakers with visible and non-visible disabilities. Additionally, it is programmed exclusively by disabled artists.
“American Pot Story: Oaksterdam” is one movie showing at the U. The story is based on Oakland, California’s history of civil resistance, and its role in shaping marijuana regulation.
An all-access pass to Slamdance, which is taking place in Park City from Jan. 20-26, costs $250. There are discounted prices for locals, students, and industry members. A virtual option through the Slamdance Channel, which offers unlimited on-demand access to the festival program, is also available for $7.99.
Festival Manager Lily Yasuda said Slamdance received over 7,600 submissions, and its team of over 100 programmers narrowed it down over five months. She said they’re happy to offer an event with both an online and in-person option.
“The Slamdance channel is basically our in-house streaming platform," Yasuda said.
"During COVID, like many festivals, we had to adapt when in-person programming wasn’t happening, having that virtual component was really important. But even as we come out of COVID, it’s been really important to us as an organization to continue to offer kind of a hybrid festival.”
Learn more about the event and get tickets at slamdance.com
