Mark Jajeh

Party in the Box - Take Home Test

1. Name the 3 co-founders of the original festival.
John Earle, Cirina Hampton & Sterling Van Wagenen
2. In what month and year was the first festival held?
September 1978
3. Who was the director of the first festival?
Sterling Van Wagenen
4. In what city was the first festival held?
Salt Lake City
5. The name of the festival has changed 5 times since it began. In chronological order, list the 5
names given to the festival over the course of its history and the year that each name was
inaugurated.
US Film Festival(1978), Utah/US Film Festival (1979), Sundance (1985), Sundance/United
States Film Festival
6. What were the 3 goals of the first festival?
1) to put on a national event to attract the film industry to Utah and have the support of one of the
other key players in the early years, the stalwart state film commissioner, John Earle. 2)
Enhancing the film-going publics appreciation of film by selecting a retrospective program. 3)
Start a competition for films being made outside of Hollywood.
7. What was the financial outcome of the first festival? The second festival?
1st- 40,000 debt
2nd 20,000 debt
8. What was the financial outcome of the 3rd festival? What was the key factor that contributed to
this outcome?
100,000 deficit
9. What year was there no festival held, and why?
1980, Pollack wanted to move the festival to the wintertime instead of summertime. Also moved
to Park City
10. In what year was the festival moved to Park City?
1981
11. Who suggested moving the festival to Park City?
Pollack
12. In what year and for what purpose was the Sundance Institute created?
1981, to help advance the work of filmmakers. They also provide financial support to emerging
artists
13. In what year was the festival first expanded to include 2 weekends? Who suggested that the
festival should be expanded to include 2 weekends?
Jeff Dowd, 1982
14. In what year was the festival devoted exclusively to independent film?
1981
15. In what year were documentary films included in the programming?
1982
16. In what year was the documentary film competition inaugurated?
1982
17. In what year were short films added to the programming?

1982
18. Who received the first Video Award given at the festival? For what film?
Francis Ford Coppola, One From The Heart
19. What film critic was added to the board of directors to help increase press attendance, and in
what year was he added? Give a brief historical overview of his career from his rise to public
acclaim to the present.
Paul Swenson, Paul came from a family of writers, his sister being the nationally acclaimed poet
May Swenson, and he was also married to the film festival's main programmer and booker,
Sharon Swenson, who was pulling together the massive collection of retrospective films. Paul is
one of those writers who always looks like he just rolled out of bed. Slightly eccentric, but
usually on the cinematic mark, Paul would often, during the two weeks of screenings, get up from
his seat, stretch out on the floor, and watch from a reclining position.
20. What was press attendance at the festival in 1983? In 1998?
A few dozen in 1983 & over 700 in 1998
21. In what year did the Sundance Institute take over the festival? 1985
22. 1986 was a benchmark year for what type of films at the festival? Dramatic Films
23. Describe the conflict that emerged between Tony Safford and Lory Smith about festival
programming?
The 10 year commemorative article lorry smith wrote for the program guide.
24. What criticism did the press have for the 1987 festival?
In a sense, the national press dictated the terms of engagement. No matter what clever spin was
put on, if the press wasn't happy with the program, it could dramatically nudge the selection
process in another direction.
25. In 1991, into what location did the festival expand?
Salt Lake City Program
26. Who were the first filmmakers in the history of the festival to be besieged by distributors and
in what year?
Marissa Silver & Dena Silver 1984
27. What new rule regarding competition films was added in 1997?
They needed to be premieres
28. What is the Audience Award and what film received the first Audience Award? Who directed
this film? Name 2 of this directors most successful films, and his most recent film.
Audience Award= audiences actually vote for their favorite films screened during each festival.
29. What magazine was dropped as the official sponsor by the festival because of a dispute? What
magazine became the new official sponsor the following year?
Premiere was dropped and then entertainment weekly 2530/3850
30. At the end of the 1984 festival, what was the financial status of the festival?
In debt $20,000 1248/3850
31. What was the first year that the festival made a profit?
1985?
32. How many tickets were sold at the 1986 festival? 1988? 1990?
1986=20,275
search tickets sold/ ticket

1988=33,000
1990=35,000
33. How many people attended the festival in 1990?
5,000-7,000 visitors to park city plus the 35,000 tickets sold 2257/3850
34. How many films were submitted in 1992? 1997?
1992=250 2548
1997= over 800 3123
35. In 1993, what was the festivals budget?
$1.2 million 2692
36. How many feature films were submitted 2009? 2013?
2009=3661 internet
2013=4044

37. What rival festival was created in 1994?

Seattle film festival?
38. What theater venue was completed in 1997?
George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Theatre (Kindle Location 3168).
39. What new film category was introduced in 2010?
Best of NEXT internet
40. Explain the evolution of Robert Redfords involvement with the festival - from the first
festival to the present.
Redford was an initial advocate of the original festival
Started the Sundance Institute
The institute purchased controlling rights and renamed the festival Sundance.
41. Name the first 3 Directors of the festival.
Sterling Van Wagenen
Cirina Hampton Catania
Susan Barrel
http://preferred-reservations.com/pws/destinations/utah/sundance-film-festival/festival-history/
42. Name the 3 most recent Directors of the festival.
Tony Safford was director of the festival from 1986
until 1992
Geoff gillmore
Jeff cooper