Is it really almost 3 a.m.? I’m finally in bed. The night ended with a brilliantly themed party at the Sundance Channel Headquarters at the top of Main Street in Park City. Hosted by AnnaLynne McCord, the “skinny bitch” from the CW’s 90210, Catdance drew a huge crowd to celebrate Fresh Step Litter’s feline film fest. The event goes beyond YouTube cats getting cute. It celebrates the best original, scripted cat short films. I have a cat. I get it. People are passionate about their pusses; passionate enough to make movies about them and now they have a chance to make $10 thousand off them.
Fresh Step selected five films from a nationwide search, and premiered them last night. The finalists were then awarded with a golden scoop. The contest, however, has just begun as Fresh Step wants you to vote for the winner. There’s “Catalogue,” a short about a couple who order a bedroom set and it comes with the cat in the catalog picture; a mock biography of an aging YouTube cat sensation called “Fallen Star,” an animated film that brought tears to our eyes called “Dear Rocky,” a how-to video called “A Cat’s Guide To Caring For A Human,” and a story that shows cat love defies stereotypes in “A Change of Heart.”
Each film has its own charm but the standout was “Fallen Star”. Funny, charming, clever; the story of a cat who has lost his fan base is a tongue-in-cheek allegory for every one-hit wonder ever farmed by YouTube – or Hollywood for that matter.
To screen all of the Catdance finalists and cast a ballot for the viewer’s choice award, visit www.freshstep.com Jan. 20 through Feb. 28, 2013. All voters will have a chance to win great prizes, including the limited-edition cat hat gifted at last night’s party.
The hat, designed by Sunghee Bang, is popcorn knit in a black and grey stripe complete with two pointy cat ears. It can be a bit itchy if you are sensitive to wool but otherwise it’s adorable. If you want one of your own go to www.aspcaonlinestore.com to purchase for $39.99. One hundred percent of the purchase price will benefit the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).
My feet throb. I hit the ground trudging yesterday after picking up my Sundance Press Pass. The credential gets me into films. My moxie gets me into everything else. And for me, Sundance is mostly “everything else.”
Parties, gifting houses, elaborate VIP dinners transform Park City’s Main Street into this urban Hollywood movie set. It’s a 10-day infusion of fashion, style and attitude that Utah rarely sees the rest of the year. Where people dressed in black crawl over each other while talking or texting on cell phones, trying to make it to some gallery or restaurant that’s been converted into a VIP lounge. (BTW, if you don’t have a black puffy you’re slacking. I got mine from Timberland at last year’s Sundance.)
Speaking of which, the regular cast of characters have returned- Village at the Lift, Grey Goose Lounge, TR Suites, Eco Hideaway, Fender Music Lodge, Sundance Channel HQ, Variety, AFI, Samsung, Sorel, Stella Artois Lounge, Oakley/Hyde Lounge, Chefdance- with some noticeable exceptions. Bye Bye Bing Bar although Bing is still a Fest sponsor. So long Timberland and Gibson; and the Fred Segal swag suite has yet to return as the premier gifting spot. TR Suites has subsequently supplanted them, offering an innovative mix of glam and technology that changes every year.
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We also have some newcomers to the scene – The Zen Den for holistic retreating, the PAX cabin, Google +, the Rock and Rally, The RedTouch Media Lounge, and the Social Lodge; some companies had such a great time last year, they beefed up their presence (Udi’s Gluten Free Foods, Miami Lounge), and others like House of Minerva and Saga skiwear who got their start at smaller pop-ups like the Flight Boutique on Main have joined up with some of the bigger Lounges.
But the one thing everyone will agree on is that Sundance is late this year. Maybe because the Christmas break went late into January?
The spaces were rented with only a few days to spare. Many VIP invitations didn’t go out until the week of the Film Fest. As proof, Chris Ryan’s notorious “List” of parties and lounges that is kept under super stealth, password protection and non- downloadable form debuted just last week with only about half the projected shindigs listed along with RSVP names and emails. “No one was ready,” said Ryan who runs the film promotions firm Oceanside Entertainment. Being late to plan your lounge or party could spell what’s akin to death in the PR biz- an empty house. “It’s hard to get people there if no one knows about it,” explains Ryan. “That’s if you can even open. There are payments to make, city approvals to get. Thirty additional venues could have happened if they had sponsorship.”
Ryan’s seven-year-old List benefits sponsors because they get the right people in the door. “People started depending on me,” he said.
Chris Ryan is the one to know when it comes to Sunadancing.
Press who cover parties not film, film publicists, talent publicists and their celebs are the only ones access to the List. Last year, Ryan had the Bing List, sponsored by, duh, Bing. It was this mysterious Holy Grail of access. The minute someone shared it with a plebe, it was yanked off the internet and a new password created for only the worthy to see. Ryan will sometimes put fake parties on the List so the RSVP goes back to him and he can check to see if that person should have had the List in the first place.
The List lists only VIP and extremely private parties and they’re rarely events officially sponsored by Sundance. If the general public can pay to get in it’s not on the list. Sundance hates this form of “ambush marketing”. They’ve spent thousands of dollars putting on a world-class film festival and they have a right to get proprietary. They ask a lot of their sponsors and, here, other companies come in and benefit from the exposure without giving a cent to the Sundance Institute.
But the reality is that indie filmmakers don’t have that kind of money Sundance asks from their sponsors and yet someone has to pay for that promotional party that could attract acquisitions and buyers, said Ryan. “They find ‘unofficial’ sponsors who can reap the benefit of celebrity and press attention.” Unfortunately, for us media types a story is a story no matter who sponsors what. So yes, my feet hurt, my arms are heavy and my eyes tired. This Sundance VIP thing is grueling. Cue fake whine. Fade out.
I hate smokers. They infringe on my enjoyment of clean mountain air. I stand in a liftline, ride a chair, make a left through the trees and cross a puff of cough-inducing smoke and I want to instantly petition the state to ban smoking at ski areas. You can’t smoke at Disneyland; at Lagoon (Utah’s own little amusement park); why can they not send smokers to the maintenance lot to pollute the air around the snowcats and snowmobiles? Resorts are marketed toward families yet I’m horrified when my six-year- old sees the liftie on break taking a drag. “Mommy, what’s that?” she asks. “That’s gross,” I respond. So the last thing I thought I’d want to write about was PAX. The new palm-sized device debuting at this year’s Sundance Film Fest has found love among smokers in the entertainment industry. It’s a super portable vaporizer that has only three parts and it’s destined for the pockets of skibums. It heats quickly and easily – even in freezing temps- and even if you’re fumbling on a chair lift you have a slim chance of dropping things. “The old vaporizers (used by those who smoke pot) sent a stoner message,” Said Sarah Richardson. “We’ve taken that technology and brought it into the tobacco space.” You can now have ‘attractive’ tobacco alternatives without the combustion that gets into your throat and chest. Pipe tobacco, nicotine and yes, that other substance. You can use it to smoke indoors and it won’t make your house, car, clothes or my chair ride smell like an ashtray. It works off an internal rechargeable battery (no butane). There’s a pop-up mouthpiece that turns on the device, the body and an ‘oven’ on the bottom where you pop off a magnetic lid and stuff your poison. The cloud you see coming off the PAX is vapor not second-hand smoke. If it keeps my mountain air clean. Hurray, sell more of these. Once again a true “Sundance find.” $249. www.ploom.com. P.S. If there’s a rider/smoker in your life, please, for my sake buy him this for Valentine’s Day.
It’s finally starting to warm up- if you can call a high of 20 degrees warm. But it beats -2 which is what Park City’s seen over the last few weeks. Several times I walked into the ski lodge to find little kids screaming for Mommy as their tiny toes began to thaw and the ‘pins n needles’ worked their evil magic.
This week in Park City I’m betting there will be enough moans and groans to rival the party cheers as thousands of Los Angelinos descend on the mountain town for the Sundance Film Festival and experience temps so cold their liquor stashes will freeze in the car.
Staying Warm
It’s pure science to get the right balance of comfort and warmth in the winter. You can’t just wear a cotton T-shirt and big puffy coat and call it good.
Starting at the feet, ditch the gym socks. A thick cotton sock is a pure sign of beginner. You don’t wear cotton socks in the mountains. Period. Wear a ski or snowboard sock in your after ski boot even if you’re aren’t on the slopes to keep your toes are toasty as possible. Chemical toe warmer packets are also a good idea but they don’t last very long in an oxygen deprived environment in the super cold. When they do die, yank them out or they will suck away any heat your own body is generating.
Lorpen’s Tri Layer Ski Socks use a Primaloft Eco next to skin layer to wicks moisture, a middle layer of merino wool for effective evaporation and warmth, and an outer layer of nylon knit on high friction areas for extra durability.
Most of the time the warmest boots are not the prettiest. But if you’re wearing a sweet pair of jeans or ski pants, no one will notice. The Greenbay4 from Kamik will keep your foot warm to -40 degrees.
For a more fashion-forward look that still retains warmth, I love my Sorel Joan of Arctic’s:
I can’t tolerate wool- even merino- on my bum – so on extra cold days I’ve got a thin layer of fleece between my and my Calvins. Polarmax makes everything you need under there.
Let’s start with the AYG 4-way stretch bikini brief. The poly and Spandex with Acclimate antimicrobial keeps your long johns fresh to wear throughout your entire trip. It’s a lot easier to wash these quick-dry, silky undies in the sink than your fleece pants and they don’t ride up.
Under ski pants I slither into the Quattro Fleece; under street pants it’s the 4-way stretch tight for warmth without the bulk. BTW, jeans are a ‘don’t’ in subzero temps. There’s nothing warm about them. Cords or a knit dress with fleece leggings will keep you warmer.
On top, I wear the Joy Fleece Sport Bra from Sportees under ski clothes and the Isis Sport Bra with street clothes (regular bras aren’t warm enough).
Over the bra goes either a wool baselayer like the Lifa Dry Classic top from Helly Hansen.
or, if can’t stand the itch, a synthetic cotton top from Sport Science. Feels like cotton, wicks like poly. I layer these with a street shirt of choice or a mid-weight fleece and top them with a wool sweater like the gorgeous Lucia sweater from Prana or the wool/nylon/poly Sera pullover from Sherpa Adventure Gear. Both sweaters have that thick wool feel on the outside but a soft, fleeciness on the inside so you won’t itch.
For ultra cold days, I’ve got my Obermeyer Kassady down sweater.
I seal the deal with a full down jacket and scarf (or fleece neck gaitor for skiing). Companies like Mountain Hardwear, Helly, Sierra Designs even Timberland make coats that are both warm and stylish.
I bumped into a girl at the red carpet premiere of a Sundance film who was snapping pictures with a Canon pocket cam. When I asked if they were good quality she smiled slyly and said, “Good enough to sell.”
Even camera phone pics can make someone cash if they have the eye and the opportunity. Welcome to Sundance 2013. Aside from Cannes and the Oscars, this world-renown indie film fest is one of the best places to spot, photograph or just ogle some of your favorite celebrities- writers, directors, actors, musicians and more- who will flood into Park City, Utah, starting tomorrow, January 17.
We’re not promising they will all appear like the princesses at Disneyland. Some cancel last minute. Some hideout in their hotel rooms and some go incognito. Still, if you plant yourself at the hotspots like the Village at the Lift (Lower Main Street), the Sky Lodge, The Music Café and basically the intersection of Main Street and Heber Avenue there’s a better than good chance of spotting ‘Waldo’.
