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Who’s Coming To Sundance 2015?

Jill Adler Leave a comment

Its hard to explain why we are so hungry for photos of actors; even when we constantly see them in magazines and on the big screen. The whole paparazzi thing is so nuts that people have died, sued and written books on the subject. Still. snapping photos of strangers is a national past time and there’s no better place and time to feed the frenzy than this week at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

Each year, the ‘A listers’ in attendance grows. Many have films appearing in this year’s fest while others (like the Kardashians and Paris Hilton) arrive to work the scene and perpetuate their mystique. Here’s our list of who’s coming to Sundance 2015, give or take a few dozen.

Power up those digis, grab a Sandisk Extreme Waterproof SD card (weather forecasters are predicting snow fall during the last two weeks of January) and watch for clusters of cameramen stalking Main Street’s facades (ie Grey Goose Lounge, TR Suites, Filmmakers Lodge, Village At The Lift). When they start shooting so should you. I met a gal a few years back who snapped away with a medium-priced point and shoot. She told me she makes hundreds of dollars every Sundance selling her photos overseas.

These are a few of the stars coming and their films they’ll represent:

Jack Black, Jeffrey Tambor & James Marsden, “The D Train”

Jack Black is in charge of his high school reunion and Marsden, the most popular guy in school, won’t come. Comedy ensues.

Kristen Wiig, “The Diary Of A Teenage Girl”

The hybrid of live action and animation turns the book about a daughter involved with her mother’s boyfriend into a quirky drama set in 1970s San Francisco.

Nicole Kidman & Joe Fiennes, “Strangerland”

Nicole Kidman and Joseph Fiennes play parents frantically searching for their two teens lost after a massive Australian dust storm.

Ryan Reynolds, “Mississippi Grind”

From the filmmakers who brought us the highly acclaimed “Half Nelson”, here’s a gambling flick that takes Reynolds to a legendary high-stakes poker game in New Orleans.

Sarah Silverman, “I Smile Back”

Comedienne Sarah Silverman takes in the drama of a housewife who has it all but turns to drugs and cheating when depression and disillusion set in.

James Franco, “I Am Michael” & “True Story” (with Jonah Hill)

James Franco gets two films into the Sundance Film Festival. The first, based on a true story, has him as a gay rights advocate who finds God and denounces homosexuality. The other has him playing a murderer on the run who tries to steal Hill’s identity.

Robert Redford & Nick Nolte, “A Walk In The Woods”

Robert Redford meant to make this senior buddy film with good friend Paul Newman but he passed away too soon. Now Redford treks the 2,100-mile-long Appalachian Trail with Nick Nolte right into the Sundance Film Festival.

Winona Ryder, “Experimenter”

Winona Ryder stars in a twisted bio pic about social psychologist Stanley Milgram.

Ethan Hawke, “Ten Thousand Saints”

A true darling of Sundance, Ethan Hawke plays a dad forced to reconnect with his estranged teen after the kid moves in with him.

Ewan McGregor, “Last Days In The Desert”

McGregor as Jesus. What more can you say except the film was shot by Emmanuel Lubezki, the cinematographer of “Gravity” and “Birdman”.

Jennifer Lopez & Viola Davis, “Lila & Eve”

J-Lo at Sundance!

The two ladies take the law into their own hands after their kids are killed in a crime and the authorities fail to do anything about it.

And the rest-

Molly Shannon

Giovanni Ribisi,

Guy Pearce

Billy Crudup

Tye Sheridan

Toni Collette,

Hugo Weaving

Orlando Bloom,

Brie Larson,

Sam Rockwell,

Jesse Eisenberg,

Jason Segel,

Anna Chlumsky,

Joan Cusack,

Mamie Gummer

Peter Sarsgaard,

John Leguizamo

Anna Kendrick

Anthony Michael Hall

Jason Schwartzman

Chiwetel eliofor

Chris pine

Cynthia Nixon

Kid cudi

Blthye Danner

Sam Elliott

Rhea perlman

Edward James almos

Laura dern

Keanu reeves

Patrick fugit

Spike lee

Sienna miller

Jason sudeikis

Amanda peet

Emma Roberts

Felicity Jones

Emma Thompson,

Mary Steenburgen

Lena Headey,

Richard Dreyfuss,

Dianna Agron

Jennifer Connelly,

John C. Reilly,

Tye Sheridan,

Michael Cera

Sundance

Brighton To Host Backcountry Awareness Clinic

Jill Adler Leave a comment

Nothing like a ton of fresh snow to make you beeline for the backcountry. Well, not so fast. Now is the time when people die. Coming next week, Brighton’s Backcountry 101 will address the hunger you might feel in your ski belly. The course is designed specifically for upper intermediate+, recreational skiers and boarders. Learn all of the fun things:

Companion Rescue – Weather – Snowpack – Terrain – Route Finding – Gear Considerations – Human Factors.

The weekend starts Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015, with an indoor lecture from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Then spend all day Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, outside practicing what’s been preached. You’ll need an avalanche beacon, probe and shovel but uphill gear or lift ticket is not required.

The course costs $90 on the first day of the clinic. Brighton employees and volunteer ski patrol take 50 percent off. Pre-registration is required. Send a note to keith.kink@gmail.com.

Events

Dual Moguls Wraps Up Deer Valley Freestyle Competition

Jill Adler 2 comments

It would be a challenge to guess which event made Deer Valley guests cheer louder; the dual moguls in the Visa Freestyle International World Cup or the big, fat, fantastic flakes falling all around.

Justine Dufour-Lapointe of Austria ever-so-slightly edged out 2010 Olympic gold champ Hannah Kearney and a couple of Canucks took the top spots in the mens division of this grueling head to head elimination race. But even with the excitement and energy, it was the fast moving snowstorm that upstaged the annual Deer Valley event. No one was going to complain. It’s been more than a week of unseasonably high temperatures and clear skies. Not just the Park City resorts but every resort in Utah is in dire need of refreshments with the MLK weekend ahead. The flakes cascaded as the fireworks signaled the end of the night and young and old practiced bodysledding down Wide West at Snow Park Lodge.

Maybe the freestyle skiers were doing a snow dance up there as they cruised Champions run in front of thousands of spectators ringing the manmade amphitheater. The dual moguls draws out even the most casual spectator because it’s easier to root for and spot a winner. It’s the athlete who not only throws down the hardest but crosses the finish line first. Over and over.

Tonight wraps up three days of moguls and aerials competition that saw the US women making a 1-2 punch on the podium on the first (aerials) night. Ashley Caldwell from Virginia pulled a pair of triple flips and teammate Kiley McKinnon from Connecticut laid down two clean double flips to come up first and second respectively.

This weekend, as well, marks the 16th year Deer Valley has hosted freestyle events that have included the 2002 Winter Olympics. “Our athletes love it here. It’s the trifecta of lodging, food and customer service,” said Konrad X Rotermund Chief of Competition, “Plus, Deer Valley has never lost its touch since the Olympics. It has retained that aura of wanting to win here.”

The Champions course was the first one ever built to spec for the Olympics and continues to be one of the longest in the FIS family. It also has the steepest start to a hard, fast bump ride.The next stop for our freestyle athletes is the 2015 FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships, Jan. 14-19, in Kreischberg, Austria.

At home, weather forecasters are scratching their heads and taking bets whether the totals will land at the low or high end of the predicted 4-12 inches. The clouds clear out by the end of the week so your best turn day will be Tuesday. The powderflu may be going around.

Events

White God Coming To Sundance and It’s Not The Ski Kind

Jill Adler Leave a comment

I don’t usually get excited this early over Sundance films but I started to drool when a notice about White God crossed my computer. I had just finished tweeting about the new changes in breed ban laws in Utah and here is a movie about dogs taking over the world.

White God won the Prize Un Certain Regard Award at this year’s Cannes Festival for its modern day twist on Animal Farm. Hungarian filmmaker Kornél Mundruczó has created a staggering vision of dogs driven to rise up against their human masters. The movie used a cast of more than 200 dogs to depict everything from bonding with fellow street mutts to dramatic chase sequences as the dogs tear through the city. This certainly doesn’t sound like a Disney dog tale.

When 13-year-old Lili has to give up her beloved dog Hagen, because it’s mixed-breed and deemed ‘unfit’ by The State, she and the dog begin a dangerous journey back towards each other. At the same time, all the unwanted, unloved and so-called ‘unfit’ dogs rise up under their new leader, Hagen, the one-time housepet who has learned all too well from his ‘Masters’ in his journey through the streets and animal control centers how to bite the hands that beat him.

White God (Dog spelled backwards?) is a story about the indignities animals suffer by their supposed “human superiors.” It’s also a brutal, cinematic metaphor for the political and cultural tensions sweeping contemporary Europe.

It’s being screened in the Spotlight category (North American Premiere) Friday, Jan. 23, 9:00 pm, at the Salt Lake City Library Theatre, Sunday, Jan. 25, 8:30pm at The MARC in Park City and Saturday, Jan. 31, midnight at the Egyptian Theatre in Park City.

Film

TreeUtah, Altas Trees and How The Snow Did This Weekend

Jill Adler Leave a comment

It almost feels like old times. It snowed a foot all day Sunday and we woke to gorgeous blue skies and temps in the 20s Monday to keep our new gift light and fluffy. Now, it really would be old times if there was a December base of 75 inches instead of 39 inches but beggars can’t be choosers. It snowed on and on and it was a lovely sight. Alta was reporting five inches of new and 10 inches in the last 48 hours. Sunday was supposed to be sunny or at least partly cloudy. But this is what it look like all day long. So much for weather forecasting. The storm total came out to about a foot.

altas trees

You begin to appreciate trees in a whole new way when there’s zero visibility, and, trust me, right now you want to see where you’re going. Despite the new snow and the additional off-trail terrain opening up, there are landmines everywhere. I stood in the Race Arena as Ryan buzzed past me only to watch him flip up in the air and crash into a twisted heap halfway below all because of an underlying rock.

Alta has arguably the best tree skiing in the Wasatch so we headed over to Wildcat after giving his head a rest at Watson. In the trees, you can actually see the potentially hazardous stumps and rocks. We had the area to ourselves. The only signs of others were the soft moguls they left behind. The aspens and pines blocked the fog but embraced the new falling snow so we danced Kitty laps for the rest of the day.

Alta works closely with TreeUtah to preserve their groves. The non-profit is dedicated to planting trees throughout the state and educating people about the environmental and social benefits we get from them. The resort recognizes that trees are part of the product they’re selling. Crews of sawyers are constantly out glading to remove dead timber which could invite beetles or other infestations and this past summer they planted nearly 2000 pines and spruces; not just for looks and powder stashes in the winter but to keep our planet alive. Did you know that in one year, it takes one-acre of trees to provide air for 18 people?

The chlorophyll layer just under the bark of the aspen allows trees to synthesize CO2 even in the low light of winter. So while you’re tree skiing, air is being created all around you. Trees lower air temperatures by releasing water vapor through their leaves so the snow they trap stays better longer. Trees improve water quality by slowing and filtering rain water. They also prevent erosion as the snow is melting, absorb noise so your runs are filled with the sound of silence and provide habitats for the animals you’ve sent scurrying with your turns. There’s a lot to love about resort trees.

altas trees

The trouble is that livestock grazing, wildlife chewing and butting trunks, fires, development and people carving their love letters into our trees have thinned out the tribes. No wonder we need to keep planting! The next time you’re playing off the Kitty or beating it in Eagle’s Nest take a moment to appreciate the terrain. You can help with simple things like not carving (it’s ok to pee) and having a voice at BLM meetings where hunters cry for larger elk herds. If you don’t have time to become more involved in how our lands are managed at least lend support to the people who can. TreeUtah works year round. Their next event is a Snowshoe Tree Hike at Wasatch Mountain State Park in Heber on January 10, 2015.

Another storm is heading our way on Wednesday and another this weekend. Keep ’em coming. The tree stashes can only get better and better.

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