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).

 

 

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’.

 

Here’s the ‘short’ list (in no particular order):

 

Dermot Mulroney

Ellen Page

Nicole Kidman

Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood)

Patricia Clarkson

Gabriel Mann (Revenge)

Daryl Hannah

Rutger Hauer

Isaiah Washington

Jane Lynch

Ben Stiller

Jesse Eisenberg (Social Network)

Naomi Watts

Ashton Kutcher

James Franco

Jordin Sparks

Alicia Keys

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Julianne Moore

Guy Pearce

Felicity Jones

Julie Delpy

Ethan Hawke

Josh Radnor

Allison Janney

Ellen Page

Paul Rudd

Emile Hirsch 

Isaiah Washington

Shailene Woodley (Secret Life)

Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights)

Dakota Fanning

Elizabeth Olsen (Martha Marcy May Marlene)

Evan Rachel Wood

Kyle Maclachlan

Rooney Mara

Jessica Biel

Alfred Molina

Chad Michael Murray

Shia LaBeouf 

Vincent D’Onofrio

Holly Hunter

Forest Whitaker

Kristin Bell

Morgan Spurlock 

Mamie Gummer

Megan Mullally

Demi Moore

Ellen Barkin

Richard Dreyfuss

David Spade

Jane Seymour

Jonathan Groff (Glee’s Jesse St James)

Josh Lucas

Michael C. Hall (Dexter)

Kevin Sorbo

Mariel Hemingway

Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim)

Neve Campbell

Sean Young

Elisabeth Moss

Ed Harris

January Jones

Casey Affleck

Daniel Radcliffe

Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Keith Carradine

Reese Witherspoon

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Frances O’Connor

Matthew McConaughey

Steve Carell

Toni Collette

Sam Rockwell

Maya Rudolph (Bridesmaids)

Rob Corddry  (from the Daily Show)

Sarah Polley

Sonja Kinski (daughter of Natassja Kinski, granddaughter of Klaus Kinski)

Kelly McGillis

Bill Pullman

Kate Bosworth

Radha Mitchell

Anthony Edwards

Henry Thomas (E.T.)

Amanda Seyfried

Josh Harto

Scarlett Johansson

AnnaLynne McCord

 

Sundance May Be Over But The Fashion Lives On….

The games and gifting were slightly off from the years where stereo systems, Playstations and cars were doled out but it was no less engaging to watch the bags of swag spilling onto Main Street, Park City, this year. The idea behind ‘gifting’ is that you get to know the products, the people behind them and most importantly take it home with you for free. At the Timberland Lodge on Lower Main Street (the west side is for VIPs, the east for Public), men and women were treated to the perfect winter attire for the raging blizzard that finally appeared- SNOWBOOTS! And down jackets.

My favorite was the “Long Down” with the faux fur hood. Very Hollywood while being very Utah. The boots are wrapped in goose down all the way up to your knees. They’re a bit funky and not for everyone but super warm on your legs.

I was asked if I could write about alcohol when I entered the TR Suites at the Gateway Center. Huh? Apparently if you live in Utah you can’t write about liquor. I got a kick out of that one. Not only was I thrilled to see zero calorie margarita mix from Refine (sold in World Market) but these naughty Vice Merchants bedsheets also got my sexy on.

But of course it was too early to drink that day so I grabbed Hint Fizz instead. Unlike most flavored waters, these taste ‘infused’ rather than juiced. Kind of like those cucumber waters you’re handed at day spas.

Shoes were a big thing at Sundance this year and the styles appearing from Matt Bernson mixed the mountain look with fashion in a way that makes even a flat-soled gal like me sparkle.

As cute as heels are, though, they had to take a backseat to the new Sorels I gathered up at the Vevo Powerstation and Sorel Suite. I’m starting to feel like the Imelda Marcos of winter boots.

I have never heard of DL1961 Denim but now I know. That’s the thing about Sundance. The exposure to brands and fashion you never knew existed. DL1961 is the only jean with 4-way stretch Lycra so it will never sag, bag, or lose its shape. When you’re used to wearing Lycra baselayers all winter it’s not a stretch- so to speak- to include it in your outwear.

Friendship bracelets, layering bangles and rings are popular according to the Rachel Roy rep. But these friendship bracelets are nothing like you find at ClubMed. The touch of bling makes them all Hollywood and all Sundance.

You can’t get away from the harsh climate in Utah so Hollywood and New York brought their skincare saviors to us. Prasad Medical Skincare was gifting gels, lotions and potions designed to minimize free radicals, fine lines, and sagging skin. I walked with a skin survival kit of sunscreen, eye rescue and “intense vitamin serum”. Great stuff when you live in Park City. Throw in Burt’s Bees Shea Butter Hand Repair Cream (CW3PR Re:Treat), Amala Hydrating Yogurt Mask (EcoHideaway Lounge), Lumene Firming Day Cream (Bertolli Soup Chalet), Phytomer
(pronounced Fee-Toe-Mer) sea water bath to revitalize skin and lip plumping duo (at the Alive Green Expo Pavilion), a Fresh Cosmetics lipgloss (from Vevo), and a makeover at the L’Oreal Beauty Suite and I looked like one of those celebrities. Okay, at least I felt like one. My skin never felt better despite the lack of sleep and abundance of free-flowing alcohol over those first few days of the fest.

You can’t be beautiful without being thin and the Sensa rep vowed that clinical studies showed users lost 60 pounds in 6 months just by sprinkling the virtually tasteless crystals on every meal. I’ll be trying that before ‘buying’ that one.

And there is was! A little table of SHRD. I discovered this magical hair protein crème at last year’s Sundance but ran out in the fall. I missed it badly. I’ve tried two other leave-in conditioners since then but nothing smoothed my hair without making it feel dirty like SHRD. The stuff’s expensive so it was a sweet to see them back again for Sundance.

Eventually the space inside those suites fill up and you start to feel mushed. Nothing takes the edge off like hovering over snack food from various “sponsors”: Cream O’ Wheat and Sabra Hummus (TR Suites)- Yes, they have gotten in on the celebrity scene, Udi’s Gluten-free, organic snickerdoodles and bread (Maimi Oasis), Tembo Trading Company Watoto Coffee (Alive Lounge), and hearty, yummy Bertolli Meal Soup.

The ‘gifting’ ended long before the actual Festival did but while the curtain closes on those films I’ve just begun to try out my goodies. Now, the real party starts. And, no, you can’t borrow my boots!

All the people at the party were drinking wine in one room at Zoom but I wanted food and a bit less ‘scene’. As I hovered but the bounty of greasy appetizers during the Focus Forward party I started chatting with Paul Bunyan in a cowboy hat. I asked him what movies he had seen and liked. Then he said judgmentally, “You haven’t seen much have you?”

“I cover the scene in Park City during the Sundance Film Festival,” I explained. “I don’t have time to see movies.” The cold chill crept in. “Films are the essence of Sundance,” he said with disdain. “Everything else is a waste of time.” The irony of the fact that this statement was made while standing in a party and eating free food was not lost on me. What’s worse is that Tex had no clue of his hypocrisy. Sundancers often split into two camps: the film camp and the party/lounge camp. But both are very much intertwined. Without networking, without parties, without music, without cast dinners, without swag (hell, think product placement and endorsement), these independent films would not be made. Those who can embrace all aspects of Sundance are the ones who get the most out of it. Maybe poor Tex (owner of his own little movie review website) just wasn’t invited onto enough Sundance VIP lists this year.

Exclusive cast dinner were all the rage this past fest with meals and bashes at places like the Supper Suite at the Montage, the LIVEstyle Film Lounge (HBO party), the Bertolli Meal Soup Chalet (7 For All Mankind Fresh Faces party), the Grey Goose Blue Door, The Fender Lodge music sessions, the new STK space, Hyde and Goodnight Gansevoort, TAO, Bing Bar and the Sundance Channel Headquarters, Chefdance and more. The only way in was to know someone.

One way to do that was Tweet. The Tweethouse party rocked and all you had to do to get in was send them a Twitter message asking to come. FYI- if you want to attend Sundance parties it’s best to RSVP long before the Festival actually starts.

The Tweethouse party of free booze and a cold veggie platter preceded a social media panel discussion. Celebs and press both attended and although they never did give away that Sony Tablet they promised to raffle if you tweet “#sonytablet”, I made some killer contacts.

With the editor of Backstage MagazineWith a star from one of my favorite inappropriate TV shows- Outsourced.

Entertainment lawyers throw the best party. Dive and Cozens got down at the Spur with live music, good food and tequila for everyone. There, I met the communications chair for Women in Film and a fellow blogger Christina Kotlar Turchyn.

After tequila comes Vodka, and the cast dinner and after party for Richard Gere’s new film Arbitrage featured free-flowing Grey Goose disguised as a fruity juice shot. IE Trouble.

Richard Gere and wife Carey Lowell were in the crowd somewhere at the Grey Goose Blue Door but I only caught Gere’s profile in the distance.

photo credit Jamie McCarthy / WireImage

I expected a sitdown dinner but it was a buffet so the dinner felt no different than the party at the Spur except the healthy, colorful food was fantastic. Wish I had gotten the name of the caterer.

The Sky Lodge partied from 24/7 throughout the first weekend of Sundance as ReTreat took over the upstairs, downstairs and sideways spaces.

Most of the hoopla has ended as we enter the last weekend of the Festival. To find a place toget your rock on, you’ll have to hunt deep. Head over to one of the final screenings and start networking. There’s a big fat “official” Sundance party tomorrow night but that is usually lame and you need a ticket. The food is picked over in less than an hour, the lines for your free plastic cup of wine or beer is slow and people just stand around in a loud, dark, crowded football-field-sized room while video clips of award winners flash in the corners. Skip it; especially if you partied hard at the Nas show tonight.

The rapper headlines at Sugar, 9 p.m. at 268 Main Street. The tickets aren’t cheap ($65) but there’s bound to be a guest list somewhere you can sneak onto. The Massachusetts-based electronic-pop band Passion Pit will perform on Saturday.
www.ticketcake.com.

Tomorrow (Saturday) singer-producer Akon should take the stage around 11 p.m. after the doors open on Park City Live (old Harry O’s). $50 at ticketcake.com and, yes, there’s a VIP list floating around.