Category Archives: Sundance

A Sundance Gifting I Will Go

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The first weekend of Sundance has ended and if you stick around past today, you’ll be one of the few. Everything, and I mean everything happened between Thursday and Sunday. There will still be premieres and other films to watch throughout the week but almost all of the gifting and celeb sightings will wane after Monday. In the past, there was that push to spread the events and hubbub to last until Sundance close but with the economy, it’s back to crushing it on opening weekend.

I made a mad dash, therefore, to start my product march. I walked into the crammed Sky Suite at the Sky Lodge near Main Street and immediately started mingling and eyeballing the products set aside for VIPs. The Perky Jerky dude who insisted I try his caffeinated beef jerky and handed me packets of the mighty meat. At home, Ryan grabbed my can of AXE Twist and you’d think he never saw deodorant before. With the new twist-down cap, the top won’t get lost in your gym bag. Wish they had given me antiperspirant too. Ryan will definitely need the AXE Twist shower gel they included in my bag.
See, not everything gifted at Sundance is targeted for the rich and elite. Just those that dig pampering. I could barely squeeze past all of the cliques of filmmakers and pretty women to speak with the EOS people. EOS (Evolution of Simplicity-www.evolutionofsmooth.com) is a line of natural, affordable skincare products that smell great (not too fruity) and feel silky. Plus, they come in smart packaging. The organic lip sphere is a cute little egg of lip balm made with antioxidant-rich vitamin E, shea butter, jojoba oil, SPF 15 but petrolatum and paraben free. The brand new hypoallergenic body lotion is due out on shelves this month.
All this schmoozing was making me parched. I could either belly up to the Eldridge bar from New York City where DJ Spider was spinning or throw back a cappuccino from Café Bustelo (http://cafebustelo.com/). The company was promoting a sinfully rich hot chocolate (made with milk not water) and single-serving cappuccino packets. Between the espresso and my Low-carb Monster drink, I moved into mission mode for the ultimate coup.
Former supermodel Rachel Hunter fawned all over pieces from Italian jewelry designer Rebecca (http://www.testiusa.com/) and they generously lavished her with a double-chain necklace and $500 chunky stone ring. The brand creates edgy, sexy pieces in stainless steel, bronze and semi-precious stones. After the reps were done snapping a slew of ‘Rachel’ shots, the host turned to me with a warm welcome as if I were just as cool as she was. See, not everyone at Sundance ignores you if you’re not in a film! I walked with a gilded bronze pendant necklace. The line is featured at J. Brooks at The Gateway and Fashion Plaza in Murray if you’d like some hands-on shopping of your own.
Just as I was starting to feel extra special, AMC Theaters provided the reality check. AMC gave VIPs a premiere pass for free movie-going at all AMC Theaters for the year. I got a box of Gummi Stars and Twizzlers. Guess it’s a good thing for me that there are no AMC Theaters in Utah. Two other sponsors at the Sky Suite payed it forward by donating to Haiti. Premium LG Group got celebs to sign a limited edition Burton-Corona Snowboard to auction off with a partner charity site. Giiv, gave away gift cards for Global Giving where VIPS choose from about 15 Haitian relief efforts.
One of the coolest gifts and giving idea came from Blanket America (http://www.blanketamerica.com/). One side of the blanket features Obama’s inaugural speech (where he mentions “our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness”), the other, a true old-school patchwork quilt of 13 different fabrics representing our original 13 colonies. For every Patchwork Heritage Quilt gifted at Sundance, Blanket America will give another to the needy. Blanket America aims to provide 1 million blankets to our country’s neediest citizens this year.
How funny I must have looked trotting down Main Street carrying a quilted blanket as I weaved between hordes of people in black peacoats and impractical shoes. I had 10 minutes to get to the Tweet House before they shut down for good. I heard Hitachi’s G-Technology was gifting harddrives. Now we’re talking…
Twitter staked out Park City’s The Shop yoga studio for their multi-tiered showcase of all things social and digital. This first “Tweet House” featured daytime panel discussions, product-gifting, evening special events and performances with live interactive video broadcasts from the “Tweet House,” on Ustream.com. The warehouse space off of Park Avenue was bumping for ‘happy hour’ but the sponsor tables were still manned. I snagged a killer vintage-style cotton shirt from Cohesive (http://cohesiveapparel.com/) before scanning the room for G-Tech. Lots of media technology from sound systems to web interfaces lined the perimeter. It seemed out of place to find Lift Kits insoles. The shoe insoles add an inch of height where no one can see. But I suppose we can all find amusement as the ‘bigger person’. Plus, I always wanted to be 5’7″. Ah ha! I zeroed in. Erin fervently shook my hand and introduced me to the Macbook-compatible G Drive mobile 500 GB USB. The sleek, white porcelain box -just slightly bigger than an iTouch – matches the latest Apple notebooks. The rugged, portable drive comes out next month and offers super speedy storage, rendering and backup(on a 5400RPM 2.5-inch drive).
“The Sundance Film Festival is the largest U.S. gathering for independent cinema and is the perfect venue for our G-Technology products,” said Hitachi Global Storage Technologies spokesman Mike Cordano. “We are pleased to help increase the vitality of independent film and filmmakers, and expand our reach within the film community.”
Everyone sponsor I spoke with said the same thing. They welcomed Sundance as the springboard to exposing them to the world. Can’t wait to dive back in tomorrow.

A Gifting I Will Go

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The first weekend of Sundance has ended and if you stick around past today, you’ll be one of the few. Everything, and I mean everything happened between Thursday and Sunday. There will still be premieres and other films to watch throughout the week but almost all of the gifting and celeb sightings will wane after Monday. In the past, there was that push to spread the events and hubbub to last until Sundance close but with the economy, it’s back to crushing it on opening weekend.

I made a mad dash, therefore, to start my product march. I walked into the crammed Sky Suite at the Sky Lodge near Main Street and immediately started mingling and eyeballing the products set aside for VIPs. It was the final day for them so a few of the Suite’s sponsors were ‘gifted out.’ Not so for the Perky Jerky dude who insisted I try his caffeinated beef jerky and handed me packets of the mighty meat. At home, Ryan grabbed my can of AXE Twist and you’d think he never saw deodorant before. With the new twist-down cap, the top won’t get lost in your gym bag. Wish they had given me antiperspirant too. Ryan will definitely need the AXE Twist shower gel they included in my bag.
See, not everything gifted at Sundance is targeted for the rich and elite. Just those that dig pampering. I could barely squeeze past all of the cliques of filmmakers and pretty women to speak with the EOS people. EOS (Evolution of Simplicity-www.evolutionofsmooth.com) is a line of natural, affordable skincare products that smell great (not too fruity) and feel silky. Plus, they come in smart packaging. The organic lip sphere is a cute little egg of lip balm made with antioxidant-rich vitamin E, shea butter, jojoba oil, SPF 15 but petrolatum and paraben free. The brand new hypoallergenic body lotion is due out on shelves this month.
All this schmoozing was making me parched. I could either belly up to the Eldridge bar from New York City where DJ Spider was spinning or throw back a cappuccino from Café Bustelo (http://cafebustelo.com/). The company was promoting a sinfully rich hot chocolate (made with milk not water) and single-serving cappuccino packets. Between the espresso and my Low-carb Monster drink, I moved into mission mode for the ultimate coup.
Former supermodel Rachel Hunter fawned all over pieces from Italian jewelry designer Rebecca (http://www.testiusa.com/) and they generously lavished her with a double-chain necklace and $500 chunky stone ring. The brand creates edgy, sexy pieces in stainless steel, bronze and semi-precious stones. After the reps were done snapping a slew of ‘Rachel’ shots, the host turned to me with a warm welcome as if I were just as cool as she was. See, not everyone at Sundance ignores you if you’re not in a film! I walked with a gilded bronze pendant necklace with a pricetag hovering around $600. Gulp. The line is featured at J. Brooks at The Gateway and Fashion Plaza in Murray if you’d like some hands-on shopping of your own.
Just as I was starting to feel extra special, AMC Theaters provided the reality check. AMC gave VIPs a premiere pass for free movie-going at all AMC Theaters for the year. I got a box of Gummi Stars and Twizzlers. Guess it’s a good thing for me that there are no AMC Theaters in Utah. Two other sponsors at the Sky Suite payed it forward by donating to Haiti. Premium LG Group got celebs to sign a limited edition Burton-Corona Snowboard to auction off with a partner charity site. Giiv, gave away gift cards for Global Giving where VIPS choose from about 15 Haitian relief efforts.
One of the coolest gifts and giving idea came from Blanket America (http://www.blanketamerica.com/). One side of the blanket features Obama’s inaugural speech (where he mentions “our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness”), the other, a true old-school patchwork quilt of 13 different fabrics representing our original 13 colonies. For every Patchwork Heritage Quilt gifted at Sundance, Blanket America will give another to the needy. Blanket America aims to provide 1 million blankets to our country’s neediest citizens this year.
How funny I must have looked trotting down Main Street carrying a quilted blanket as I weaved between hordes of people in black peacoats and impractical shoes. I had 10 minutes to get to the Tweet House before they shut down for good. I heard Hitachi’s G-Technology was gifting harddrives. Now we’re talking…
Twitter staked out Park City’s The Shop yoga studio for their multi-tiered showcase of all things social and digital. This first “Tweet House” featured daytime panel discussions, product-gifting, evening special events and performances with live interactive video broadcasts from the “Tweet House,” on Ustream.com. The warehouse space off of Park Avenue was bumping for ‘happy hour’ but the sponsor tables were still manned. I snagged a killer vintage-style cotton shirt from Cohesive (http://cohesiveapparel.com/) before scanning the room for G-Tech. Lots of media technology from sound systems to web interfaces lined the perimeter. It seemed out of place to find Lift Kits insoles. The shoe insoles add an inch of height where no one can see. But I suppose we can all find amusement as the ‘bigger person’. Plus, I always wanted to be 5’7″. Ah ha! I zeroed in. Erin fervently shook my hand and introduced me to the Macbook-compatible G Drive mobile 500 GB USB. The sleek, white porcelain box -just slightly bigger than an iTouch – matches the latest Apple notebooks. The rugged, portable drive comes out next month and offers super speedy storage, rendering and backup(on a 5400RPM 2.5-inch drive).
“The Sundance Film Festival is the largest U.S. gathering for independent cinema and is the perfect venue for our G-Technology products,” said Hitachi Global Storage Technologies spokesman Mike Cordano. “We are pleased to help increase the vitality of independent film and filmmakers, and expand our reach within the film community.”
Everyone sponsor I spoke with said the same thing. They welcomed Sundance as the springboard to exposing them to the world. Can’t wait to dive back in tomorrow.

How I Got My Tan – Part 1

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I left home this morning at 9 a.m. and returned at 11 p.m. with a brand new haircut and tan. My boyfriend wondered if I was cheating on him. I had started the day with a screening of Moon- an intriguing portrait of a man trapped on the moon while he completed a three-year contract with a solar energy firm. Sam Rockwell pulled off a brilliant Tom Hanks ala Castaway impersonation but added a sci-fi twist to it. After, I clawed my way through the intense Park Avenue traffic to the middle of Main and the Harry O’s complex where the Rock Band Lounge was in full swing. Not real rock bands there but Rock Band- the game- stood center stage; the one I sucked at during a Best Buy demo this Xmas when I tried to follow along on the electronic drums and some 8-year-old stepped up and schooled me. I’m no musician and after about a month of Rock Band’s competitor, Guitar Hero (and a strained shoulder), I knew this wasn’t my kind of game. Still, it was fun watching others have fun as they rocked on fake instruments singing and pretend strumming/beating to the songs on the TV screen behind them (and on the monitors in front).
The Lounge, formally The Marquee, was noticeably low key this year. Was it hard to find sponsors? I asked one of the coordinators of this gifting suite. “Impossible,” she answered, shaking her head. The economy had forced corporations to back out of deals and bail on the Festival. There was plenty of room now to maneuver among the companies present and time to spend with each representative.
First, I was marched over to KangaROOS (http://www.kangaroosusa.com/) where they were gifting to men, the Walter Payton Limited Edition basketball shoe. The retro shoe company that faded into obscurity in the mid 80s is back with side pocket and all, and using Sundance to help relaunch their US line. I snagged a pair of Tort 2 distressed velvet mid-cut shoes with Velcro closures that looked like a classic black Hollywood bootie.
Lia Sophia (http://http://www.liasophia.com/), the home-based jewelry business, returned to showcase their 2009 Cape Town Collection of animal prints and mixed metals. Tt Mates (http://http://www.ttcollection.com/) had a handy product- Supima cotton undergarments (camis and leggings), oh so soft and perfect for chilly days and nights. I reached out and bagged a yummy smelling Ecoya sweet pea and jasmine soy candle as I walked over to graphic artist Omar Vega and his line of new T-shirts called No Love Lost (http://www.fuckthatbuythis.com/). He aims to create works of art on his shirts so the public can view what the artist’s perceives. Essentially, he’s taking the art and political thought out of the galleries and putting it on our chests to reflect what’s on the minds of today’s “forward thinking” people. I pounded a bottle of low-cal Muscle Milk Shake before I hurried out and headed to the Hollywood Life House. The suites typically close by 6 p.m. It was 5 p.m.

More on how I got my tan in the next report…

Three Fests in One

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The way I see it, Sundance is really three festivals. There’s the film part. You go up to Park City, have a movie marathon until your butt can take no more, then you take a couple of pain killers and keep watching. With screenings from 8 a.m. until 11 p.m. you can be scheduled out the entire time. There’s the party part. This is not an all day thing but rather an all night thing starting at around 4 p.m. each day. Every movie has its premiere party; every production company like IndieVest hosts a party, often, companies like Kenneth Cole, Gen Art, and Vitamin Water do it up big- usually at private homes where they can go till 3 a.m., take some painkillers and keep partying. Hence, you are wasted for any of the daytime activities; and then there is the gifting part. An all day traipse up and down Main Street, hauling paper or eco-friendly sacs a forearm thick.
Sundance organizers frown on gifting as they see it disrupting the creative process and turning their event into something of a corporate commercial enterprise. Plus, those doing the gifting are outside the sponsor realm. Marketing firms set up “houses”, “lounges” and “suites” around Park City and rent out booth space to boutique companies, promising their products exposure from A++ celebrities and media attending Sundance yet they don’t give any money back to support the Festival itself. Plus, they’re terribly exclusive and off-putting to the average festival goer.As I sat next to Jeff Best at the MySpace Cafe in the Village at Sundance, I heard him lament about the transformation of his brainchild. Best Events took the Town Lift project and turned it into a mini Hollywood gifting village for four years, dubbing it the Village at the Lift. After the same number of years of contention with festival organizers, Best caved for the greater good. After all, his number one plan all along was to show support for the film industry and if it helps everyone get along, he’s willing to play nice. But while we sat munching on scrumptious cheeseburgers (better than you would get if you paid for it at the actual restaurant taken over by MySpace for seven days), and the paparazzi angled for a better shot of Paris Hilton in the booth behind us, he dropped his head and spoke about the financial hit he took. “I had sponsors in line for this year but when I told them they also had to be official Sundance sponsors as well (and pay the official pricetag and no gifting allowed) they backed out,” he said. It’s often too much money to go mainstream with not as much promise for celebrity exposure.They found other places to go- Fred Segal, one of the VAL’s anchor ‘stores’, joined the Village at the Yard on Kearns Blvd. for five days of gifting products you typically see in their store- Retro Brand with their vintage sports team and college logo T-shirts, skate and urbanwear by Hurley, George, Gina and Lucy eccentric yet chic handbags, Undun eco-denim, Nightcap primo cottonwear. K-Swiss shoes and more. The Yard also started their own café courtesy of T-Mobile. Nickelodeon nabbed some first-class acreage across from Fred Segal to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of SpongeBob Squarepants and next door to them was drugstore.com, gifting travel essentials like bronzer, shampoo, Advil, Alka-Seltzer and Chapstick. Living Proof showcased a line of no-frizz hair products by having stylists blow and style your do. I had a brief conversation with Eliza Dushku (star of the new series Dollhouse) about snowboarding in Utah while they primped her for her movie premiere. She says she’ll be skiing from now on as she’s not too keen on pain. The conversation started because she noticed my luscious Scope Zip Hoody from Oakley and said she picked out the exact same one at the Oakley House during their Learn-To-Ride event over the weekend. Yep. I was there.
Oakley organizes these Learn-To days for celebs and VIPs who want to learn a sport from snowboarding to motocross without the hassle of going through the public process. It’s an intimate setting with Oakley products and athletes and a one-on-one introduction to both to ensure they have a positive experience.
Singer/songwriter Kelly James escorted me onto the bunny run at Park City Mountain Resort for an unofficial snowboard lesson. He was a sweet guy; extremely patient. He spent a few runs with me and then kicked me out of the nest. Luckily, I had already had time (last year) with a ‘real’ instructor at Brian Head and the few great tips Kelly gave me made sense. I felt sorry for Eliza as she should have had a professional instructor first and not a professional boarder. Those who ‘can’, can’t necessarily teach. But whether we could ride, we sure did look good.
Oakley’s gifting centered around the Gretchen Bleiler signature line of women’s snowboard apparel. The line, designed by the 2006 Olympic Silver medalist and S Games champ rocks. It fits flatteringly well, the colors pop, and the details make sense for the most part (except that I wasn’t wild about the giant belt and buckle at the bottom of one of the jacket styles). Even her signature goggles sit well on the smaller frame of a woman’s face.
Beyond the Oakley House (which was located way off Main in Park Meadows), some of the usual suspects still turned up on Main.
In order to try to get a little taste of all that is Sundance, I find myself like a chicken with its head cut off; running in all directions, not sure where to go next and just missing someplace I ‘should have been.’ The horrific traffic doesn’t help. The police have blocked off Heber Avenue so there’s no way to get from Park Avenue to Deer Valley Drive without heading up Main Street.

(Look, Ma, I’m snowboarding thanks to Oakley)

Coming down Swede Alley or Deer Valley Drive is the nightmare-especially if it’s past four.

Avoid, avoid, avoid driving in Park City right now and park and ride the bus. You also need to get creative. I went into the Yarrow and was able to find a hotel guest who gave me his parking pass. Another girl I met, whipped out a handicap pass and her cane for VIP parking. A taxi driver picked me up after I stuck out my thumb. I got in when he said he was going my way and wouldn’t charge me. Turns out he and his son are driving for his friend’s cab business and pulling in $400 a day. Next year, I’m coming back as a cabbie!
I’ve set small goals for myself. Two suites a day, one movie a day and one party a night. So far so good. And lucky me, each movie has been noteworthy- Moon, Humpday, Max and Mary, September Issue and Adam. Both Moon and September Issue had been flukes. I showed up at the theater expecting different films but they had been switched last minute. September Issue about the making of Vogue’s Fall Issue impressed me with its storytelling, infusing warmth into Editor Anna Wilson a compact woman with a cold as ice reputation. Moon, with Sam Rockwell, was supposed to be Castaway in space but instead turned out to be a compelling sci fi tale about a man whose last weeks on the moon turn into a nightmare of diabolical discoveries and thoughts on the humanity of man and machine. There’s more to tell but I must get some sleep.

FYI, the major push for the Fest is over now and though the coming weekend will bring another rush of celebrities, it’ll be nothing like it was last weekend. Now’s the ideal time to see a movie (lots of tickets are still available) or get into a party. Chat chat chat. That’s how. We went to a party for “Carmo, Hit the Road” Monday night and a woman handed us invites to the closing party at the Queer Lounge on Wednesday. Earlier, I ran into an old friend from my Deer Valley teaching days who promised to get us into the Kodak party Tuesday night. The parties are last on my to-do list but may be first on yours. If so, get some sleep, dress warm and hit the pavement by 4 p.m. for the intel.

Breakfast at Sundance

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I’m going to make this quick as I’m about to get the boot from the T-Mobile Diner at the Village at the Yard (on Kearns). Apparently, they’re hosting a VIP luncheon for the filmmakers of the Killing Road. I’m not on the list. Go figure. lol. Breakfast was a lot of fun- texting my drink order via the new G1 phone and slamming down eggs and taters next to Kevin Sorbo and his gorgeous little girl. I’m bringing Sage in for sure. She would love the scene around here. Especially the Sponge Bob corner. On Sunday the cast is doing a live reading of one of the SB episodes. Talk about bedtime stories!
Well it’s off to my first round of gifting. Wish me luck! BTW, I was right about the more casual atmosphere this year at Sundance. I dig it. Even the check in girls for the Village from BWR public relations were sweet and attentive. NO attitudes. Very refreshing!

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