The 2011 Sundance Film Festival is winding down. For the past nine days, festival-goers have seen some ground-breaking films and were witness to some inspired performances, participated in some stimulating discussions and heard from some of the entertainment industry’s hot up-and-coming artists.
While it seems the end is near, there are still some events that will take place this weekend. Here is a listing of other Sundance Film Festival closing-weekend events:
Today, Jan. 29, at noon, the Egyptian Theatre, 328 Main Street, will be the venue for a performance/exhibit by Doug Liman called “Reckoning with Torture.”
The event, which will also include images by conceptual artist Jenny Holzer, was organized by the ACLU and will take a close look at the scope and cost of the United States torture program through declassified government documents and interviews with former detainees.
Joining former CIA and military officials for “Reckoning with Torture” will be “Music of Chance” author Paul Auster, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Annie Proulux and documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney. It is open to ticket holders only. For more information, visit www.sundance.org/festival
The Filmmaker Lodge, located on the second floor of the Elks Building, 550 Main Street, will hold it’s final panel discussion today, Jan. 29, at 2 p.m.
The theme is “Crime and Punishment” and will focus on stories that will examine the strengths and weaknesses of the United States Judicial System.
The panel will feature Directors Marshall Curry (“If a Tree Falls”), Joshua Safran (“Crime After Crime”) and Susan Saladoff (“Hot Coffee”) who will be joined by Susan N. Herma, president of the American Civil Liberties Union.
This event is free to all Sundance Film Festival credential holders and the general public as space permits.
Of course the big finale is the festival’s Awards Ceremony and Reception.
The extravaganza will be held at the Basin Recreation Fieldhouse, 1388 Center Drive, and will begin with a reception at 6 p.m.
The award ceremony will begin at 7 p.m., and will honor films from the documentary and dramatic categories. The awards are determined by the Festival-goer’s ballots. A ceremony ticket is required for entry.
The award-night party will begin at 9:30 p.m. A party ticket is required for entry.
Closing the film festival is the Film Church, which will take place at the Filmmaker Lodge on Sunday, Jan. 30, at 10 a.m.
Sundance Film Festival director John Cooper and director of programming Trevor Groth will be on hand to discuss the film festival and may even feature appearances by some of the award winners. For more information, visit www.sundance.org/festival
In addition, New Frontier, located in Miners Hospital, 1354 Park Avenue, will still be open until 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 29.
The venue features exhibits that combine technology and film, giving festival goers a fresh new take on the possibilities of visual and audio art.
“There are parts of he festival I would love to point people towards, and one is the New Frontier,” said Sundance Institute Founder and President Robert Redford at the beginning of this year’s festival. “If we’re going to talk about the future, and we are looking ahead, I see film being a more hybrid experience. I urge you to take a look at it.”