Two Park City-based film lovers — Rick Brough and Destiny Grose — have embarked on a treasure hunt to find the Lost Gems of Sundance.
The two, who are also longtime Sundance Film Festival attendees, have worked with Summit County Library Director Daniel Compton to create a free film series that officially kicks off at 6 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 2, with John Sayles’ R-rated directorial debut, 1980’s “Return of the Secaucus 7.”
The film, and others that are part of the series, will screen in the Kimball Junction Branch’s auditorium, said Library Assistant Grose, a former executive director of Park City Film.
“We had to make sure we could schedule the auditorium, and I wanted to do it during the winter so the nights would come earlier and be darker in the auditorium,” she said.
“Return of the Secaucus 7” premiered at the first Sundance Film Festival held in Park City in 1981, said Brough, a former Park Record and KPCW reporter.
“The festival was then known as the Utah Film and Video Festival, and the only places they showed films were at the Egyptian Theatre, and three theaters in the Holiday Village,” he said.
“Return of the Secaucus 7” is about a reunion of a group of college-campus rebels who get together again for a weekend of reminiscing, Brough said.
“They get together and catch up on what they’re doing and come to terms with their feelings,” he said. “There are a few romantic issues that come up as they contemplate early middle age.”
If the premise sounds familiar, Brough said the same type of situation is the setting for another film, Lawrence Kasdan’s 1983 hit, “The Big Chill.”
“Lawrence says he never saw ‘Return of the Secaucus 7,’ before he did ‘The Big Chill,’ and that’s possible, because there are so many ideas floating around and filmmakers are pitching every conceivable idea out there,” he said.
Before tackling “Return of the Secaucus 7,” Sayles was a screenwriter, Brough said.
“He had written some scripts for (filmmaker) Roger Corman, mostly monster movies that contained a little satirical edge,” he said. “But ‘Secaucus 7’ is kind of a slice-of-life movie, and after it screened, Sayles went on to become a very active independent filmmaker.”
An anonymous donor has underwritten the screening of “Return of the Secaucus 7,” according to Grose.
“They love the movie so much that they wanted to make sure we screened it,” she said.
The other films selected for the Lost Gems of Sundance Film Series are:
- “Murderball,” rated R, by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro, on Thursday, Jan. 2
- “Waitress,” rated PG-13, by Adrienne Shelly, on Thursday, Feb. 6
- “Living in Oblivion,” rated R, by Tom DiCillo, on Thursday, March 6
All screenings will start at 6 p.m.
“Murderball is a documentary about paraplegics who play a “badass” form of wheelchair rugby, Brough said.
Grose has always loved “Murderball.”
“The story is so compelling because it gets you involved in other people’s lives who you may have never heard about,” she said.
The film is the only documentary in this season’s lineup, according to Grose.
“We knew we wanted to show a documentary in the series because they give people a look inside of someone’s life,” she said.
Grose also pitched “Waitress” because it would screen in February, Valentine’s Day month.
“Of course, you certainly want something that is a little more touching during that month, and this is a well-balanced movie that is so full of pathos and happiness,” she said.
“Waitress” is about Jenna, played by Keri Russell, a pregnant and unhappily married waitress who meets a newcomer that inspires her to find happiness, Grose said.
“This film is so interesting because it became a Broadway musical and then the musical was made into another movie,” she said. “In fact, many people don’t know the musical is based on the original movie.”
“Waitress” screened at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival to a full house at the Eccles Theatre, which seats nearly 1,270, said Grose, who was in the audience.
“It got a standing ovation — and a lot of tears, because the film was touched with poignancy and tragedy,” she said.
Filmmaker Shelly, who started off as an actress, wrote, directed and appeared in the film, with hopes it would get into Sundance.
It did, but right before the festival, she was found hanged in her apartment, Grose said.
“Adrienne’s death was originally thought to be a suicide, but everyone who knew her countered that,” she said. “She was so happy to have her film at Sundance, and she had been making plans to attend because it was her lifelong dream.”
Shelly’s husband, Andy Ostroy, worked hard to keep the case open, and it was soon discovered that she had been murdered by a construction worker who worked at her apartment complex, Grose said.
“So, ‘Waitress’ arrived at Sundance without her, and after the standing ovation, when Keri and (Andy) walked on stage, the audience burst into tears,” she said. “It still is a wonderful film, and it will touch all who see it.”
“Living in Oblivion” wraps up the inaugural Lost Gems of Sundance Film Series, and it’s a film about the trials and tribulations a filmmaker experiences while making an independent film,” Brough said.
“It stars Steve Buscemi, who was the king of independent film in the 1990s,” he said. “It has three segments, and one of the segments features Peter Dinklage, who many had never heard of at the time. He has a key moment that is memorable and hilarious.”
Brough came up with the idea for the Lost Gems film series.
“The library has other film series — Book to Film and Classic Film Club — and I wanted to see if we could get a little series going that looks at some aspects of the history of the Sundance Film Festival,” he said.
The films Brough wanted to show would not be so much the familiar hits such as Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs” (1992), Peter Cattaneo’s “The Full Monty” (1997) or Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” (2017).
“I wanted films that were interesting and deserved another look,” he said. “I wanted films that would represent some interesting aspects of Sundance’s history.”
Brough’s enthusiasm for the series inspired Grose.
“I said, ‘Let’s just do it,’ and we sat down with Dan and put it together,” she said. “We sat down and went through different movies, and came up with the first four. And honestly, I think we could probably show a lost gem of Sundance every week for a year and never run out of good stuff. There are so many great movies that didn’t get the attention they deserved.”
One of the challenges was finding films that were accessible to the library, according to Grose.
“It was about finding them and making sure you show them,” she said. “Even though we’re not charging people to see them, you still have to have the rights to show them. Dan has been very supportive. I appreciate how supportive he is on these cinematic journeys we take.”
Brough and Grose would like to see the film series continue, and they are planning to tap into fellow Sundance Film Festival lovers to help.
“I have a theory that if you have a room full of people who have been to Sundance and ask them if there was a movie they really liked that disappeared after the festival, they will tell you what their lost gem was,” Brough said. “And if we find that film, I’d like to get them back to the library to introduce it.”
Grose is already planning the next series.
“I’m going to encourage people to write down those titles, and we could see what we can do,” she said. “This is a great chance to remember Sundance and feel passionate about it.”
Lost Gems of Sundance Film Series: ‘Return of the Secaucus 7’
- When: 6 p.m., Monday, Dec. 2
- Where: The Summit County Library Kimball Junction Branch, 1885 W. Ute Blvd.
- Cost: Free
- Information: tinyurl.com/4jw95ur2
- Web: thesummitcountylibrary.org