Sundance 2011 ~ Sundance Sunday Socials (Day 4)

Ideally, we'd like to see more films while at Sundance, but the parties provide such a great opportunity to network with peers that they are our first priority. That being said, my crew & I weathered the storm of parties yesterday and came out unscathed (i.e., no hangover) but we're definitely feeling the altitude after a whirlwind of party hopping yesterday:

@Noon ~ WIF Panel & Breakfast

The Women In Film 2011 panel was titled Fearlessness: Trusting Your Instincts and Getting Them on Screen.  Panelists included Sandra Valde-Hansen, Susan Saladoff, Joslyn Barnes, Karin Chien, Annie Roney, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, and WIF President, Cathy Schulman. 

@3pm - NBC Universal

This is always one of my favorite parties for many reasons. For one, it celebrates the indie filmmaker in the (818) much like we do, but more importantly the Production Serviced department puts their money where their mouth is and raffles off production grants. This year, NBC Universal raffled off $45K in $5K & $10K grants and VFF friend Kate Logan won! We're very excited for her and wish her luck as she finishes her documentary.

@4:30pm - IndieGoGo Panel & Party

We missed the panel (actually, we were in the next room because there were no seats available) but dig IndieGoGo for crowdfunding projects. Unlike other crowdfunding companies, IndieGoGo lets you keep the money you raised even if you don't meet your ultimate goal. VFF will definitely be using them this year!

@5pm - Seattle Independent Film Festival

Casual and comfortable with pizza, beer, and lots of conversation. Now, if only I can find the business cards collected...

@6pm - Sony

Sony celebrated its new, Super 35mm, F3 camera at Sundance. Over sumptuous hors d'oeuvres and strong cocktails, two F3 cameras made their rounds for all to touch and ooh and awe over.  

@8:30pm - FotoKem (Indie Moguls Party)

Year after year, this is another favorite destination of ours...massage therapists, oxygen bars, and awesome guacamole. The Snow Park Lodge in Deer Valley provides a large and comfortable environment to network and discuss ideas.

The Valley Film Festival Indie Film Expo

EVS at VFF08's Local Vendors Day

When The Valley Film Festival was founded 10 years ago, a few of our goals included incorporating a film expo into the festival, along with a script contest, location services, a music component, etc. Aah, those were the idealistic, carefree days. Once the reality of producing the festival hit us, the accoutrements took a back seat.

Why launch a film expo when our fabulous supporter CineGear does it so well? Our friends at Shriek Fest had a handle on screenplay competitions, FilmLA is doing a great job providing location & permitting services, and Hear NoHo kicks ass with its monthly music festivals, so there was no need for us to venture into the unknown. 

That is, until now.

We are very excited to report that VFF is breaking ground and incorporating a mini film expo, focusing on local companies, into the 10th Annual Valley Film Festival. We sort of debuted this feature back in 2008 with our Local Vendors Day which included EVS, FotoKem, Sammy Sound, and Video Symphony.  In 2009, EVS and Video Symphony were joined by Electric Picture Solutions, FilmLook and Monkeyland Audio. The key word is "mini" as we'll have to limit participants to 10 or less, due to our space constraints.  The planning is still in its infancy, but we hope to officially announce the participants by October 1.  

If your company would like to get involved, contact Marci at: marci @ valleyfilmfest dot com