Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

Today was my last official day working for Sundance.  I had to check out of the Chateau Apres by 10 am and since my shift began at 7 am, that meant checking out at 6:30 am.  It was challenging, but I did it.  I got to the office and found myself alone until 9:30.  All of the regular staff had attended parties last night and the celebratory mood caused them to imbibe with impunity.  Today was not the most productive day, but it was great fun.  My shift ended at 12:45 and I was able to slip into a film at 1:00.  I saw Afternoon Delight -- one of the award winning films.  After that, I stayed at the theatre and saw This is Martin Bonner -- another Sundance winner.  It is a film extravaganza.

Near Misses and Bullseyes

I got up at 6:30 yesterday morning in order to get to the theatre before 7:30.  I hoped to see Ain't Them Bodies Saints with Casey Affleck.  It was not to be. The line was out the door.  I quickly pivoted, jumped om a bus and made it to another show.  It was a movie about a particular incident during the Korean war entitled Jeseul.  It was beautifully filmed, but gut wrenching.  After that I worked my noon to 6 shift.  In the evening I saw Gideons Army - a documentary that follows 3 public defenders.  How could I pass up a legal film?  Today I saw Muscle Shoals -- perhaps my favorite film of the festival.  It is a documentary about the recording studio in Alabama where so many classic songs were recorded.  See it if it comes to a theatre near you!

It is funny how I keep bumping into people.  There is a guy named Howard that has, just by hapenstance, become my film buddy.  We have seen 4 films together.  We either run into each other in line, or in the theatre.  We have never discussed our next film, but we seem to show up at the same theatre with some regularity.  He is a lot of fun.

Tomorrow I move out of Chateau Apres.  It has been a great spot to hang my hat for the last 10 days, but the accommodations are very spare.  Tomorrow I will check in to the Marriott for my final night. I am looking forward to a hot shower (the  shower at Apres is either hot or cold and it varies second by second), some time in the steam room, and a soft pillow.  But my parting will be bittersweet.  There are a lot of really nice people staying here and I have had some great conversations.

Sleep Deprivation

Yesterday I decided to set my alarm for 6:30 so that I could get to the theatre by 7 am to get in line to see Kill Your Darlings.  KYD is about Alan Ginsburg's first year at Columbia University and his involvement with another student who committed murder.  It is based on a true event and Alan was played by (believe it or not) Daniel Ratcliff (aka Harry Potter).  Aside from the fact that he doesn't have the accent quite down, he does a very credible job.  After the screening the director announced that the film had been sold to Sony, so we will be seeing it in theatres someday soon.  Unfortunately, Daniel Ratcliff had already returned to England, so we did not get to see him.  He was here for earlier screenings and one of my co-workers drove him around.  He's proported to be a very nice guy.  Waiting in lines has turned out to be one of the best parts of the festival -- honest.  Yesterday I was quite the object of envy when I brought out my pb&j sandwich for breakfast while waiting in line.  I am surprised by the number of people who give me their card too.  It seems like such a Victorian thing to do.  "Madam, you have a caller..."  But, it makes sense and it is helpful to have them.

After KYD, I stayed on Main Street to take in the vibe and check out the Sundance venues.  I purchased a souvenier for myself -- a Sundance poster and mailed it home.  My work shift didn't start until 6:30 so I was able to take in a second screening:  Sound City.  It was made by Dave Grohl, formerly of Nirvana and Foo Fighters.  It was about the studio in CA and all of the  bands that played there.  It was great fun to have him at the Q&A afterwards.

At 6 pm I was at the office and it was obvious to me that my level of productivity would be down.  I was wiped out.  Fortunately, so it seemed was everyone else.  By midnight I was exhausted and at 12:30 when I poured myslef into bed I didn't bother to set the alarm.  I awoke at 8:30.  The big surprise this morning is the snow.  We are slated ot get 3-7 inches and it is coming down hard now.  After so many cloudless, sunny days, it is surprisingly nice to have a change in the weather.

MLK Day in Park City

Today I worked the 7 am shift.  I found out that the buses don't run that early, so I hoofed it.  It was only a 20 minute walk and the weather was decent--in the low teens at that hour.  I spent my first hour on the phone to the help desk when the login wouldn't connect -- it felt a  lot like real  work.  I also caught 2 films: Animation Spotlight (shorts) and Touchy Feely starring Alison Janney and Ellen Page.  Both were fun.  Food today was all but free.  I got breakfast at the hotel/hostel where I am staying.  They say they open at 7 am, but I have had breakfast at 6:00 am  twice already.  It is a self serve affair, so they seem pretty low key about it.  At work there were bagels and cream cheese and pizza for lunch.  I ate dinner at the Kowalski-like grocery and they accepted my "grub stub" which gave me $6.00 worth of food.  I splurged and bought a bottle of 3/2 beer.  It felt very decadent. 

I have yet to see any movie stars  on the street, but I did have a fairly lenthy conversation with a woman who told me she was a Mormon (after I asked her where the nearest liquor store was -- oops) She allowed that although she didn't drink, she had purchased wine and (heavens!) even spirits (her words) for recipes.  She was quite talker and we stood together in line for about an hour chatting.  Now that is something that doesn't happen in Minnesota -- meeting Mormons and talking to strangers for an hour.  

I traded shifts on Sunday to enable me  to attend an 8 hour screening of a Jane Campion mini-series.  I arrived at the theatre at 7:15 am and got in the volunteer line.  There were 20 tickets for volunteers and I was 3rd in line.  At 8 am they handed out the tickets and I hurried to the coffee shop to warm up and get caffinated.  The show started at 9.  After 2 hours we had a 10 minute stretch break.  After another 2 hours they fed us a bag lunch and we had 1/2 an hour.  We then returned to our seats for the final 2 hours.  At the end of the screening, Jane Campoin, Holly Hunter and the rest of the cast came on stage and and talked about the filming and answered questions from the audience.  It was phenomenal.  

The last movie I will mention was entitled Two Mothers.  It is based on a true story by Doris Lessing about 2 women who grow up together, marry, live next door to each other, and have sons in the same year.  When the boys are 18/19 years old, the women have affairs with each others' sons.  Controversial, to say the least.  The cast was interesting -- Naomi Watts and Robin Wright play the mothers.  Naomi was at the screening as well as the director and the 2 young men.  

Screenwriters are interesting

I worked the late shift last night--until midnight--and got home completely wiped out.  I now know what movie stars are going to be at which screenings, but I have taken a vow of secrecy, so I cannot reveal who is here.  As it turns out, I seem to be scheduled to work at the times when the stars are present, so I will just have to watch for them on the street.  There was a first at the office today -- a young man wanted to know if he could propose to his girlfriend before a screening in Salt Lake City tonight.  Unfortunately, he did not have a ticket and the show was sold out.  He then asked if he could come to the front of the theater at the end of the show and do it.  Since the film was to be followed by a Q&A, the request was denied.  There was much talk in the office about the intellegence of a public display of this kind and we unanimously agreed that we had done him a favor.

Before my shift today I attended a panel discussion between 3 screenwriters:  Erin Wilson--she wrote the screenplay for Fur: an Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus;  David Seidler -- The King's Speech; and Robin Swicord -- Memoirs of a Geisha.  They were great and the audience questions added a lot to the event.  Additionally, everyone in attendance recieved an insulated coffee mug, free coffee, cupcakes, and granola bars.   I guess there really is quite a bit of "swag" to be had.  I hope I saved enough room in my suitcase!

Brush with Fame

Okay, maybe that's a stretch.  Today on Main Street Morningstar Foods has a restaurant
with only stand up tables.  They are giving away burgers, chili, drinks and soda.  Apparently they will be open for the entire festival and all the food  is free.  That's right, free.  I walked in and had  a burger with swiss cheese and mushrooms on a wheat bun with a side of chips and iced tea.  At my table I met Claudine Ohayon.  Not a household name, but she has a bit part in a Sundance film entitled Concussion.  She said that she makes her living primarily from voice over work.  We had a really nice time.  Our other dining companion was a professor from the University of Arizona - last name Murphy.  He teaches in the pharmacology program.  He was interesting too (but not famous of course).  My next stop was at a terrific little coffe/teahouse called Atticus.  It was recommended to me by a couple of locals.  I brought my iPad and sat at a counter next to a guy who turned  out to be a local author.  He is a former DC lawyer who now lives in Park City and has made running his livelihood.  He wrote Relentless Forward Progress a book for everyone who thinks that running a marathon is just not challenging enough.  Really.

Sundance Headquarters

I arrived in Park City yesterday.  My day got off to a rocky start at the Delta kiosk at MSP.  I put in my credit card and the itenerary that came up was for Janet Young and not heading to SLC.  Oops.  Fortunately I had printed out my confirmation email and the attendent was able to find my info.  Then, since I had pulled out my notebook with all of my confirmations for the entire trip and set it on the upper counter, I walked away without it.  I was in the security line when I realized.  I dashed back (at least as fast as I could dragging my duffle on wheels) and reclaimed my notebook.  After that, it was smooth sailing.  The transportation from SLC to Park City was fun.  Everyone on the shuttle (the 5 of us) was heading to Sundance and all were volunteering.  The weather was quite brisk -- single digits -- but the sky was clear blue and the mountains were stunning.

After I checked in at the Marriott I got my volunteer badge and coupons.  I get 4 free meals and 4 guest passes for screenings.  Since I am travelling solo, I will see if I can make a few friends with my hot commodities!  I also recieved an Ask Me button since I completed the online "test".  I have decided not to affix it to my badge, however, since I really don't know anything :-)  I did take the free city bus to downtown where I walked up and down the main street and popped in to a couple of shops, most notably one called simply Mary Jane.  I also checked out an olive oil shop and sampled the most amazing black truffle olive oil.  The evening ended with a double feature for volunteers.  The films were shown at the Park City Library (how fitting!)  We saw a documentary, Valentine Road (about an 8th grader who shot a gay classmate) and Emanuel and The Turth about Fishes (about a 17 year old girl and her relationship with a new neighbor - a single mom.)

I had my first training session this morning.  As with many volunteer efforts, the office was somewhat chaotic.  The internet connection didn't work and the supplies crowded out almost all of the available floor space.  Apparently, most will be gone tomorrow when the festival officially starts.  I am now going to move out of the Marriott and head to my more permanent quarters at Chateau Apres -- a "ski hostel"  More on that later.