The Sundance Institute has announced 12 projects for its annual June Directors and Screenwriters Labs, which take place at the Sundance Resort in Utah from June 2- 26. Congrats to all the directors and writers, including the two on the list -- Benh Zeitlin and Andrew Okpeaha MacLean, who appeared on our 2008 "25 New Faces" list.

From the press release:

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced the 12 projects selected for its annual June Directors and Screenwriters Labs, taking place at the Sundance Resort in Utah from June 2-26, 2009. Under the leadership of Michelle Satter, Director of the Sundance Feature Film Program, and the artistic direction of Gyula Gazdag, the projects selected for this year's program include emerging filmmakers from the United States, China, India, Morocco, Latin America, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. The core of the Feature Film Program, these Labs provide an opportunity for filmmakers to develop distinctive new work under the guidance of accomplished Creative Advisors in an environment that encourages innovation, collaboration, and risk-taking.

The projects and participants selected for the Directors Lab from June 2-20 are:

· All Fall Down/Jonathan Wysocki (writer/director), U.S.A.

· Beasts of the Southern Wild/Benh Zeitlin (co-writer/director) and Lucy Alibar (co-writer), U.S.A.

· Goodnight Moon/Elgin James (writer/director), U.S.A.

· My Brother the Devil/Sally El Hosaini (writer/director), U.K./Egypt

· Porfirio/Alejandro Landes (writer/director), Brazil/Ecuador

· The Narrow Frame of Midnight/Tala Hadid (writer/director), Morocco/U.S.A.

· On the Ice/Andrew Okpeaha MacLean (writer/director), U.S.A.

· The Story of Ram/Ritesh Batra (writer/director), U.S.A./India


These Fellows will be joined at the Screenwriters Lab from June 21-26 by the following projects and participants:

· The American People/Keith Davis (writer/director), U.S.A.

· Hello, I Must Be Going/Sarah Koskoff (writer) and Todd Louiso (director), U.S.A.

· Land/Jan-Willem van Ewijk (co-writer/director) and Abdelhadi Samih (co-writer), Netherlands/Morocco

· Little Wings/Emily Tang (co-writer/director) and Chow Keung (co-writer), China

"We're thrilled to be supporting such an exciting and inspired group of emerging independent artists," said Satter. "Their work explores the richness of the human condition in an increasingly global community, telling specific, personal stories with humor, audacity, and grace. We're confident they will each flourish in the creative and challenging atmosphere of the June Lab, where they will have the opportunity to push the boundaries of their craft and do the deep exploration needed to realize the full potential of their material."

Over the course of the Directors Lab, the Fellows work with an accomplished group of Creative Advisors and professional production crews, shooting and editing key scenes from their scripts. Through this intense, hands-on process, the Fellows workshop text, collaborate with actors, and find a visual language for their film in an atmosphere where experimentation is encouraged. Directors Lab Fellows also join in the week-long Screenwriters Lab with four additional projects to participate in individualized story sessions under the guidance of established screenwriters.

Gyula Gazdag returns for his 13th year as Artistic Director of the Directors Lab. This year's Creative Advisors include: Robert Redford, Michael Almereyda, John August, Ronan Bennett, Walter Bernstein, Joan Darling, Caleb Deschanel, Lisa Fruchtman, John Gatins, Michael Goldenberg, Keith Gordon, Susannah Grant, Randa Haines, Catherine Hardwicke, Ed Harris, Etgar Keret, Michael Lehmann, Peter Medak, Walter Mosley, Jeremy Pikser, Howard Rodman, Susan Shilliday, Stewart Stern, Wesley Strick, Joan Tewkesbury, Tyger Williams, Alfre Woodard, and Doug Wright.

For a more detailed listing of the projects, including plot synopses, follow this link.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 4/28/2009 02:29:00 PM

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