Slamdance Film Festival to return alongside Sundance

"Facing Monsters" is a feature length documentary that digs deep into the psyche of West Australian ‘slab wave’ surfer Kerby Brown, a man whose connection with the ocean runs as deep as his love for his family. Photo: Slamdance Film Festival

PARK CITY, Utah — Slamdance Film Festival is set to return alongside the Sundance Film Festival in January with a similar hybrid fashion of in-person and virtual gatherings.

“By filmmakers, for filmmakers,” Slamdance is unique in that films are exclusively feature-length, directorial debuts without US distribution, with budgets less than $1 million.

“We are anti-algorithm. That’s always been true, but it’s more urgent than ever as we continue to celebrate truly unique voices that defy simple classification and transcend analytics,” said Slamdance president and co-founder Peter Baxter.

“This year, our programmers gravitated towards films that embody the true DIY spirit of guerrilla filmmaking and push the boundaries of what’s possible in storytelling. The Slamdance team is honored to introduce every one of these storytellers, who are changing the media narrative and elevating the art form of independent film.”

The physical festival in Park City will occur from January 20 through 23.

A team of festival alumni selects all films via a blind submission process. The 23 feature-length premieres were chosen from 1,579 entries.

Slamdance is also showcasing a Shorts program, a Breakouts section, the Unstoppable program, and a new addition born out of the Digital Storytelling Lab at Columbia University.

Full 2022 program

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Both masks and proof of COVID-19 vaccination will be required.