The Kids Are All Right: Sundance Docs Showcase Inspiring Young People

Shirley, theElisabeth Moss-starring thriller, has been acquired by Neon in North America.The deal was in the low-seven figure range, making it the indie distributor's second (and smaller) deal at the festival after having jointly acquired Andy Samberg comedyPalm Springs with Hulu for a record-setting $17.5 million and 69 cents.Josephine Decker directed from a screenplay bySarah Gubbins, which follows a young couple, Fred and Rose (Odessa Young and Logan Lerman), that moves to a small Vermont

By Mike Fleming Jr

The Scout Association is putting the lives of young people at risk, a coroner said as he discharged the jury in the inquest of a Stockport teenager who fell from a clifftop.

Young Offenders star Alex Murphy says he is now recognized in the streets of New York thanks to the Netflix success of the coming-of-age series.

Andy Samberg time-loop comedy “Palm Springs” broke sales records (by the cheeky sum of 69¢), and “Taylor Swift: Miss Americana” inspired a mini mob scene at an otherwise star-starved Sundance. But in the end, the film that defined the 2020 edition of America’s most important indie-movie showcase was a #MeToo revenge thriller called “Promising Young Woman.”

Jennifer Lopez and Shakira were the talking points of Super Bowl 2020 yesterday as they tore the house down in Miami with their charismatic Halftime Show performance that was a tribute to their Latina roots. One poignant moment during JLo's set was when her own daughter Emme Maribel Muñiz sang her mother's hit single Let's Get Loud, while inside a cage.

Nicola Sturgeon promised to improve the care system after rounding off a pledge to meet a thousand young people with first-hand experience.

(photo above: Director Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese of This is Not A Burial, It’s A Resurrection (3rd left) at Sundance. Photo: Getty Images North America. 

The Sundance Film Festival is fighting a battle that’s been building for several years, and what it’s fighting for can be summed up in one word: relevance. What makes a Sundance movie relevant? In a sense, the old criteria still hold. It’s some combination of box-office performance, awards cachet, and that buzzy, you-know-it-when-you-see-it thing of penetrating to the heart of what we used to call the conversation.

Amid the snow-covered mountains of Park City, Utah – South African filmmakers, producers, and directors have made a strong representation this year at Sundance – the largest independent film festival in the US.

Benh Zeitlin hasn’t made a film in seven years since he exploded onto the scene with his Best Picture Oscar-nominated “Beasts of the Southern Wild” in 2013. Coming out of hibernation, the director’s “Wendy,” a take on J.M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan,” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival Sunday. Well, was his eagerly anticipated followup worth the wait?

Given that the entertainment industry is pretty much the center of the #MeToo universe in terms of generating its most public effects — and, needless to say, causes — probably no Sundance film this year will be as hot a conversation topic as “Promising Young Woman.” Emerald Fennell’s first directorial feature is a female revenge fantasy that hews to some of the tropes in that genre, but also takes considerable joy in upending viewer expectations.

Given that the entertainment industry is pretty much the center of the #MeToo universe in terms of generating its most public effects — and, needless to say, causes — probably no Sundance film this year will be as hot a conversation topic as “Promising Young Woman.” Emerald Fennell’s first directorial feature is a female revenge fantasy that hews to some of the tropes in that genre, but also takes considerable joy in upending viewer expectations.

Writer-director Emerald Fennell’s debut feature, “Promising Young Woman,” drew an exuberant response at its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival Saturday night. The film, which will be released by Focus Features on April 17, is provocative — and will perhaps be divisive, particularly its ending. It’s a perfect talker for the #MeToo era.

With “Myth: A Frozen Tale,” Disney Animation has crafted a visually stunning virtual-reality short film — a project that flexes its VR muscles but deftly uses the technology in service of storytelling. Sometimes VR experiences feel like proof-of-concepts straining to justify their 3D settings. “Myth,” by contrast, employs virtual reality so effectively it feels like the film’s emotional punches would be pulled if it weren’t in VR.

The nonstop drama of the Trump White House has succeeded, among other things, in largely pushing gun control from the forefront of the news cycle — no doubt to the relief of the NRA and its allies, despite the continued frequency of U.S. mass shootings.

Beith Juniors have today appointed Bryan Young as the club's new manager.

The creator of Netflix comedy Dear White People has said he is not surprised by a lack of diversity in recent Oscar nominations.