I watched more up-and-comings for a class.

As I’m trying to blog, I’m on a giant comfortable couch with Nicole and Adara as we laugh at Jack who is pretending to go down an elevator behind the couch.  This represents a lot of my Sundance experience. 

This is one reason why I’m really behind on writing about the films! I’m not complaining. The people you're with make Sundance.  Although I really do like that I have this means to help me remember films I saw.

I saw three documentaries on Tuesday called When I walk, Cutie & the Boxer, and Salma.

When I Walk is about a filmmaker who decides to document his life as he develops Multiple Sclerosis, or MS.   Something I love about Sundance is the fact cast members and crew show up for the showings and discussion after the movie.  Being able to see this inspiring man that started the documentary fully walking to an end where he’s unable to feed himself was tough.  His wife came to the showing as well and I got to chat with her afterwards.  A good reminder of what many people take for granted – simple movement.

Salma followed a woman who lives in a small village in India. In her village, women are “locked away” in their houses after reaching puberty and can’t show themselves until they’re married. It was an interesting look into aspects of cultural and religious tradition in secluded parts of India.  Salma became famous for her poetry while she was locked away, and totally broke the mold of the injustices going on. Salma was in the theatre at the end of the show, with a translator, to answer questions.  That definitely made the crowd excited.

My favorite film of the day was Cutie & the Boxer.  It followed an old Japanese couple that are both struggling artists living in New York.  It was an unconventional love story with beautiful cinematography and emotional moments that make you question what love is.  They were easy to fall in love with as a result of the film and being able to talk with them after the show.  Ushio Shinohara even did a live painting after the film. Here’s some video I took, which totally hints at the title of the film.  Personal favorite so far.

Something I’m looking forward to is sharing with friends and family what films to anticipate, especially since independent films can really be incredible but typically lack publicity of Hollywood films.