0:00:00 > 0:00:00the Sundance Film Festival, draws to a close this weekend.
0:00:26 > 0:00:32hello and welcome to our look back at this year's Sundance film
0:00:32 > 0:00:40Festival. Highlights from this 11 day independent film extravaganza.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43Sundance belonged to women this year with numerous films about them and
0:00:43 > 0:00:53buy them. The meat to an times up movement were major talking points.
0:00:53 > 0:01:02-- me too. Also, the festival premiere of a live which told the
0:01:02 > 0:01:09history of the famous quartet and more. And the Festival film Our New
0:01:09 > 0:01:14President looks at how Russian YouTube and TV channels covered deep
0:01:14 > 0:01:21residential collection. Also, the intense month long protest over the
0:01:21 > 0:01:31Dakota access pipeline bully examined in a documentary. All but
0:01:31 > 0:01:35an more in this special Sundance addition of Talking Movies.
0:01:42 > 0:01:48An activist spirit was evident this year. People came together to
0:01:48 > 0:01:52protest sexual harassment and assault of women in the film
0:01:52 > 0:02:02industry. The -- me too movement prompted much discussion. There was
0:02:02 > 0:02:09an anniversary rally of the women's march.This is the year when we said
0:02:09 > 0:02:15to rich, powerful men but you can break our hearts but you can not
0:02:15 > 0:02:22break hours a rates.A women's right lawyer fired up the crowd. So did
0:02:22 > 0:02:28Jane Fonda. Sexual harassment had been a problem in the world of
0:02:28 > 0:02:32independent film as it has been elsewhere.There is no part of the
0:02:32 > 0:02:37film industry that is not affected by it. Everything has been very
0:02:37 > 0:02:41under the rug for many years. I guess we are going to be seeing how
0:02:41 > 0:02:45widespread the problem is in the coming years.Sundance is the first
0:02:45 > 0:02:52major film festival to take place since the Harvey Weinstein story
0:02:52 > 0:02:56broke. Some alleged assaults took place at the festival. To address
0:02:56 > 0:03:01the concerns, the Festival's code of conduct had been updated.
0:03:01 > 0:03:09Separately, as Steve -- safe space environment had been set up for
0:03:09 > 0:03:13women to discuss their concerns. There was solidarity and support
0:03:13 > 0:03:19from Star Wars.There has been a tectonic shift. Appeals like people
0:03:19 > 0:03:23have really been listening to women and everybody is saying things have
0:03:23 > 0:03:28to change. There has been a lot of hurt, a lot of suffering, a lot of
0:03:28 > 0:03:31the silences, and I really don't people are going to stand for it
0:03:31 > 0:03:37anymore.Carey Mulligan thought there was a need to bring a code of
0:03:37 > 0:03:43conduct into operation on film sets, as has been the case with the play
0:03:43 > 0:03:49she appeared in.We all had to look through the code of conduct, it
0:03:49 > 0:03:53tells you what is expected in the workplace, it tells you what to do
0:03:53 > 0:03:57if someone steps outside of the code of conduct. I think really solid
0:03:57 > 0:04:04action plans like that will move us forward.Robert Redford's the
0:04:04 > 0:04:08Sundance founder, struck a positive note the press conference.I'm
0:04:08 > 0:04:15pretty encouraged right now as this period of change is, it is bringing
0:04:15 > 0:04:20forth more opportunity for women, and more opportunity for women in
0:04:20 > 0:04:26film to have their own voices heard. Not to be forgotten whether films at
0:04:26 > 0:04:33Sundance. There were more than 120 full-length features this year.We
0:04:33 > 0:04:38noticed the African-American male experience was really prevalent.
0:04:38 > 0:04:43Especially in our US traffic competition. We observed also a lot
0:04:43 > 0:04:49of really interesting, complex, powerful women on screen, both in
0:04:49 > 0:04:56the documentaries, and in the narrative films.Moving away from
0:04:56 > 0:05:01films getting a lot of attention at Sundance work virtual reality
0:05:01 > 0:05:06installations, with one work which enabled participants to have the
0:05:06 > 0:05:10sensation of touching physical objects by giving them by breaking
0:05:10 > 0:05:16feedback. There was a virtual reality world that could shed by
0:05:16 > 0:05:20several people simultaneously. These VR projects are ingenious but do
0:05:20 > 0:05:25they belong at a film festival?We put someone inside of the goggles.
0:05:25 > 0:05:31The person remembers it as something that has happened to them. That is
0:05:31 > 0:05:35why film-makers are showing interest in PR and these converging
0:05:35 > 0:05:42technologies around storytelling cars it gives us more stalls -- more
0:05:42 > 0:05:47tools to tell stories with.Now, let's move on and look at some other
0:05:47 > 0:05:52Sundance films in greater detail. Our New President was one of the
0:05:52 > 0:05:55opening day attractions, it is a compilation of Russian video
0:05:55 > 0:05:59material, TV broadcast and YouTube channels and looks at how it
0:05:59 > 0:06:06portrayed the 20 16th US presidential election. The film had
0:06:06 > 0:06:13been put together by direct to Maxim Pozdorovkin.We wanted to try to
0:06:13 > 0:06:19weave together a film made entirely out of this information. When we
0:06:19 > 0:06:22were initially gathering material, we wanted every single statement in
0:06:22 > 0:06:25the film to be false and the fact that we could source Russian
0:06:25 > 0:06:27television and make a film like that, but basically doesn't have a
0:06:27 > 0:06:33single true statement in it, that tells something that is horrifying
0:06:33 > 0:06:38and really worrying about the state of media today in general.
0:06:42 > 0:06:49The material collected denigrates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama and
0:06:49 > 0:06:57places Donald Trump in a flattering light.Trump is described as
0:06:57 > 0:07:04behaving like a petition Lord and been very, post and Obama is seen as
0:07:04 > 0:07:13indecent and man spreading his legs. There is lots of kind of racial
0:07:13 > 0:07:19connotations about Obama as well. Sundance audiences responded well to
0:07:19 > 0:07:26the film.It was fantastic because you really get a sense of what an
0:07:26 > 0:07:29organisation that wants due propaganda can achieve. It is an
0:07:29 > 0:07:36incredibly powerful film. It shows the crazy landscape they are in now,
0:07:36 > 0:07:45in terms of media and the gander. We are in a society where news media is
0:07:45 > 0:07:49not being trusted anymore. This puts us in a precarious as ocean and this
0:07:49 > 0:07:56film shows us what happens when it is at this extreme. I am really
0:07:56 > 0:08:06hoping that people see this and realise what is at stake.All the
0:08:06 > 0:08:09ongoing talk of Russian meddling in the US election gave Our New
0:08:09 > 0:08:14President a lot of currency at Sundance. It earned positive reviews
0:08:14 > 0:08:17but there were some do tractors who felt the documentary lacks context
0:08:17 > 0:08:22and structure.
0:08:28 > 0:08:34The film Burden based on a true story tells of a white supremacist,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38a member of the two clubs and who underwent a transformation. He
0:08:38 > 0:08:44leaves the clan only to be taken in by an African-American minister. It
0:08:44 > 0:08:51is a Sundance film with fine performances.I'm a Klansman.Burden
0:08:51 > 0:08:57is set in South Carolina in the 1990s. Mike Burden is a Klansman, he
0:08:57 > 0:09:03espouses their racist beliefs, but things change when he meets Judy.He
0:09:03 > 0:09:09ended up falling in love with the single mother named Judy that made
0:09:09 > 0:09:15him have to face the decision to stay in love or stay in the clan.
0:09:15 > 0:09:23Then he also meets the Reverend played by Forest Whitaker who shows
0:09:23 > 0:09:30him an immense amount of hospitality and warmth and takes him in and
0:09:30 > 0:09:33becomes a redemption story and a story about love and acceptance and
0:09:33 > 0:09:41accepting who you are in the midst of a very sort of kind of chaotic
0:09:41 > 0:09:48scenario.The African-American minister who takes him under his
0:09:48 > 0:09:52wing has a history of organising against the clan. He extends himself
0:09:52 > 0:09:55to Mike Burden because he believes he has two practice what he
0:09:55 > 0:10:00preaches.Mike is a test for the Reverend, a test of all the things
0:10:00 > 0:10:04he has ever believed in. We get a chance to see him go through that,
0:10:04 > 0:10:10we get a chance to see him say, to his son, if I don't do this, I will
0:10:10 > 0:10:15never be able to switch again. If I don't try to commit, try to find a
0:10:15 > 0:10:19solution and believe that love is the answer, I will never be able to
0:10:19 > 0:10:24live by what I believe, I will never be able to believe -- be the example
0:10:24 > 0:10:29in my community. To the world.This story of a black minister saving a
0:10:29 > 0:10:35white supremacist isn't fiction, it is based on a true story.I heard
0:10:35 > 0:10:39about it in a blurb in a newspaper 20 years ago. I got in my car and I
0:10:39 > 0:10:45drove down to South Carolina. It is a wild redemptions Rory. It is
0:10:45 > 0:10:51insane and crazy but it is the fact that extremes can change, the
0:10:51 > 0:10:54validity change and so when I read this will be, I'm besieged what the
0:10:54 > 0:10:58story could be, I realised that if we can understand these people, we
0:10:58 > 0:11:05can gain empathy for them, and empathy is the beginning of change.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08You get to see a man really transition in front of your eyes
0:11:08 > 0:11:14because of being introduced to a better future and a better
0:11:14 > 0:11:20understanding of how life and love can be.The kind of racism found in
0:11:20 > 0:11:26South Carolina in the 1990s hasn't disappeared. Groups that espoused
0:11:26 > 0:11:31isolationism and hatred have done an under the things that arise
0:11:31 > 0:11:40communities.The movie has a lot of relevancy. To try to see if there is
0:11:40 > 0:11:45a solution, what is the path for us to be able to come together as a
0:11:45 > 0:11:49people.With Burden at Sundance, the main audience for reward wasn't the
0:11:49 > 0:11:54film itself but the acting, particularly Arik Headland, who
0:11:54 > 0:11:58really shines in his role. His performance in Burden augurs well
0:11:58 > 0:12:06for his future. Among the women profiled this year are Jane Fonda,
0:12:06 > 0:12:15Rocco Joan Jett and Roos against Berg. At age 84, Rhys has become
0:12:15 > 0:12:21something of a pop icon. She is referred to as the notorious
0:12:21 > 0:12:30Abhijit. The candidate white for -- right for profiling.The Yiddish
0:12:30 > 0:12:39word for grandmother.In the documentary, a more intimate life is
0:12:39 > 0:12:53portrayed.Do you have fake sugar? There should be some someplace.Not
0:12:53 > 0:12:57only is Ruth Bader Ginsberg the doting grandmother, but she has a
0:12:57 > 0:13:03tremendous legal legacy.How could you not want to make a documentary
0:13:03 > 0:13:06about Ruth Bader Ginsberg? She has become in recent years this mega
0:13:06 > 0:13:12celebrity free, like a rock star. A lot of people that are her biggest
0:13:12 > 0:13:18fans are really know her history, don't know everything that she has
0:13:18 > 0:13:19accomplished, don't understand the obstacles she was up against when
0:13:19 > 0:13:25she was a young lawyer, when women might presuppose to be lawyers, and
0:13:25 > 0:13:31we wanted to tell the whole story. She agreed to teach a course... The
0:13:31 > 0:13:36film-makers take the story by November past and the resident. They
0:13:36 > 0:13:41look back and Ruth Bader Ginsberg's life, student life, her legal
0:13:41 > 0:13:46career, and her current activities. I telling them something they
0:13:46 > 0:13:50haven't heard before? Are they paid attention pretty much when people
0:13:50 > 0:13:53think about the women's rights movement in the 70s with the
0:13:53 > 0:14:00so-called women's lib movement, Ruth Bader Ginsberg played just a week
0:14:00 > 0:14:03role getting rights for American women in that era.She was just
0:14:03 > 0:14:09doing it little more quietly, more strategically, not in the streets
0:14:09 > 0:14:13but in the courts, but as you will see in the film, she won a string of
0:14:13 > 0:14:19victories that really started us down the road towards equal rights
0:14:19 > 0:14:26for women and men under law. Overall, this documentary is an
0:14:26 > 0:14:29illuminating and flattering portrait of Ruth Bader Ginsberg, and
0:14:29 > 0:14:32inspiring account of a woman who has led a very full life, both
0:14:32 > 0:14:39professionally and personally.I ask no favour for myself. All I ask is
0:14:39 > 0:14:49of our brethren is that they take defeat of our necks.It made
0:14:49 > 0:14:53international headlines in 2016, test over Dakota access pipeline in
0:14:53 > 0:14:59North Dakota. Many Native American tribes had concerns over this oil
0:14:59 > 0:15:03pipeline. One was that it would leak and pollute ground water. The
0:15:03 > 0:15:11intense long process was the subject of a Sundance film.I welcome you to
0:15:11 > 0:15:16our treaty territory and I thank you all for being here.The film shows
0:15:16 > 0:15:21protesters stopping or delaying the work of the company building the
0:15:21 > 0:15:27pipeline. They locked themselves to agreement and blocked roads, all to
0:15:27 > 0:15:31preserve what they argue is sacred land which is lawfully standing
0:15:31 > 0:15:38here. They were arrested and met with tear gas. The director
0:15:38 > 0:15:44collected a lot of material. A big challenge was gaining access to film
0:15:44 > 0:15:47the protesters on the front line who are known as water protectors,
0:15:47 > 0:15:54so-called because they defend the main water source. The protesters
0:15:54 > 0:15:57were under 24-hour surveillance by police. The director had to earn
0:15:57 > 0:16:02their trust.These people didn't want cameras following them around,
0:16:02 > 0:16:08because of a had footage of them doing something and the police the
0:16:08 > 0:16:11footage, there would be evidence against them. Another part of it was
0:16:11 > 0:16:17that they didn't want to be seen with the camera following them
0:16:17 > 0:16:25everywhere. Respect have to be earned. Helping build are caves and
0:16:25 > 0:16:29getting tear-gassed a couple dozen times, and missed several times,
0:16:29 > 0:16:34after a while, I was able to get the footage needed to tell the story
0:16:34 > 0:16:40properly.The documentary shows the final moments of the battle of
0:16:40 > 0:16:44standing Rock in which the water protectors were pushed off their
0:16:44 > 0:16:49campsite and watched as it was destroyed. In the Steve of North
0:16:49 > 0:16:55Dakota, there were economic and if it's. $40 million of revenue in the
0:16:55 > 0:17:01first month. Some view this as positive.There was a positive
0:17:01 > 0:17:06aspect. Indigenous people have been feeling the brunt of free source
0:17:06 > 0:17:10extraction in our territory since the beginning of colonisation. We
0:17:10 > 0:17:14are the ones that have lost millions, billions, trillions, if
0:17:14 > 0:17:20you put an economic value on our territory. We the ones sacrificing
0:17:20 > 0:17:24everything for this.Though the outcome of this demonstration can be
0:17:24 > 0:17:27seen as a loss for the water protectors, the director, as well as
0:17:27 > 0:17:33the activists feel this film can direct change in the Native American
0:17:33 > 0:17:36community and how they are perceived.We have had to continue
0:17:36 > 0:17:41to talk about who we are and people have this outlook about Native
0:17:41 > 0:17:44Americans, I want this film to show them, this is us. And we are
0:17:44 > 0:17:51standing up. I have a little money to my name but this water is
0:17:51 > 0:17:56priceless to me, and I'm going to fight for it.Thousands of people
0:17:56 > 0:18:02come throughout the country for this one moment and although one to do is
0:18:02 > 0:18:05step up.My intention increasing this film and reason it to the world
0:18:05 > 0:18:14was to inspire the next generation of activists. Hope early this film
0:18:14 > 0:18:17can inspire the next generation after us to build upon what we did.
0:18:17 > 0:18:22The director sees Sundance is a great home for the film and created
0:18:22 > 0:18:28it with helping him in his endeavours with the project.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Sundance is strong on documentaries and this year there was a live
0:18:31 > 0:18:34documentary, the director provided narration and the famed Kronos
0:18:34 > 0:18:40Quartet performed. The aim of this endeavour was above other things to
0:18:40 > 0:18:49tell the story of the quartet.This is sunny up on the screen. This is
0:18:49 > 0:18:54us playing down there.And the many documentaries, a thousand thoughts
0:18:54 > 0:19:02could be seen as an expanded Cinema experience.It is all the elements
0:19:02 > 0:19:08of the film but it happened live so that our images up on the screen,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12and I am onstage narrating, and there is a band, music group
0:19:12 > 0:19:25performing a live soundtrack. 1000 Thoughts is a portrait of the band.
0:19:25 > 0:19:32It gets a bigger idea of time and the ephemeral nature of music and
0:19:32 > 0:19:38life, the power and resilience of the human spirit.The
0:19:38 > 0:19:42internationally recognised quartet was founding 40 use ago in San
0:19:42 > 0:19:48Francisco and the film brings many artists who have won point
0:19:48 > 0:19:54collaborative with the quartet.They have collaborated with tonnes of
0:19:54 > 0:20:02people over the years, from Terry Riley, Laurie Anderson, lots of
0:20:02 > 0:20:06younger people. I think it has given them a lot of energy and inspiration
0:20:06 > 0:20:10over the years, to keep working, different people getting new energy.
0:20:10 > 0:20:15On-screen, the audience sees footage of Sam Green going through the
0:20:15 > 0:20:25quartet of Mac fast archive. The direct to believe that this engages
0:20:25 > 0:20:28the audience, especially with Sam Green as a storyteller.Here is
0:20:28 > 0:20:33another quote that I like. This one from Robert Cross. In three words, I
0:20:33 > 0:20:46can suck up -- sum up everything I have learned about life.It goes on.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50I liked that Sam is a character. I saw one of its shows, I really liked
0:20:50 > 0:20:54him as a character. It is in effect, device, if you will, that I know
0:20:54 > 0:20:57works in documentary. It is discovery, so when I found this out
0:20:57 > 0:21:04and then I found that out and then I found that out. It is very generous
0:21:04 > 0:21:09to our audience because they go a journey with you.As Sundance
0:21:09 > 0:21:12audiences are much from the event, they were very impressed.I think it
0:21:12 > 0:21:18is really call, a lot more interactive, and you get to feel the
0:21:18 > 0:21:21presence of the artists that are there, and the emotion they bring to
0:21:21 > 0:21:26the peace, really cool.Unbelievably special, life affirming, there are
0:21:26 > 0:21:32no words.When we think of a string quartet, we usually think of elderly
0:21:32 > 0:21:35gentleman in black tie and tails but that is not what this quartet is
0:21:35 > 0:21:42about.You can't want this on etch clicks or YouTube, you have to be
0:21:42 > 0:21:46there and you have to be present. War and more, all of our devices and
0:21:46 > 0:21:52the way we consume culture is pushing us to be alone, and I think
0:21:52 > 0:21:56in the world today, being with other people, being in a room with
0:21:56 > 0:22:00strangers and having a collective experience is important and actually
0:22:00 > 0:22:09profound.Well, that brings this special Sundance edition of Talking
0:22:09 > 0:22:15Movies to a close. We hope you have enjoyed the show. You can reach us
0:22:15 > 0:22:20online. And you can find us on Facebook, too. From me, Tom Brooks
0:22:20 > 0:22:28and the rest of the Talking Movies production crew, it is goodbye.