Sundance Film Talks

The Sundance Film Festival 2021 has kicked off with tons of online activities for filmmakers, film lovers, members of the press, and more to attend.

This year's film talk events are extremely inclusive, diverse, and many are geared toward people of color.

Here is a list of just a few must-attend Sundance Film Talks.

THE BIG CONVERSATION: THE PAST IN THE PRESENT: A PERSONAL JOURNEY THROUGH RACE, HISTORY, AND FILMMAKING

JAN. 29 - 3:00 PM EST

“History is not the past, it’s the present.” -James Baldwin

James Baldwin’s words reverberate throughout Raoul Peck’s work, his activism, and his remarkable filmmaking career. Peck joins Festival director Tabitha Jackson in a conversation about white supremacy, history, creative expression, and his personal journey from the Academy Award–nominated I Am Not Your Negro to his upcoming work Exterminate All the Brutes, which interrogates over 600 years of history— from the Native American genocide to the systemized enslavement of Africans, to Hitler’s extermination of the European Jews—a history to which our present is inextricably bound.

Raoul Peck is an Academy Award–nominated director, screenwriter, and producer. Born in Haiti, then raised in the Congo, U.S., France, and Germany, Peck is among the most significant filmmakers of our time, recognized for his historical, political, and artistic work. His films include The Man by the Shore, Lumumba, Sometimes in April, Moloch Tropical, The Young Karl Marx, and the documentary films Lumumba, Death of a Prophet; Fatal Assistance, and I Am Not Your Negro. The latter won an Emmy, a BAFTA, and César.

BEYOND THE SCREEN: THE SPARKS BROTHERS & SUMMER OF SOUL

FEB. 2 - 5:00 PM EST

Moderated by Morgan Neville ("20 Feet From Stardom, Won't You Be My Neighbor?")

Featured Artists include:

Edgar Wright ("The Sparks Brothers")

Paul Trewartha ("The Sparks Brothers")

George Hencken ("The Sparks Brothers")

Joshua Pearson ("Summer of Soul")

Joseph Patel ("Summer of Soul")

David Dinerstein ("Summer of Soul")

Robert Fyvolent ("Summer of Soul")

Watch the film, join the conversation.

"The Sparks Brothers" - Premiere - January 30, 4:00 p.m. MT.

"The Sparks Brothers" - Second Screening - February 1, 8:00 a.m. MT

"Summer of Soul" - Premiere - January 28, 8:00 p.m. MT

"Summer of Soul" - Second Screening - January 30, 8:00 a.m. MT

CINEMA CAFÉ: AHMIR “QUESTLOVE” THOMPSON & SHAKA KING

JAN. 29 - 12:30 PM EST

Featuring:

Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson- DJ, filmmaker, producer, culinary entrepreneur, New York Times best-selling author, and member of the Roots. He is the musical director for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. A four-time Grammy winner, Thompson has also released four books, including Mixtape Potluck. He co-produced the Grammy-winning original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton. Thompson also hosts his own podcast, Questlove Supreme, on iHeartRadio.

Shaka King- The writer/producer/director of Judas and the Black Messiah, is a double Sundance Grand Jury Prize nominee. King’s feature directing debut was Newlyweeds. He was nominated for an Image Award for directing the episode “Pool” of Hulu’s original Shrill. Additional credits include HBO’s Random Acts of Flyness and High Maintenance.

Hannah Giorgis- Staff writer at The Atlantic, where she covers culture. Her criticism, reporting, and fiction have appeared in publications including the New York Times Magazine, the New Yorker, the FADER, Bon Appétit, Pitchfork, and the Addis Ababa Noir anthology. Most recently, she edited the inaugural essays for Shea Serrano's Halfway Books project—about rap albums including Lil' Kim's Hard Core, Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly, and The Roots' Do You Want More?!!!??!.

CREATING A NEW CANON: NEXT GENERATION STORIES PRESENTED BY SUNDANCE IGNITE

FEB. 1 - 1:30 PM EST

Western European norms and aesthetics have long dominated our industry, but an ongoing movement for narrative sovereignty is gathering momentum. How are BIPOC artists advancing a new canon of stories about their communities through a culturally specific lens? Join us as a panel of leading BIPOC filmmakers to discuss how they are developing these innovations in their practice, and how they are navigating traditional media power structures while doing it. This panel is catered to younger generation storytellers and will discuss topics from both business and craft perspectives.

For more information on the Sundance Film Festival 2021 Film Talks click HERE.