REBUILDING PARADISE | Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Noah Berger
Ron Howard chronicles the fate of a town caught in the November 2018 Camp Fire.
Festival Section:
Documentary Premieres
Sundance Program Description:
Early in the morning of November 8, 2018, a spark flies into the parched brush of the Sierra Nevada foothills. With little warning, flames are everywhere. Fierce diablo winds shower burning embers as house after house becomes a violent inferno. Propane tanks explode as desperate citizens grab their most precious possessions and jump into their vehicles hoping to escape.
With unfathomable, harrowing footage, Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard pulls the viewer into the driver’s seat to experience the terror and the helplessness of devastated refugees from a town with the ironic name of Paradise. Eighty-five lives are lost in what ultimately becomes the most destructive wildfire in California’s history.
Over the course of a year, survivors from Paradise cope with shared trauma, displacement, and uncertainty about the future. Yet slowly, with sheer grit and determination, they begin to rebuild their lives and redefine the meaning of home. REBUILDING PARADISE is a testament to the power of the human spirit from one of our most gifted filmmakers.
Some Background:
Director/Producer:
Past Sundance docs:
PROPHET’S PREY (2015, executive producer)
INSIDE DEEP THROAT (2005, producer)
Veteran Hollywood director/producer/actor Howard has been recognized with two Oscars, four Emmys, two Golden Globes, and a Grammy. He is a founder and chairman of Imagine Entertainment. This marks his fourth documentary feature as director.
Producers:
Past Sundance docs:
PROPHET’S PREY
INSIDE DEEP THROAT
Howard’s partner in Imagine Entertainment is also an Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe, and Grammy winning producer. He also executive produced Sundance alumni fiction short SHOTS FIRED.
Past Sundance docs:
TIGERLAND (2019)
A PLACE AT THE TABLE (2012)
FLYING: CONFESSIONS OF A FREE WOMAN (2007)
LALEE’S KIN: THE LEGACY OF COTTON (2001)
Parker is a NYC-based producer who has worked with HBO, MTV, Sundance Channel, Participant, OWN, Oxygen, Showtime, Criterion Collection, and ESPN Films, among others.
Recent past Sundance docs:
THE INVENTOR: OUT FOR BLOOD IN SILICON VALLEY (2019)
UNLOCKING THE CAGE (2016)
MAPPLETHORPE: LOOK AT THE PICTURES (2016)
SUITED (2016)
The Emmy-winning Bernstein is EVP of Imagine Documentaries. She previously was a longtime SVP at HBO Documentary Films.
Past Sundance docs:
TIGERLAND
ABSTRACT: THE ART OF DESIGN (2017)
WHAT HAPPENED, MISS SIMONE? (2015)
WHITEY: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V JAMES J BULGER (2014)
SOUND AND VISION (2014, VR)
UNDER AFRICAN SKIES (2012)
CRUDE (2009)
METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER (2004)
The Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning Wilkes heads Imagine Documentaries. He previously was president of RadicalMedia.
Co-Producer:
Past Sundance docs:
TIGERLAND
Morhaim is a NYC-based producer who has previously line produced several Sundance fiction features.
Associate Producers:
Harrold is a documentary filmmaker based in NYC. She served as archival producer for TIGERLAND.
Smith previously has held production assistant positions on reality television and docuseries. This is his first producing credit for a Sundance project.
Supervising Producer:
Field is head of production at Imagine Documentaries, and previously worked at RadicalMedia. This is her first Sundance credit.
Executive Producers:
Rosenberg is co-chair of Imagine Entertainment.
This is the first Sundance credit for Imagine Entertainment’s Velis.
Past Sundance docs:
SEA OF SHADOWS (2019)
Bernstein is EVP, global scripted content and documentary films at National Geographic.
Past Sundance docs:
SEA OF SHADOWS
A PLACE AT THE TABLE
AMERICAN TEEN
The Emmy-nominated Harrington is VP, documentary films at National Geographic.
Editor:
Past Sundance docs:
SUITED (2016)
WHITEY: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V JAMES J BULGER
METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER (2004)
PARADISE LOST (1996)
Co-Editor:
LENNY (2018, short)
LARRY KRAMER IN LOVE & ANGER (2015)
THE FENCE (2010, short)
SHOUTING FIRE: STORIES FROM THE EDGE OF FREE SPEECH (2009)
Why You Should Watch:
Through up-close, almost otherworldly footage of the fire, shot by survivors, Howard immerses the audience in a reconstruction of the Camp Fire, creating empathy for the people of Paradise. Wisely focusing on just a few key subjects over the next year, and letting them guide the film’s trajectory rather than any outside presence, the film feels grounded and humanistic, and invests the viewer in their mission to rebuild their community and their lives.
More Info:
For Sundance screening dates and times, click the film title in the first paragraph.
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