Author Archives: basiltsiokos

SUGAR BABIES
Autumn is an enterprising college scholarship recipient and burgeoning TikTok influencer. Part of a close circle of friends growing up poor in rural Louisiana, she is determined to overcome the struggles and barriers defining them. Faced with limited minimum wage job options, Autumn devises an online sugar baby operation.

Director:
Rachel Fleit

Producers:
Mickey Liddell, Pete Shilaimon, Mehrdod Heydari, Rachel Fleit

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

SPEAK.
Five top-ranked high school oratory students spend a year crafting spellbinding spoken word performances with the dream of winning one of the world’s largest and most intense public speaking competitions.

Directors:
Jennifer Tiexiera, Guy Mossman

Producers:
Pamela Griner, Guy Mossman, Jennifer Tiexiera

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

SELENA Y LOS DINOS
Selena Quintanilla — the “Queen of Tejano Music” — and her family band, Selena y Los Dinos, rose from performing at quinceañeras to selling out stadium tours. The celebration of her life and legacy is chronicled through never-before-seen footage from the family’s personal archive.

Director:
Isabel Castro

Producers:
Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, J Daniel Torres, David Blackman, Simran Singh

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Castro previously debuted MIJA at Sundance.

Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

SEEDS
An exploration of Black generational farmers in the American South reveals the fragility of legacy and the significance of owning land.

Director:
Brittany Shyne

Producers:
Danielle Varga, Brittany Shyne, Sabrina Schmidt Gordon

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

PREDATORS
TO CATCH A PREDATOR was a popular television show designed to hunt down child predators and lure them to a film set, where they would be interviewed and eventually arrested. An exploration of the scintillating rise and staggering fall of the show and the world it helped create.

Director:
David Osit

Producers:
Jamie Gonçalves, Kellen Quinn, David Osit

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

THE PERFECT NEIGHBOR
A seemingly minor neighborhood dispute in Florida escalates into deadly violence. Police bodycam footage and investigative interviews expose the consequences of Florida’s “stand your ground” laws.

Director:
Geeta Gandbhir

Producers:
Nikon Kwantu, Geeta Gandbhir, Alisa Payne, Sam Bisbee

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Gandbhir previously brought her short film, REMEMBERING THE ARTIST: ROBERT DE NIRO, SR, to Sundance.

Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

MARLEE MATLIN: NOT ALONE ANYMORE
In 1987, Marlee Matlin became the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award and was thrust into the spotlight at 21 years old. Reflecting on her life in her primary language of American Sign Language, Marlee explores the complexities of what it means to be a trailblazer.

Director:
Shoshannah Stern

Producers:
Robyn Kopp, Justine Nagan, Bonni Cohen, Shoshannah Stern

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

LIFE AFTER
In 1983, a disabled Californian woman named Elizabeth Bouvia sought the “right to die,” igniting a national debate about autonomy, dignity, and the value of disabled lives. After years of courtroom trials, Bouvia disappeared from public view. Disabled director Reid Davenport narrates this investigation of what happened to Bouvia.

Director:
Reid Davenport

Producer:
Colleen Cassingham

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
This marks Davenport’s return to Sundance following his acclaimed I DIDN’T SEE YOU THERE.

Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

ANDRÉ IS AN IDIOT
André, a brilliant idiot, is dying because he didn’t get a colonoscopy. His sobering diagnosis, complete irreverence, and insatiable curiosity, send him on an unexpected journey learning how to die happily and ridiculously without losing his sense of humor.

Director:
Tony Benna

Producers:
André Ricciardi, Tory Tunnell, Joshua Altman, Stelio Kitrilakis, Ben Cotner

Festival Section:
US Documentary Competition

More Info:
Check out the Sundance website for more details, including screening info, by clicking on the film title above.

The 41st edition of the Sundance Film Festival will run January 23-February 2 in-person in Utah, with a selection of titles also available online January 30-February 2. The announced lineup consists of 86 features, 6 episodic projects, and 57 shorts.

As a Senior Programmer for Sundance, I’m excited for audiences to see these films next month. Over the next few weeks, I’ll highlight each of our feature and long-form episodic docs in this space with a simple pointer post. Sundance Don’t Miss Docs begins this coming Monday.