The Sundance Institute News

California Shakespeare Theater today announced the cast of its season-opening production, American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose, by Richard Montoya and developed by Culture Clash and Jo Bonney. Helmed by Cal Shakes Artistic Director Jonathan Moscone, the production will run at the Bruns Amphitheater from May 29 through June 23. The 2010 world premiere of American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose at Oregon Shakespeare Festival was the first show in the company's history to be extended due to popular demand; the New York Times deemed the play (In its recent Yale Rep production), "a lovable hodgepodge of references, historical and pop-cultural, with a deadly serious message at its heart."

Sundance Institute has announced that playwright and Sundance Institute Theatre Lab alum Branden Jacobs-Jenkins will receive the first-ever Tennessee Williams Award from the Institute's Theatre Program, which supports the development of new work for the stage. Sundance Institute Emeritus Trustee Sally Field will present the honor and accompanying $10,000 grant at the Celebrate Sundance Institute benefit for its Theatre Program on April 8, 2013 at Stephan Weiss Studio in Greenwich Village.

Sundance Institute and TED today announced the first collaboration between the two organizations, which will jointly award $125,000 for a short documentary film project about the work of Sugata Mitra, winner of the annual TED Prize. The Institute's Documentary Film Program and Fund will accept proposals March 1 through April 15, 2013 at www.sundance.org/ted and will design and oversee the selection process in collaboration with TED.

Cinedigm (CIDM), has acquired worldwide distribution rights to ABSENCE, Jimmy Loweree's debut feature film. Cinedigm's theatrical distribution of ABSENCE will commence in late 2013, with subsequent roll out across on-demand, digital, DVD and broadcast.

The 37th Humana Festival of New American Plays, made possible by a generous grant from the Humana Foundation, opens with the world premiere of Sam Mark's The Delling Shore, directed by Actors Theatre's associate artistic director Meredith McDonough. The Delling Shore is playing in the Bingham Theatre and begins previews tonight, February 27, opens March 1 and runs through April 7.

Author, performer, theatre artist, entrepreneur and solo impresario, Bradford Louryk, will appear as this season's Guest Performer at the Kumble Theatre for the Performing Arts (One University Plaza) on the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University for the Theatre and Gender Studies Programs tonight, February 19 at 7:00pm.

The 37th Humana Festival of New American Plays, made possible by a generous grant from the Humana Foundation, opens with the world premiere of Sam Mark's The Delling Shore, directed by Actors Theatre's associate artistic director Meredith McDonough. The Delling Shore is playing in the Bingham Theatre and begins previews on February 27, opens March 1 and runs through April 7. Tickets are on sale now to the public and can be purchased at the Actors Theatre Box Office by calling 502-584-1205 or online at ActorsTheatre.org. The Delling Shore was developed, in part, with the assistance of the Sundance Institute Theatre Program.

Author, performer, theatre artist, entrepreneur and solo impresario, Bradford Louryk, will appear as this season's Guest Performer at the Kumble Theatre for the Performing Arts (One University Plaza) on the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University for the Theatre and Gender Studies Programs on Tuesday, February 19 at 7:00pm.

Cinedigm Entertainment Group, a division of Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (CIDM), and Tribeca Film have teamed up to acquire U.S. distribution rights to director Craig Zisk's ("Nurse Jackie," "Weeds") feature directorial debut, THE ENGLISH TEACHER.

Full casting is announced for the World Premiere of Paper Dolls, the second production directed by Indhu Rubasingham as Artistic Director of the Tricycle Theatre.

The Sundance Institute Theatre Program has begun the 2013 Playwrights Retreat at Ucross Foundation. The 13th annual writing colony at the 20,000-acre working cattle ranch outside of Sheridan, Wyo. takes place through February 22 and provides a supportive environment for artists to create new work and receive guidance and reactions to it at an early stage. Under the supervision of Philip Himberg, Artistic Director of the Theatre Program, and Producing Director Christopher Hibma, the Playwrights Retreat is made possible through the generosity of Ucross Foundation.

In her feature directorial debut, CONNECTED, internet pioneer and Webby Award founder Tiffany Shlain's love-hate relationship with technology serves as the springboard for a thrilling exploration of modern life and our interconnected future.

Sirius XM Radio (SIRI) announced that renowned American designer and humanitarian Kenneth Cole will sit down for a special Q&A session at SiriusXM studios in New York City.

Sundance Institute and NHK have announced Kentaro Hagiwara, director of the upcoming film, Spectacled Tiger, as winner of the 2013 Sundance/NHK International Filmmaker Award. The award was presented at a private ceremony at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

Sundance Institute last evening announced the Jury, Audience, NEXT <=> and other special awards of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival at the feature film Awards Ceremony, hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Park City, Utah.

Sundance Institute today announced the winner of the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, as well as the recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan Lab Fellowship, presented through the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program.

Sundance Institute and India's Mahindra Group today announced the four winners of the 2013 Sundance Institute | Mahindra Global Filmmaking Awards, in recognition and support of emerging independent filmmakers from around the world. The winning directors and projects are: Sarthak Dasgupta, THE MUSIC TEACHER from India; Jonas Carpignano, A CHJANA from Italy-US; Aly Muritiba, THE MAN WHO KILLED MY BELOVED DEAD from Brazil; and Vendela Vida & Eva Weber, LET THE NORTHERN LIGHTS ERASE YOUR NAME from UK-Germany-US.

Keri Putnam, Executive Director, Sundance Institute, and Cathy Schulman, President, Women In Film Los Angeles, announced today the results of a first-of-its-kind research study examining gender disparity in American independent film. The study is part of a collaboration between Sundance Institute and Women In Film Los Angeles to support independent female filmmakers. Results were shared at a gathering of film and industry leaders at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.