Celebrating Sundance Institute Presented by Google TV,
co-chaired by Ebs Burnough and Pat Mitchell
Celebrating Sundance Institute Presented by Google TV, at the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley, in Park City, Utah, starting January 24 at 6:30 p.m. MT with a cocktail reception. The dinner and program will begin at 8 p.m. MT.
Celebrating Sundance Institute Presented by Google TV, co-chaired by Ebs Burnough and Pat Mitchell, will celebrate Michelle Satter, Sundance Institute’s Founding Senior Director of Artist Programs, for her unparalleled commitment to nurturing and supporting artists through the Sundance Labs for the past four decades. Sundance Labs and Festival alum James Mangold, writer-director of A Complete Unknown, will be honored with the Trailblazer Award in recognition of his unwavering dedication and notable contributions to the field of cinema. Grammy, Emmy and Tony Award–winner and two-time Academy Award nominee Cynthia Erivo, currently starring as Elphaba in Universal Pictures’ Wicked, will be honored with the Visionary Award in recognition of her uncompromising work and notable contributions to the entertainment industry.The annual Vanguard Awards Presented by Acura will be awarded to Sean Wang, writer-director of Dìdi (弟弟), and Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, co-directors of Sugarcane, who premiered their films at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
Your support, this evening and beyond, directly contributes to Sundance Institute’s year-round work enabling artists to bring their stories to life. Through these ongoing grants, mentorships, and other critical resources, the work that Michelle has built and championed will continue for decades to come.
Since 1981, the nonprofit Sundance Institute, founded by Robert Redford, has been dedicated to the discovery and development of independent artists and audiences. Through our programs, we seek to uplift, support, and inspire independent film and media artists from around the world, and to introduce audiences to their new work. Be a part of the night’s magic all while helping support the Institute’s mission to cultivate the next generation of filmmakers.
Honorees
Sundance Institute Trailblazer Award
James Mangold
With A Complete Unknown James Mangold continues the tradition of filmmakers who can project their own vision and style onto a range of genres, uniting his films with constant humanist themes, intimate performances, and striking staging and imagery. Mangold’s diverse award-winning writing and directing work includes Heavy, Cop Land, Girl, Interrupted, Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma, Best Adapted Screenplay nominee Logan, and Best Picture nominee Ford v. Ferrari. Over his career, Mangold has collaborated with legendary actors such as Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta, Tom Cruise, Sylvester Stallone, Vanessa Redgrave, Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Reese Witherspoon (Oscar winner for Walk the Line), Joaquin Phoenix (Oscar nominee for Walk the Line), Meg Ryan, Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie (Oscar winner for Girl, Interrupted), Winona Ryder, and Harrison Ford.
Sundance Institute Visionary Award
Cynthia Erivo
Cynthia Erivo is a Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award–winning actress, singer, author, and producer, as well as an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and SAG nominee. Since bursting onto the West End and Broadway stages in The Color Purple, she has taken the world by storm. Erivo stars as Elphaba opposite Ariana Grande’s Glinda in Universal’s record-breaking film adaptation of the hit musical Wicked from director Jon M. Chu. Erivo has received widespread critical acclaim and rave reviews for her performance as Elphaba. Erivo recently wrapped production on the second season of Poker Face, Peacock’s critically acclaimed series from creator Rian Johnson starring Natasha Lyonne. Erivo will guest star in season two alongside BJ Novak and Margo Martindale. She can recently be seen starring in Disney+’s Pinocchio as the Blue Fairy opposite Tom Hanks, Keegan Michael Key and Luke Evans, and Luther where she starred alongside Idris Elba and Andy Serkis in the feature film installment, which continues the story of the acclaimed BBC crime series. Erivo can currently be seen starring in Drift, which Erivo produces with her production company Edith’s Daughter. Drift follows a young Liberian refugee named Jacqueline (Erivo) who has barely escaped her war-torn country to a Greek island. The film had its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and opened to rave reviews. Erivo also wrote and recorded an original song for the film entitled “It Would Be.”
A Tribute to Michelle Satter
Michelle Satter
Photo Credit: The Academy / Robert Trachtenberg
Founding Senior Director, Artist Programs
Michelle Satter is the Founding Senior Director of Artist Programs at the Sundance Institute. As a key executive of the Leadership Team, Satter has been one of the chief architects of the Institute’s programs since 1981 and has created and leads the programs supporting scripted storytelling. Through the Sundance signature Labs, granting and in-depth support, the programs have launched many of the groundbreaking and award-winning filmmakers of the past 40 years. Additionally, Satter expanded the Institute’s international initiatives and she founded Sundance Collab, a global digital storytelling community and learning platform. In recent years, Satter has been recognized with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Women in Film Business Leadership Award, and the ACLU Bill of Rights Award.
Sundance Institute Vanguard Awards
presented by Acura
Sean Wang
Julian Brave NoiseCat
Emily Kassie
The annual Sundance Institute Vanguard Awards, presented by Acura, will be given during the evening to honor artists whose work highlights the art of storytelling and creative independence in both nonfiction and fiction. The Sundance Institute Vanguard Award for nonfiction will be presented to Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, directors of Sugarcane (2024 Sundance Film Festival), and the Sundance Institute Vanguard Award for fiction will go to Sean Wang, director of Dìdi (弟弟) (2024 Sundance Film Festival). NoiseCat, Kassie, and Wang join the likes of past honorees such as Celine Song, Maite Alberdi, W. Kamau Bell, Nikyatu Jusu, Ryan Coogler, Siân Heder, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Radha Blank, Lulu Wang, Dee Rees, Damien Chazelle, Marielle Heller, Benh Zeitlin, Boots Riley, and many more.
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