Indie Entertainment Magazine - Sundance Film Festival 2019 Special

JANUAR Y 2 019

Editor-In-Chief | Publisher Monica Morrison Managing Editor Nicole Goesseringer Muj Web Content | Digital Marketing Manager Gotham Chandna Director of Photography & Productions Annette Baca Director of Business Development Chris Willardsen Art Director Sitanshu Datta Contributors: Lena Basse Claude Brickell Gotham Chandna Nicole Goesseringer Muj Eric Minh Swenson

Additional Photos Courtesy

© 2019 | Indie Entertainment Magazine

Cairo International Film Festival, Christopher Kühne, Claude Brickell, EMS Gallery, Magnus Sundholm, The Influence, WanderLuxxe, Wikimedia Commons.

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PRESENT

INDIE FILM SHOWCASE

PANEL FOLLOWED BY VIP RECEPTION SATURDAY, JANUARY 26, 2019 | 3.00 PM 710 BODEGA TAPAS AND WINE (710 MAIN STREET PARK CITY, UT 84060)

AMON BARKER Après Visuals

ALLISON MELODY Melody Productions

S. A. WILLIAMS Mackenzie's Secret

LARRY NAMER Metan Global Entertainment Group

SUE VICORY Heartland Films (Moderator)

MEDIA PARTNERS

EVENT PARTNERS

Amon Barker

(Co-founder, Director, Photographer, Après Visuals)

Amon Barker is the co-founder of Après Visuals, a full-service production studio based in Jackson, Wyoming. He first discovered a passion for image making at a young age traveling with his father, a lifelong commercial photographer, to unique locations around the world and then helping develop the film back in his studio. From then on, he was always been excited to explore and capture the world around him. Through growing up in Taos, New Mexico, going to school in Colorado and then migrating to Jackson, Wyoming, he has spent much of his life outdoors. No matter the project, Barker is inspired to create imagery that is timeless, unique and powerful to the viewer.

As head of Après Visuals, he leads a talented creative team, working with top brands and advertising agencies to produce memorable content ranging from feature films, including the inspiring documentary “A Grand Journey,” to internationally distributed commercial spots.

Larry Namer

(E! Founder and President/CEO, Metan Global)

An entertainment industry veteran with over 45 years professional experience in cable television, live events and new media, Larry Namer is a founding partner of Metan Global Entertainment Group, a venture created to develop and distribute entertainment content and media specifically for Chinese speaking audiences in China and abroad. MGEG recently launched the inspirational competition series The Bruce Lee Project in China, in conjunction with Company Films (co-owned by Keanu Reeves and Stephen Hamel), Bruce Lee Entertainment, LLC (Shannon Lee’s production company) and Benaroya Pictures. Mr. Namer was involved in creating the series’ original format and currently oversees sales and development for the project. The company recently launched the MGEG Film Fund I and serves as managing partner. MGEG is the lead production company for the recently announced feature film “Empress,” about the only female emperor in China’s history.

Recipient of many industry awards, Mr. Namer is the co-founder of E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion USD, and the creator of several successful companies in the United States and overseas. Among those companies are Comspan Communications that pioneered Western forms of entertainment in the former Soviet Union and Steeplechase Media that served as the primary consultant to Microsoft’s MiTV for developing interactive TV applications.

Allison Melody

(Melody Productions)

Twice named an “Icon of Influence,” Allison Melody is an eco-entrepreneur with a passion for film, fitness and food. Her endeavors include filmmaking, podcast-hosting and motivational speaking. She hosts the top-ranked Food Heals Podcast, owns the film production company, Melody Productions and speaks at events across the US and Europe.

For the past twelve years, Melody has also directed and produced documentary films, PSAs, commercials and viral videos on the topics of social justice, human rights and public health. She is currently directing Food Heals, a documentary that chronicles the journey of inspiring individuals who have used nutrition and alternative medicine to heal themselves of chronic, degenerative and terminal disease.

She is frequently invited to speak at top events and conferences, including The New Media Summit, High Vibe Live, We Are Podcast Australia, Vaynermedia Health Day, Podcast Movement, NAB Show, Podfest Expo, Releasing What Weighs You Down, The Podcast Cruise, and more.

THE PANEL Karissa Akin

(Co-Founder, Producer, Après Visuals)

With a passion for finding and bringing talented creatives together to tell kickass stories, Karissa Akin enjoys the collaboration and problem-solving process inherent with producing films. Throughout her eight years working with co-founder and director Amon Barker, they have produced captivating visuals for luxury brands Four Seasons, Jeep, Aman Hotels, and others. Akin was also the producer of indie feature film “Mahjong and the West,” which won the Green Bay Film Festival Best Screenplay prize.

From writing unique concepts, organizing shoot logistics, hiring talent and being behind the camera, Akin loves every element of the filmmaking process.

S. A Williams

(Author, “Mackenzie’s Secret” & “Anna’s Secret Legacy”)

Best-selling author of international World War II drama “Anna’s Secret Legacy” and its sequel “Mackenzie’s Secret,” S.A. Williams currently is developing screen adaptations for these works. After a youth spent in the great capitals of Europe, she returned to her native New York graduating from Syracuse University. She earned her post-graduate credentials in Global Marketing and Management, Entrepreneurship and The CEO Leadership Program from Wharton - University of Pennsylvania and in Global Marketing and Strategic Management from Harvard Business School.

Her interests and background in business led to her founding of a well-recognized media-buying company out of the Philadelphia region after working in radio and network TV. Noted for her production of radio and TV commercials, she was also singled out by Billboard Magazine for her voice-over talent. In 2007, she was invited to be the keynote speaker to the American Bankers Association on “The Changing Landscape of Media.” She resides in Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

Member of the Screen Actors Guild, Williams earned bronze, silver and gold medals from The London Academy of Dramatic Arts, and has worked on the sets of such notable films as Silver Linings Playbook, The Age of Innocence, Philadelphia, The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, How Do You Know, Rocky Balboa, and others.

Sue Vicory

Moderator, Founder, Heartland Films Inc.

Three time Telly Award-winning filmmaker Sue Vicory has been creating communitybased films and projects within her not for profit production company Heartland Films, Inc. since 2003. Her works include “Homelessness & the Power of One,” feature documentaries “One” and “Kansas City Jazz & Blues; Past, Present & Future” and short films “Absent” and “1898, The W.F. Norman Story. In 2015, she founded Team XX, an all female team of 25 filmmakers that created the award-winning film “Down Stage.” Ms. Vicory is a member of the Los Angeles-based Alliance of Women Directors and creator of the website www. womendocumentaryfilmmakers.com, designed to increase visibility for female filmmakers.

She is the creator of the non-profit brand “My Power of One” (MPO1). In 2015 under the MPO1 banner, she filmed a 48 state tour completing “12 Acts of Kindness.” A feature titled “Ruby’s Heartbeat” based on this journey is currently in the works.

CharlizeTheron: A Mom On And Off The Screen One of the most beautiful actresses in Hollywood and a mother of two adopted children, star of “Tully,” proves once again that she is not afraid of dramatic transformation in order to draw attention to an important story Actors looking for their big break usually start acting in films submitted to film festivals and hopefully find themselves in a summer blockbuster. The former model from South Africa, CharlizeTheron only made her way to Sundance after starring in huge hits like Mad Max: Fury Road, Atomic Blonde, Snow White and the Huntsman, and of course, winning an Oscar for her role as Aileen Wuornos in Monster. She has become widely recognized for her chameleon-like ability to blend into her various characters, allowing her to show off her dynamic range. For Tully, Theron trades her AK-47 for a breast pump and her black leather jacket for a ratty robe. Frequent collaborators Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman previously worked with CharlizeTheron on the 2011 film Young Adult and reunited for Tully, which was first screened at a secret showing at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2018. For this performance, Theron has received critical recognition in different forms, among which is a nomination for The Best Actress in Motion Picture Musical or Comedy at the 2019 Golden Globe Awards.

Photo Credits: Magnus Sundolm

Theron plays the role of Marlo, a beleaguered mother of three who hires a nighttime nanny to alleviate the pressures of parenthood.

Marlo forms a strong bond with the young nanny who offers help with her personal problems as well. I met with Theron in April at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, who already lost the staggering fifty pounds she gained for the role and was back in J’Adore Dior perfume ad shape. The 43-year-old actress wore a layered, short black skirt with a rose colored silk blouse, with perfectly groomed hair and glowing skin. She talked about how the project came along to her and how her own experience being a mother helped her get into a challenging character on the screen.

Finding A Project

It came to me through Jason Reitman. I think I just ran into him and he said I have our next project. And I love working with him so much that I literally said, ‘Okay.’ And I think he said it was the story of a mom having her third kid and that was it. And then I knew there would be something interesting there. But to be honest, I wasn’t like ‘oh, that sounds amazing.’ I was like ‘okay.’ And then when I read it, Diablo did something with the material that you think you know, and you think this feels like a subject matter that feels familiar, and she really presented it on the page as something that wasn’t familiar. I think that is what resonated with me and felt really honest and really truthful. And I related not just through my own experiences, but through my other friends who had kids and what they experienced. I thought it was funny and I thought it was a story that wasn’t just for parents. That’s what I liked about it too and it feels like a standalone movie, and not just for a specific audience.

It feels like something that anybody can enjoy because there’s a lot of comedy and a lot of that hardship and pain.

Lena Basse Hollywood Foreign Press Association

About The Morning Routine With Her Children

My mornings are crazy because my oldest now takes the bus to school, very independent, but it means that I have to get two kids ready before ten to seven. So every morning at 5:45 that alarm goes off and I just want to hang myself. And there’s nothing to it, it’s sweatpants and a sweatshirt and Birkenstocks and sometimes I don’t even get time to brush my teeth. And then I am just getting them ready and trying to get breakfast and lunch boxes and every morning is like we are going to miss the bus! And every morning, a block away from the bus, I say to them, ‘I think we missed the bus.’ And we didn’t, it’s okay. But I also love it. At seven-thirty I am done with all my drop-offs, and I live for it, I love it. I love that I go to bed at 8:45 and I am exhausted and I wake up with my children and I get to hang with them in the morning and it really is what my life is now. I love it.

About Finding A Balance

My children go to school and I have those hours, and I really live my life. And I get to go to the office and I get to work and I get to develop projects and I feel like that’s me. And this morning they had a little moment of ‘where are you going,’ and they were sad and I am like, ‘I am going to work.’ And they were like: ‘No, don’t go.’ And I was like, ‘Nope, mom is going to work. That’s what I get to do.’ And I think for me, when I was growing up that was something that left a mark on me - watching my mom wake up in the morning and going to work and being this trailblazer. And that always stuck with me as a young girl. So I want my kids to have that too and I am doing that. I try to find a balance and I realize that when I am working too much and then I try to pull back. I think like every single parent out there, or any parent out there, you are just always trying to find the balance.

About Differences Between Stay at Home Moms and Dads

There’s this beautiful scene where Marlo talks about that she can’t even be pissed off that she gave something up and she looks at her life as, she didn’t have this amazing career. She had a job, but it wasn’t anything that she felt made her who she was. And so it wasn’t like she gave up this great thing to have kids and I love that scene when she is just talking to Tully about how she just thinks this life is about complete failure and she can’t even, there’s nothing easy about this conversation for her. I think not every person gets the luxury or the luck of finding the most incredible job like Marlo and I think for her, having to compare that life with what her high school life was, which was so much better, is such a harsh reality to kind of come to terms with. And I think there is just something very raw and beautiful about not making it about easy choices. I think this whole story is filled with very difficult choices and decisions. And I think if you talk about society, I feel like it’s different from this movie because it is so specific to where they are in their lives. But I do think in general of course, when you look at other countries, you have a lot more acceptance of men being stay at home dads than I think in this country and it’s great. I mean, what’s the difference, it’s so wonderful. And I tend to think it’s very rare, but it does happen where both parties are working and it definitely happens more in a town like Los Angeles. And I think mostly you have one partner that works more than the other one and one stays home, and I think it would be great. If it were reversed and accepted for sure so that women didn’t feel that pressure of, ‘I guess because I am working, I am a terrible mom.’ And I think moms get it way more than dads, like ‘well you are not the one staying home, so you are a terrible mom.’ But if the dad does it, it’s more like ‘oh you are a bit of a loser.’ It has nothing to do with the parenting skills.

About Changes In Her Relationship With Her Own Mom About How She Sees Herself After Becoming A Mother Herself I think I just live it. I think I live my authentic self and I don’t It’s strange, because I always heard people talk about that and I was like, that doesn’t make any sense, like I don’t get that. But it does change because the relationship between grandmother and grandchildren is just so different that it influences your relationship with your mom. I think prior to having kids, there is still an element of feeling that my mom sometimes, not necessarily treated me like an 18-year- old girl, but I still felt sometimes like it with her. I could tell that she was disappointed in choices and things. And that doesn’t happen now anymore, because I think she looks at me as a parent and she sees me raising these two little munchkins and so far she doesn’t think I am fucking it up. And so, it’s definitely changed. And then we don’t talk enough about that relationship - grandparent and grandchildren. That relationship is so powerful and I am so happy my kids have that.

really compartmentalize what exactly that is. Maybe I should.

I don’t know, I think for me, when I was very young, it became very clear through some tragedies in my life that life is really short. And nobody, at the end of the day when I am on my death-bed, however or whenever it happens, I am only going to have myself to hold accountable for the life that I lead. And so I kind of just go by that. I always make decisions not on what I think other people think or it should be. I don’t think happiness for me comes from that. I think now that I am a parent, that always comes up in the foreground, like ‘is this a good decision for us as a family?’ But I have always been a person that wakes up in the morning, and not that I remember saying this or anything, but has an attitude that this could be over today. And my beliefs are that this is not a dress rehearsal, this is it. And so I want to make the most out of it. All of that and being super sexy. (smiling)

Images of

Miami Art Basel #17

Eric Minh Swenson - EMS Film Art Series

Art Basel Miami Beach Convention Center The 17th edition of Miami Art Basel brought its usual fare of great weather, art stars and top shelf glitz.

The renovation of the Miami Beach Convention Center, the home of Art Basel in Miami Beach since 2002, finally completed its facelift turning it into a world-class exhibition hall versus a 1970s airport.

Pace Gallery lead the pack in full spectrum light and space with an all-star gathering of its best representatives in the genre: Robert Irwin, Peter Alexander, Larry Bell, Mary Corse, Craig Kauffman, and others.

The VIP lounge was adorned with luxury booths, promoting yachts, jets and toys of the wealthy. I spent some time enjoying

“

champagne and expresso at MGM Resorts that has now started an artist residency program at the Bellagio Las Vegas, which I also visited recently.

Noah Horowitz, Director Americas, Art Basel, comments, “This year marks an exciting new chapter for our Miami Beach show. The now completely renovated and state of the art Miami Beach Convention Center enables us to deliver a fair of the highest caliber and sophistication, opening up unprecedented possibilities – as we have been able to illustrate with the staging of Abraham Cruzvillegas’ multidisciplinary installation that we presented in partnership with The Kitchen. The quality of work and presentations by our exhibitors have also never been higher and attendance by private collectors and institutions continues to be strong across all regions.”

If you’re into good art then the fair is not a waste of time. Quite the contrary… it’s overwhelming, which is the usual gripe of the experience. However, the fair is not set up to cater to the working class, but rather competes for the big buyers and museum curators looking to pad their coffers.

All Photos Courtesy of Eric Minh Swenson

Ollie and Larry Bell

CAIRO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL One of the world’s premier film festivals, and the only film festival in Africa and the Middle East, Cairo International Film Festival, was held the last two weeks of November 2018 in Cairo on the Nile, celebrating its 40th year event. Features and short films from all over the world screened, some twenty in competition, many from the Middle East, but from as far as China and as near as Kazakhstan. Indie Entertainment Magazine’s Claude Brickell was there to cover the event.

Europe was well-represented with films from Russia, Poland, Ukraine, France and the UK, among others. One from Belgium, entitled Rafaël, was a particular favorite with director Ben Sombogaart in attendance, as were the film’s two stars Melody Klaver and Nabil Mallat. As synopsized, “The Arab Spring forces Tunisian Nazir, married to the pregnant Dutch hairdresser Kimmy, to escape to Europe, but he ends up in Lampedusa imprisoned as an illegal refugee. A tragic yet timely-themed film with a feel good denouement.”

Another film, Queen of Spades, from Russian director Pavel Lungin, garnered tremendous praise. This is a tense drama featuring a group of opera singers as they rehearse Tchaikovsky’s famed opera and who curiously mirror its leading characters. And, just as in that drama, they manage to terrorize and totally destroy one another. The stand-out young male lead Ivan Yankovsky puts in a riveting performance, but is among a cast of equally competent others.

Claude Brickell Filmmaker, Author, Founder, Quoi de Neuf

This year’s festival paid tribute to British actor Ralph Fiennes for his long and distinguished career as an actor.

Known for his performances in films like The English Patient and Schindler’s List, Academy Award nominee has now stepped behind the camera as a film director. His latest offering, The White Crow, a drama about Russian ballet star Rudolph Nureyev’s defection to the West in 1961, screened out of competition, but was, unfortunately, a disappointment.

The winning film capturing the Golden Pyramid was director Álvaro Brechner’s feature from Uruguay, A Twelve-Year Night, and depicted as “1973 Uruguay is governed by a military dictatorship. One autumn night, three Tupamaro prisoners are taken from their prison cells in a secret military operation. The order is precise: ‘As we can’t kill them, let’s drive them mad.’ The men will remain in solitary confinement for twelve years.

Among them is Pepe Mujica, later president of Uruguay.”

Filmmaker Alvaro Brechner at CIFF

Russian Film Delegation at CIFF

Ralph Fiennes at CIFF

CIFF Awards Gala

The closing ceremony, held in Cairo’s spectacular Opera House, the main venue for festival screenings, was packed with international film attendees and local Cairo film enthusiasts for a black-tie event that brought the curtain down on that year’s memorable festival of the desert.

Jon Cho at KIA Telluride Supper Suite

‘Kia Telluride Supper Suite’ Film Hospitality Hub Drives Into Famed Park City Indie Fest For A Seventh Consecutive Year With Cuisine by Greene St. Kitchen of Las Vegas Embracing the success of being a top food and fête film festival destination for celebrities and filmmakers each year, Kia Telluride Supper Suite runs from January 26-28, 2019. Each year, the suite by A-List Communications and its partners serve as a premiere hospitality and fine food destination celebrating the top films and Hollywood A-list attending the festival. The pop-up will again be located centrally on Main Street with cuisine by Greene St. Kitchen of PALMS Casino Resort, helmed by Chef du Cuisine Lanny Chin, and beverages by LIFEWTR, Tequila Comisario, Sensi Tuscany Wines, Blue Moon Belgian White and Dragonfly Coffee Roasters.

Kia’s largest and most rugged SUV, the all new 2020 Telluride, will be highlighted during the three-day activation over opening weekend. Guests in previous years, including Connie Britton, Chloe Moretz and Jon Cho, all have enjoyed the Main Street escape from the cold at the annual culinary and entertainment destination.

Elevating the hospitality experience indoors for 2019 will be Greene St. Kitchen of Las Vegas, led by notable celebrity chef Lanny Chin along with acclaimed executive chef Joe Zanelli. The soon to be opened restaurant by Andy Masi’s Clique Hospitality, is a dynamic, design-driven dining experience bringing gastronomic innovation to the newly renovated PALMS Casino Resort.

Blending together street art and food in a distinctive way, the restaurant continues the immersive experience and extensive art program of the hotel. The modern American dining destination pays homage to the artistic communities of New York’s SoHo neighborhood during the early 80’s. Attendees will experience top of the line chef prepared dinners and catering by the coveted Vegas entity and hospitality brand. Menu favorites including the signature “Tuna Pizza” and “Mexican Vegetable Summer Rolls” will be served during the dining pop-up.

Key programming will include film parties, dinners and a daytime media lounge. The Creative Coalition will present its Spotlight Initiative Awards dinner, hosted by the organization’s president actor Tim Daly, honoring Josh Gad, Kyra Sedgwick, Tony Hale, Alfre Woodard, Tom Skerritt, Anna Chlumsky, Fisher Stevens and the film Before You Know It. Film events also to take place for Light From Light, Blumhouse, Sony Picture Classics’ Maiden and Aquarela, and XYZ Films’ party with LA Confidential, among others.

Guests will arrive in style via Kia’s first eight-passenger SUV, the all-new Telluride that is several inches longer and wider than the brand’s award-winning Sorento, and is scheduled to arrive in showrooms in early 2019. Kia will present the Telluride through a décor of video and still imagery within the bistro pop-up, while also treating celebrities and VIP media with door-to-door chauffeur-driven car service.

“We surprised everyone when we showed the Telluride’s stylish swagger on the runway during New York Fashion Week last year, and now we are showcasing our largest SUV’s more rugged side in the snow and mountains of Park City,” said Saad Chehab, Vice President, Marketing Communications, Kia Motors America. “Telluride summits Kia’s comprehensive SUV lineup, and we hope festival-goers will get to know Kia as the unexpected brand that we are.”

Creative libations to set the party tone will start with the ultrapremium and award-winning, Tequila Comisario®, available in three expressions, including mixable Blanco, aged Reposado and Añejo. In addition, Elite Beverage International will also serve up their premium Sensi® Tuscany Wines, including Sensi Chardonnay Toscana IGT and Dalcampo Chianti DOCG.

and to take cast portraits as exclusive content on the popular entertainment site that garners over 11 million visitors and 50 million page views monthly. LA Confidential will partner on film events each evening.

Brand partners also active during the day-part include luxury footwear and accessories line mou, which will return to Park City to gift its highly coveted winter boots and shoes to Hollywood’s elite. Likewise, The Wild Immersion endorsed by Jane Goodall will be on-site with the world’s first ‘virtual reserve,’ using virtual reality to share an unrivaled 360-degree journey into nature’s majestic territories to deepen our understanding of how each of us may support our planet. The activation will be presented in conjunction with Blue Mind Fund, a non-profit starting a global conversation about the intersection between wild waters and the human brain based on the works of author Dr. Wallace J. Nichols.

Blue Moon Belgian White, the perfect craft-brand for this culinary hospitality hub, will be served, while gourmet Coffee Brand, Tamas Christman’s award-winning coffee company Dragonfly Coffee Roasters will also furnish a deluxe coffee bar.

Joining as the official water for the 2019 program is LIFEWTR, a featured sponsor of the annual Creative Coalition Awards, committed to advancing creativity, starting where it all begins – arts education – and to that end has impacted more than one million students to date through arts education initiatives.

In addition to the evening film dinners and parties, the suite will also host the annual Collider Portrait and Media Studio during the daytime .Top filmmakers and actors will stop in daily during their press circuits to conduct interviews

Lanny Chin and Joe Zanelli (Green St. Kitchen, Las Vegas)

Connie Britton and Sarah Aubrey at KIA Supper Suite

Laura Prepon at Creative Coalition Event

Dragonfly Coffee Roasters

Hospitality Spotlight

Andy Masi, Founder of Clique Hospitality “A Nightlife + Restaurateur Visionary” Hospitality visionary Andy Masi currently paves the way in hospitality through his luxury venues which offer top of the line cocktail programs, cuisine, nightlife programming and design. His Vegas, San Diego and D.C. venues are highly sought after destinations for travelers, VIPS and locals.

Masi will be activating at this year’s festival showcasing the cuisine of his latest restaurant concept, Greene St. Kitchen at the Kia Telluride Supper Suite on Main Street.

Masi co-founded The Light Group in Las Vegas in 2001 and turned it into a modern day success story. By 2014, The Light Group owned and operated 26 venues in some of the most luxurious hotels in the world and had an annual revenue of over $300 million. Under his watch, The Light Group became an industry leader and was ahead of the curve in high-level entertainment.

With Masi’s guidance, his team went on to transform the hospitality landscapes in the Bellagio, Mirage, Mandalay Bay, Aria, and Red Rock, among others with cutting edge restaurants and trendsetting nightlife. Masi became to the go-to guy for Las Vegas hotels wanting to infuse “cool” into properties.

The New York native’s creative and business savvy mind also

led him to oversee the culinary revamp of the iconic Delano in Miami.

“Our focus also started with service,” he said. “We were manic about having the best service and the best product. Cutting corners was just not an option for us.”

In 2015, Masi brought that same mentality to Clique Hospitality, a boutique group he founded that has multiple restaurants and lounges in several of the trendiest properties in Las Vegas, San Diego and Washington, D.C. In 2018, Masi brought his distinct vision to PALMS Casino Resort in Las Vegas. APEX Social Club, a luxurious rooftop lounge with wrap around views of the iconic strip, located on the hotel’s 55th floor and Camden Cocktail Lounge, an innovative cocktail lounge on casino level. The two original venue concepts were created by Masi with his nightlife partners Ryan Labbe and Jason Craig.

Masi’s Clique Hospitality currently operates more than sixteen venues, such as APEX Social Club, Camden Cocktail Lounge and the soon to open Greene St. Kitchen at PALMS Casino Resort, The LIGHT and DAYLIGHT at Mandalay Bay, CLIQUE at Cosmopolitan and The STILL at Mirage in Las Vegas, plus OXFORD Social Club, Poolhouse and LIONFISH at The PENDRY in San Diego, among others.

Masi is currently focused on the opening of their next two ventures, Greene St. Kitchen at PALMS Casino Resort and The Barbershop at Cosmopolitan Resort and Casino, both recently announced to open early 2019 in Vegas, and three more to be announced in San Diego, with no signs of slowing down. www.cliquehospitality.com

Screenwriter Christopher Kühne Channels Chekhov, Explores VR and Collaborates with The Meg Producer Mexico City native Chris Kühne has studied film and screenwriting at the New York Film Academy and entertainment business and film/TV development at UCLA and has quickly established himself as an acclaimed screenwriter on the global film scene.

He co-wrote the award-winning short film Death of a Government Clerk that won “Best Short Film” at the 2015 Best Shorts Competition, as well as the Accolade Global Film Competition’s “Award of Merit” in 2015.

In Death of a Government Clerk, Kühne had the chance to adapt a short story by the great Russian writer Anton Chekhov. Ukrainian filmmaker Mykyta Samusiev was tapped to direct the prize winning film.

“In this little story,” comments Kühne, “Chekhov magnificently conveys the human fear of a suppressing system, which was a sentiment very much alive back in the days of the Soviet Union. But I believe this still fervently lives nowadays, and my objective in adapting this story was to faithfully transmit Chekhov’s theme through a more direct scope for modern audiences to digest and absorb.”

He adds, “The overly awkward and impotent atmosphere set throughout the film is meant to remind people that a big pair of ballistic lips is necessary to thrive. That’s probably the best part of it: the story applies today as much as it applied to Soviet Russia of the late 19th century.”

Kühne also co-wrote the feature length film Yerma: Barren directed by Emilio Ruiz Barrachina, internationally renowned Spanish film director, journalist, poet, and writer.

He also wrote the short film Camarillo St. that premiered at the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner, featuring actors Jorge Luis Moreno (The Lord of the Skies) and Idalia Valles (Queen of the South).

Kühne served as a judge for the Film Empire’s Diversity Screenplay and Film Contest, a competition that awards its finalists a mentorship with industry professionals in a time when diverse voices in media are much sought after. He has

Ken Atchity with Kühne

also collaborated with Ken Atchity, producer of The Meg, on a series of projects through his companies Atchity Entertainment International and Atchity Productions.

These days, the screenwriter and developer is extremely busy with a VR project in the works that merges concepts of psychoanalysis with the purpose and structure of the monomyth. He’s also co-writing a horror film in the vein of It, as well as drafting a course on ‘story’ that he intends to offer as a guide to understanding and writing stories.

Nicole Goesseringer Muj Managing Editor, IEM

WanderLuxxe To Activate at Sundance 2019 For Third Consecutive Year Luxury Membership Concierge Service in Partnership with Costa Rica Will Play Home to Film Premiere Parties, Filmmaker Panels, and More!

Lakeith Stanfield, Ali Lasky, Nikki Leonard, Ben Lyons

WanderLuxxe, the coveted concierge service founded by film industry veterans Marti Hines and Lola Wood focused in the film and entertainment space, will return to the Sundance Film Festival this year announcing its brand partners and programming such as Costa Rica, a wellness daytime lounge featuring Kobricks Coffee, Sunlighten Infrared Saunas, Lululemon-led yoga classes, Stare Cosmetics, The Lovely Loba, Peroni, Zunte Tequila, Spyderwear, snacks by My/Mo Mochi and more, with an impressive lineup of activations and film celebrations.

The WanderLuxxe festival hub will be bustling January 25th through January 28th with additional elements being added, debuting its new home on Main Street this year, relocating from its signature Deer Valley presence.

The WanderLuxxe Filmmaker Lounge, presented by Costa Rica, will be hosting an array of film premiere parties, performances, events and panels such as “Diversity Representation,” “Women in Entertainment” and “Industry Leaders” led by The Wrap on January 26th and 28th, including a kick off happy hour to the festival on the 25th with leading digital-first news organization The Wrap and Costa Rica. The slate of films is currently scheduled to celebrate Love, Antosha documentary tribute to Anton Yelchin, Clemency by director and screenwriter Chinonye Chukwu, and more. Color of Change will also host a podcast series #TellBlackStories at the lounge on January 27th.

WanderLuxxe offers individuals, ranging from film enthusiasts to indie filmmakers to studio heads, unmatched festival experience with exclusive perks and insider access for both groups and individuals. WanderLuxxe first launched in November 2016 in advance of the 2017 Sundance

Film Festival. Through its VIP membership program and personalized concierge service, founders Wood and Hines engage patrons and provide them with the ultimate festival experience, featuring exclusive perks and insider access. The membership program offers film enthusiasts year long access and perks. www.wanderluxxe.com Nestled between Nicaragua and Panama, Costa Rica offers visitors an abundance of unique wildlife, landscapes and climates – meaning a trip to this Central American country is anything but run-of-the-mill. The country proudly shelters approximately five percent of the known biodiversity in the world and has become a global leader in sustainable practices. Visitors to Costa Rica enjoy a highly organized tourism infrastructure offering a broad terrain of activities and accommodations across large chains and boutique hotels.

A premier wellness destination in Central America, Costa Rica’s “Pura Vida” motto, meaning “full of life,” describes the local mindset and lifestyle of kind mind, body and spirit.

The destination has been recognized as one of the happiest countries in the world and is home to one of the world’s only blue zones, biodiverse landscapes and wildlife, and offers a variety of wellness activities, including swimming in waterfalls and hot springs, world-class yoga retreats and spas, rainforest hiking and rappelling, and numerous national parks. A pioneer in sustainable farming methods, Costa Rica’s rich culinary scene includes dishes made of locally sourced ingredients and exotic fruits that further encourage a healthy and active experience. The country will bring its world to Park City with programming, a custom coffee bar and cuisine served up at the WanderLuxxe filmmaker lounge.

Notable guests at the 2018 filmmaker lounge included Common, John Legend, Paris Jackson, Lakeith Stanfield,

Ben Lyons and many more, with top caliber talent expected at the 2019 activation. The lounge will serve Zunte Tequila spiked hot beverages and cocktails featuring with Peroni Italian brews at their daily Apres Ski Happy Hours.

This year, My/Mo Mochi Ice Cream has teamed up with WanderLuxxe to give guests all the feels with the brand’s new Triple Layer frozen snacks. Made from the very best ingredients, gluten free and rBST free, offerings range from poppable and delicious ice cream wrapped in sweet rice mochi dough to ice cream pints filled with bits of pillowy mochi dough.

Other wellness brands such as Sunlighten Infrared Saunas - Sunlighten®, the #1 choice for personalized infrared light therapy. delivering the most effective, innovative and affordable wellness solutions Lululemon, the yoga-inspired, technical athletic apparel company for women and men, will

host curated yoga classes and massages daily, kicking off on January 25th.

STARE cosmetics fills the gap between makeup and skin care, with many years of working with estheticians specializing in corrective skin issues to carve the path needed to gain critical insight. Their proprietary and unique blends will not exacerbate existing skin conditions, only beautifully enhance all skin types, with many of the products being vegan.

Finally, The Lovely Loba is committed to creating genuinely clean body and skincare products, all organic, vegan and cruelty-free, in convenient-to-use ways, while inspiring humankind to take advantage of the health-promoting, living resources provided by Mother Earth. Each of the ingredients are manufactured in areas where the plant or crop grows indigenously and is shipped to its facility.

Becoming Iconic: A Moment With Director Jonathan Baker Filmmaker Jonathan Baker recently released his fascinating Hollywood documentary, Becoming Iconic: Jonathan Baker, featuring some of the industry’s most iconic directors, including Jodie Foster, Taylor Hackford, Adrian Lyne, Nicolas Cage, John Badham and Warren Beatty.

The one-of-a-kind film explores the process of directing a bigbudget feature, from the ground up, through the eyes of top directors as they tell their own stories. A must-see for movie lovers and anyone who has ever dreamed helming a big-budget, Hollywood feature, the film was created in tandem with Baker’s preparation for and production of his own directorial debut of “Inconceivable,” starring Nicolas Cage, Gina Gershon and Faye Dunaway.

Directed by Neal Thibedeau, the documentary includes interesting, candid stories on topics ranging from the pressures of financing and working with top talent, to the ultimate challenge of making sure to stay true to the film’s vision. The film chronicles the inspirational “first time” stories of these celebrated directors, combined with the very personal story of Baker’s dream of making it big in Hollywood. The film is available via iTunes, DVD, Digital HD and VOD. Jonathan Baker has always been enthralled by smart storytelling

and larger-than-life figures, taking inspiration from greats like Ernest Hemingway to guide his own sensibilities as a director, writer, producer, entrepreneur and adventurer.

He grew up in New York City on the same block as Jackie Kennedy and dreamed of working in the entertainment industry from the age of seven. While growing up in Manhattan in the 1960s, he became captivated by the movies, living vicariously through characters played by his idols Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Steve McQueen.

Launched in 1985, Baker Entertainment Group is a multimedia development and production company housed at the Paramount Studios Lot. It is a “new kind of production company” that provides a unique form of entertainment known as “intertainment,” a 360-degree insight of the production process of filmmaking.

Baker and the filmmaking team are hopeful that the documentary will serve to showcase that success comes to those who are dedicated to their passion. With a vision that the film will be a tool to start a conversation for those in college, film school, high schools and anyone who loves or wants to be in the film industry, he has pledged to devote his time to speak to students of all ages, to help spread his advice on both independent and studio filmmaking.

For more information on availability, school representatives can contact the Baker Entertainment team at: Baker@TheInfluence.com Official Film Site: https://www.bakerentertainmentgroup.com/copy-of-projects @JonathanBakerDirector on Instagram, Twitter @Jonathanbaker