We’re just back from our annual trip to the Sundance Film Festival, and we have so many insights and ideas to share.
One insight in particular is worth calling out: the concept of narrative oceans, a framework developed by the Pop Culture Collaborative for understanding and influencing how stories shape our society. Narrative oceans serve as a powerful metaphor to describe the vast and interconnected web of stories, images, and narratives that shape our understanding of the world.
But “the hard truth is that large swaths of the narrative ‘ocean’ in which we currently swim are toxic — poisoned with terrible ideas about who we are, who belongs, and who does not,” writes Pop Culture Collaborative CEO Bridgit Antoinette Evans. “My question to you: In this toxic environment, what becomes of our imaginations? Our willingness to believe, to fight, to build something new? And if this generative superpower is destroyed, how can we possibly see the future that could exist beyond this messy, brutal chapter in America’s story?”
Right now, American democracy is at its most vulnerable because of the glaring, entrenched inequalities in our society. We have come to be defined by these inequalities, and we’re seeing at every turn how they’re undermining our social cohesion. Democracy, of course, is not sustainable under these conditions. Democracy demands equality. At a time when trust is no longer a reliable asset, it is the time to tend to these narrative oceans by collaborating and building coalitions to reshape our society, and the stories we tell about it.
A call to action if we’ve ever heard one.
At our own funder gathering—a meeting we’ve hosted annually for a number of years at the Miners Club in Park City—we had perhaps the most impactful meeting we’ve ever had at Sundance, drawing the largest gathering to date and centering several important discussions. We heard from former Sundance CEO Keri Putnam, who recently published a massive and groundbreaking research report on the audience for independent film in America. The research calls upon philanthropy to step in and help to support the infrastructure that can help to serve an existing audience of more than 35 million people and potentially doubling the audience, given the expressed demand for independent film. When so many channels for independent media are closing down, a modest investment in distribution infrastructure could greatly expand the reach of these important films. MIF will be carving out space for funders to dig into these questions and more, so please stay tuned for more details.
Nina Sachdev, our Director of Communications, led a sobering discussion with Oscar-winning director Mstyslav Chernov and Frontline Executive Producer Raney Aronson-Rath concerning their new Sundance film, “2000 Meters to Andriivka,” a grim and gripping revelation of the reality of the Russian war on Ukraine. Chernov won the Academy Award for best documentary film last year for his previous film, “20 Days in Mariupol.” Mstyslav, a Ukrainian war correspondent, has documented several wars throughout his career. He has seen brutality, death, love and hope. He has seen his home country torn apart. And then he came onto our stage and spoke with such clarity, thoughtfulness and kindness. To witness his resilience and unwavering commitment to truth-telling in the face of such immense suffering was deeply moving. He and Raney both talked about the relationship between film and disinformation, and how one can inoculate against the other.
Likewise, we were very fortunate to have MIF Board Chair Kayce Ataiyero, Chief External Affairs Officer at the Joyce Foundation, as moderator for our panel with “Sugarcane” directors Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, along with Carolyn Bernstein from National Geographic Films, which bought the film. (You can watch it on Disney+/Hulu.) It was amazing to hear the remarkable story of how the film came into being: a series of serendipitous events and connections that Julian said was essentially the creator reaching down and finding them to tell the story. “Sugarcane” reveals the brutal history of sexual assault, murder, suicide, and infanticide at residential schools for indigenous children in Canada. Just the morning before our meeting, the film received an Oscar nomination in the documentary film category.
In addition to our program, we also participated in a newly expanded program across town, the Impact Lounge. At the invitation of Impact Lounge producer Heather Mason, founder of the Caspian Agency and longtime producer of the Skoll World Forum, MIF Executive Director Vince Stehle moderated a panel on film funding with participation from the Ford Foundation, Independence Public Media Foundation and former MIF board member Sandy Herz. Subsequent panels included MIF board members Lauren Pabst and Kaitlin Yarnall.
Oh, and we saw some films, of course. Standouts include “2000 Meters to Andriivka,” “The Perfect Neighbor,” and “How To Build A Library.” We have more to watch, but it’s a great privilege to get a sneak peek at some of the most influential films of the year. It’s actually not too late to watch some of these films on the Sundance digital platform, where many of the movies will continue to stream through next weekend. This link should show you which films you can still see online.
