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Sundance announces premieres, previews which celebs may attend
This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Big stars won't just be appearing in films at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. Some stars - such as Antonio Banderas, Sarah Polley, Steve Buscemi, Anthony Hopkins, Crispin Glover and the late Adrienne Shelly - are directing them, too.

Festival organizers on Thursday announced the remainder of the festival slate, covering the premieres, and the Spectrum, Park City at Midnight, Sundance Collection and New Frontier programs.

Among the big stars appearing in premiere films are: Samuel L. Jackson (twice), Catherine Keener, Jared Leto, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mandy Moore, Penelope Cruz, Josh Hartnett, Samantha Morton (twice), Kevin Kline and - lock up your sons - Lindsay Lohan.

Opening the Salt Lake City portion of the festival, Jan. 19 at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center, is the U.S. premiere of "Away

From Her," directed and written by Sarah Polley. Based on an Alice Munro short story, it tells of a long-married couple (Julie Christie and Gordon Pinsent) grappling with her growing Alzheimer's.

The closing-night film, screening Jan. 26 in Park City, is "Life Support," a true story of a mother (played by Queen Latifah) who overcame crack addiction to become an AIDS activist. (The opening- night film, the documentary "Chicago 10," was announced previously.) Here are the other titles announced Thursday:

Premieres "An American Crime," directed by Tommy O'Haver ("Ella Enchanted") and written by O'Haver and Irene Turner, a true story of a 1960s Indianapolis homemaker (Catherine Keener) who kept a teen girl (Ellen Page) locked in her basement.

"Black Snake Moan," written and directed by Craig Brewer ("Hustle & Flow," Sundance '05), a sexually charged drama about a reformed bluesman (Samuel L. Jackson) who protects a young woman (Christina Ricci) who has plunged into erotic excess.

"Chapter 27," written and directed by Jarrett Schaefer, starring Jared Leto as Mark David Chapman, the man who killed John Lennon, in a movie that explores Chapman's obsession with "The Catcher in the Rye." Lindsay Lohan co-stars.

"Clubland" (Australia), directed by Cherie Nowlan and written by Keith Thompson, a sexual coming-of-age story about a young man dealing with his showbiz parents.

"The Good Night," written and directed by Jake Paltrow, starring Martin Freeman ("The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy") as a jingle writer in midlife crisis. Paltrow's sister Gwyneth co-stars,along with Penelope Cruz and Danny DeVito.

"King of California," written and directed by Mike Cahill, starring Michael Douglas as an unstable dad who convinces his daughter (Evan Rachel Wood) to dig for Spanish gold in suburbia.

"Longford" (United Kingdom), directed by Tom Hooper and written by Peter Morgan ("The Queen"), a portrait of a British nobleman (Jim Broadbent) who campaigned to have a notorious killer (Samantha Morton) freed from prison.

"The Nines," written and directed by John August (who wrote "Big Fish"), about an actor, a TV show-runner and a videogame designer whose lives intersect. Ryan Reynolds and Hope Davis star.

"Resurrecting the Champ," directed by Rod Lurie ("The Contender") and written by Allison Burnett, Michael Bortman, Chris Gerolmo and Lurie, stars Josh Hartnett as a sportswriter who lands a big story - finding a believed-to-be-dead boxing champ (Samuel L. Jackson) living on the streets.

"The Savages," written and directed by Tamara Jenkins ("Slums of Beverly Hills"), starring Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman as siblings forced to care for their estranged father (Philip Bosco).

"Son of Rambow" (United Kingdom), directed by Garth Jennings ("The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"), about a sheltered boy who suddenly finds himself in the world of the school terror, who makes bizarre home movies.

"Summer Rain (El Camino de los Ingleses)" (Spain), directed by Antonio Banderas and written by Antonio Soler, a coming-of-age story set in 1970s Malaga, Spain.

"Trade," directed by Marco Kreuzpainter and written by Jose Rivera ("The Motorcycle Diaries"), in which a Mexican teen and a Texas cop (Kevin Kline) team up to find the sex traffickers who kidnapped their loved ones.

"Year of the Dog," written and directed by Mike White (who wrote "Chuck & Buck," Sundance '00, and "School of Rock"), starring Molly Shannon as a secretary whose life changes when her dog dies.

Spectrum: "Angel-A" (France), written and directed by Luc Besson ("La Femme Nikita"), a fairytale about a man who jumps into the Seine, but is rescued by a mysterious beauty.

"Bugmaster (Mushishi)" (Japan), directed by Katsuhiro Otomo ("Akira") and written by Sadayuki Murai, a live-action fantasy about a supernatural exterminator, based on an ancient Japanese legend and a popular comic book.

"Dark Matter," directed by Chen Shi-Zheng and written by Billy Shebar, in which a Chinese astronomy student who pursues his Ph.D. in the United States. Meryl Streep co-stars in this movie, which was filmed in Utah.

"Dedication," directed by Justin Theroux and written by David Bromberg, about a socially inept children's-book author (Billy Crudup) who must work with a new illustrator (Mandy Moore) when he loses his longtime collaborator (Tom Wilkinson).

"Delirious," written and directed by Tom DiCillo (his fifth movie to play at Sundance), about a paparazzo (Steve Buscemi) who hires a homeless man (Michael Pitt) to help track a famous pop star (Alison Lohman).

"The Devil Came on Horseback," directed by Annie Sundberg and Ricki Stern ("The Trials of Darryl Hunt," Sundance '06), which follows a U.S. Marine who aims to inform Americans about the genocide in Darfur.

"Expired," written and directed by Cecilia Miniucchi, about a love affair between a meter maid (Samantha Morton) and a parking officer (Jason Patric).

"Fay Grim," written and directed by Hal Hartley ("The Unbelievable Truth," Sundance '89, and others), a continuation of his 1997 film "Henry Fool," starring Parker Posey as a single mom who becomes involved in international espionage involving her long-missing husband.

"Fraulein" (Switzerland), written and directed by Andrea Staka, about a hardened Yugoslav restaurateur in Zurich who encounters a younger woman seeking a better life after the Balkan War.

"The Go-Getter," written and directed by Martin Hynes, about a teen ("Thumbsucker's" Lou Taylor Pucci) who steals a car to find his long- lost brother -- only to develop a bond with the car's owner. Zooey Deschanel and Jena Malone also star.

"The Great World of Sound," directed by Craig Zobel and written by George Smith and Zobel, in which a man takes a job to sign undiscovered artists, but learns the job isn't what it appears.

"If I Had Known I Was a Genius," directed by Dominique Wirtschafter and written by Markus Redford, in which a young African-American with a high I.Q. recounts his life and his dysfunctional family. Whoopi Goldberg and Sharon Stone are in the cast.

"Interview," directed by Steve Buscemi ("Lonesome Jim," Sundance '05), written by Buscemi and David Schechter, which stars Buscemi as a fading political journalist assigned to interview a soap-opera star (Sienna Miller).

"Low and Behold," directed by Zack Godshall and written by Godshall and Barlow Jacobs, about an insurance adjuster whose view is changed when he is assigned to hurricane-damaged New Orleans.

"La Misma Luna (The Same Moon)," directed by Patricia Riggen and written by Ligiah Villalobos, about a Mexican boy who tries to reunite with his mom in Los Angeles.

"Miss Navajo," directed by Billy Luther, a documentary that follows a young woman preparing for the Miss Navajo Nation Pageant.

"Red Road" (United Kingdom) written and directed by Andrea Arnold, an already-acclaimed drama about a surveillance-camera monitor forced to confront a man she never wanted to see again.

"Reprise" (Norway), directed by Joachim Trier and written by Trier and Eskil Vogt), about the literary ups and downs of two competitive friends.

"Save Me," directed by Robert Cary and written by Craig Chester, Alan Hines and Robert Desiderio, about a young man who tries to give up drugs and gay sex by entering a Christian ministry to cure himself of his "gay affliction." "Tuli" (Philippines), directe by Auraeus Solito ("The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros," Sundance '06) and written by Jimmy Flores, about a girl in a remote village who rejects her abusive father's plans for an arranged marriage.

"The Unforeseen," directed by Laura Dunn, a documentary about a west Texas land development that threatens a limestone aquifer, sparking an environmental protest.

"Waitress," written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, stars Keri Russell as a pregnant and unhappily married waitress who sees a chance at happiness with a newcomer (Nathan Fillion). Shelly, an actress famous for roles in Hal Hartley films, was killed last month in her New York office.

"Wonders Are Many," directed by Jon Else ("Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle," Sundance '99), a documentary that follows composer John Adams and Peter Sellars as they create a new opera about Robert Oppenheimer and the creation of the atomic bomb.

"Year of the Fish," written and directed by David Kaplan, an animated Cinderella story set in New York's Chinatown.

New Frontier: Formerly the Frontier section, New Frontier covers experimental forms of filmmaking. In addition to six films, a New Frontier on Main venue (in Park City's Main Street Mall, across from the Egyptian) will host nine artists and their work - along with screenings, moving image installations, live performances, a DJ lounge/café called the Rabbit Hole, panel discussions and special events.

The six films are: "Artist Spotlight: Pierre Huyghe," a collection of short films by the French multimedia artists, most of which have not been seen outside museums or galleries.

"The Last Dining Table" (South Korea), written and directed by Gyeong- Tae Roh, a minimalist and surrealist film about pollution, the environment and the collapse of family values.

"Offscreen" (Denmark), directed by Christoffer Boe and written by Boe and Knud Romer Jorgensen, a mix of fact and fiction about an actor who borrows a camera from Boe to make a creepily private film about himself.

"Phantom Love," directed by Nina Menkes, a surreal drama about a woman trying to free herself from her extended family, in L.A. and in India.

"Slipstream," written and directed by Anthony Hopkins, who plays a screenwriter whose brain is imploding - and his real and invented worlds are crossing in and out of each other.

"Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait," directed by Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno, in which 17 cameras follow the French soccer star Zinedine Zidane for the entire length of a match.

The nine artists in the Main Street venue are: Paul Chan (multi-media installation), Shu Lea Cheang (interactive mobile media), Martha Colburn (multi-media installation), R. Luke Dubois (multi-media installation), Eric Dyer (multi-media installation), James Graham (multi-media installation), Ricardo Rivera and Pier Nicola D'Amico (multi-media installation), Lincoln Schatz (interactive video art), and Travis Wilkerson (media based performance).

Park City at Midnight: "Fido," directed by Andrew Currie and written by Robert Chomiak and Currie, a horror comedy about a boy and his best friend, Fido (Billy Connolly) - a six-foot zombie who, oops, eats the next-door neighbor. Carrie-Anne Moss and Dylan Walsh play the boy's parents.

"Finishing the Game," directed by Justin Lin ("Better Luck Tomorrow," Sundance '02) and written by Josh Diamond and Lin, about an actor hired to replace Bruce Lee on the unfinished "Game of Death." "It Is Fine! Everything is Fine.", directed by Crispin Hellion Glover and David Brothers, written by Glover and Steven C. Stewart, centers on Stewart, a man with cerebral palsy, and his fantastical and psychosexual view of his life. Glover and Brothers, the production designer on "Plan 10 From Outer Space" and the artist who painted the Tower Theater's lobby, filmed the movie in Salt Lake City.

"The Signal," written and directed by David Bruckner, Jacob Gentry and Dan Bush, is a three-part horror film billed as "a horrific journey towards the discovery that the most brutal violent monster might actually be within all of us." "Sk8 Life" (Canada), directed by S. Wyeth Clarkson and written by Clarkson and Elan Mastai, tells of eight skaters trying to save their condemned "crashpad." "Smiley Face," directed by Gregg Araki ("The Doom Generation," Sundance '95, and others) and written by Dylan Haggerty, stars Anna Faris as a slacker actress who has a weird day after eating her roommates pot-laced cupcakes.

"The Ten," directed by David Wain ("Wet Hot American Summer," Sundance '01) and written by Ken Marino and Wain, 10 comical stories - each based on one of the Ten Commandments. Jessica Alba, Amanda Peet, Gretchen Mol and Winona Ryder are in the cast.

"We Are the Strange," written and directed by M dot Strange, an animated fantasy about two outcasts battling bizarre monsters on the way to the ice cream shop.

Sundance Collection "River's Edge" (1986), directed by Tim Hunter and written by Neal Jimenez, about high-school slackers who band together when one of them kills his girlfriend. Crispin Glover, Keanu Reeves, Ione Skye and Dennis Hopper star.

"X: The Unheard Music" (1986), directed by W.T. Morgan, a rarely seen documentary about the L.A. punk band X and the underground scene of the early '80s.

Special screenings: "The Last Mimzy," directed by Bob Shaye, screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin and Toby Emmerich, screen story by James V. Hart and Carol Skilkin, based on a short story by Lewis Padgett about two children who discover mysterious devices they believe to be toys - and what happens when the boys' intelligence level rises.

"Autism Every Day," directed by Lauren Thierry, a look inside the lives of families raising children with autism.

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