New Digital Content Initiative Puts Sundance Institute on the Mobile Map

In a move that could provide the catalyst for new independent film distribution and exhibition opportunities, the Sundance Institute announced a pilot program on Nov. 8 to sponsor and deliver content for mobile devices.

The Institute will partner with the GSM Association (GSMA) in creating the Sundance Film Festival: Global Short Film Project. The Festival has recruited six alumni filmmakers to create a series of five 3-5 minute short films exclusively for mobile distribution, including "Little Miss Sunshine" directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, "Better Luck Tommorrow"'s Justin Lin and director Cory McAbee ("The American Astronaut").

“Cell phones are fast becoming the ‘fourth screen’ medium, after television, cinema and computers,” said Sundance Institute president and founder Robert Redford. “We feel this experiment embodies fully, our quarter-century dedication to exploring new platforms to support wider distribution of independent voices in filmmaking. We are excited about bringing this opportunity to independent filmmakers and most excited to see what they will do with it,” he added.

The Festival will premiere the films February 12-15, 2007 at the annual 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona and then make them available for mobile device download.

Festival Director of Programming John Cooper will oversee the project, which is co-sponsored by the GSMA, the global trade association that represents 700 GSM mobile phone operators in 215 countries worldwide. In an indication of the potential reach of the new initiative, the Institute indicated that GSMA's members serve more than two billion customers -- 82% of the world's mobile phone users.