This is a busy time of year for all of us at Arts Engine with constant viewing of entries for The Media That Matters Film Festival to screenings of Election Day in Chicago and D.C. This year, I was the lone staff member to attend The Sundance Film Festival, rooming with our lovely ex-staffer Wendy Cohen, from Participant Productions’ Take Part and seeing all that chilly Park City had to offer.

Arts Engine was one of many organizations to sit at the outreach table in the Filmmaker’s Lodge. I answered questions about our filmmakers’ services and talked up Media That Matters. I had a great conversation with one of our current Media That Matters filmmakers Sam Kauffmann whose film, Massacre at Murambi, played at Slamdance this year. Finally he and I were able to discuss our shared experience in Rwanda—I went to Murambi in 2006—and it truly enriched his already moving film.

Since I did not buy tickets ahead of time (and had too many commitments to brave hours and hours in line), I was lucky to see the three that I did. They were:

A Good Day To Be Black and Sexy: A great selection of shorts about being well…black and sexy. This film is so much fun and my new catch phrase. Hopefully it will get distribution.

Be Like Others: A film about the growing rate of sex-change operations in Iran. Truly eye opening.

The Order of Myths: A film about America’s oldest (and still segregated) Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama.

I really wish I had seen Ballast because it was shot in the Mississippi Delta where I recently spent a week. The “buzz”–-I hate that word but sometimes it’s the only one that fits–-on this film is great. Oh well. Just another flick to add to my already too long list of films to see.

Sundance isn’t Sundance without parties and I tried to enjoy as many as I could. Somehow I missed the Maroon 5 and 50 Cent concerts. (And no I am not bitter. Not. One. Bit.) But in between sightings of Billy Crudup and Charlize Theron, I squeezed in a few shindigs. Our friends at POV threw a brunch honoring their amazing four films at Sundance this year. There were many familiar faces and several people had questions about DocuClub, a Works in Progress screening series that we are taking over the reigns of starting in February.

Afterwards I went to the announcements of the new Doc Awards and then to Chicken and Egg’s party high on a hill on Park Avenue. C&E funded development for Rose and Nangabire, one of our films in production. They are such great ambassadors for female filmmakers! (The next day, Freeheld, a film C&E funded, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.)

I attended two panels: The Tipping Point: Social Change Through Film at Queer Lounge and Blacks in America, a conversation on the current status of films by and about African Americans. My head is sort of swimming with ideas and questions after these panels.

Sundance is sort of like traveling to a developing country. By the time your body gets used to it, you have to leave! (OK I am exaggerating…sort of.) All and all a good four days. Harriette Yahr will write a nice long piece about the docs at Sundance so keep your eyes on MediaRights for that in the near future.