Sundance

This page is home to our coverage of the Sundance Film Festival.

The Sundance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the United States, taking place every year in January in Park City, Utah. It was founded in 1978 as the Utah/US Film Festival and re-named the Sundance Film Festival in 1991, after Robert Redford’s character from the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Film School Reject has had the honor of covering Sundance since 2008, two years after our site was founded. Over the years, we’ve discovered a number of amazing films in Park City — from our first review of 2008’s In Bruges to our listing of the 25 Best Sundance Movies of All-Time in 2015 to our 2019 list of the 50 Best Sundance Horror Movie Premieres to our discoveries of Swiss Army Man and Hunt for the Wilderpeople and The Witch at Sundance 2016 — we’ve spent over a decade reviewing hundreds of wonderful independent films.

We have also covered (on numerous occasions) what it’s like to cover Sundance for those who aren’t lucky enough to make the trip. And for those interested in filling their yearly watchlists, we’ve also recapped our favorites with a festival-closing list (in almost every year). Check out our archive of Sundance favorites via the links below:

Explore the entire archives of our annual Sundance Film Festival coverage below:

January 26, 2024By Rob Hunter

‘In a Violent Nature’ Offers Deceptively Lackadaisical Thrills and Kills

Come for the shambling, highly motivated killer, stay for the year’s best cinematic kill.
February 6, 2023By Brad Gullickson

‘Aliens Abducted My Parents and Now I Feel Kinda Left Out’ Is A Lot of Title and Tones

We chat with Will Forte, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Jake Van Wagoner about the new Sundance indie and why tonal balance only works when collaboration is total.
January 30, 2023By Lex Briscuso

‘Magazine Dreams’ is an Enigmatic and Dark Star Vehicle for an Incendiary Jonathan Majors

Elijah Bynum’s Sundance breakout ‘Magazine Dreams’ laser-focuses on star Jonathan Majors, whose incel bodybuilder character is cracking at the seams.
January 29, 2023By Farah Cheded

Raven Jackson’s ‘All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt’ is a Sublime, Poetic Debut

Raven Jackson’s debut is an intimate work of stunning detail and artistic harmony.
January 28, 2023By Rob Hunter

‘Fair Play’ Offers a Scathing Takedown of the Aggressively Insecure

Some are calling it an erotic thriller, but whatever the label, ‘Fair Play’ is a sexy, angry, and suspenseful look at insecurity and doubt.
January 28, 2023By Rob Hunter

‘Infinity Pool’ is a Visual Feast That Ultimately Runs Shallow

Mia Goth mesmerizes once again in the latest film from Brandon Cronenberg.
January 27, 2023By Rob Hunter

Lily Gladstone Shines in the Sadly Necessary ‘Fancy Dance’

A touching and soulful film about those left behind when an indigenous woman goes missing.
January 26, 2023By Farah Cheded

‘The Deepest Breath’ Manages to Escape the Shallows

Some sports are more about transcendence than splashy thrills.
January 26, 2023By Rob Hunter

‘Talk to Me’ Unleashes a Brutal Slice of Possession Horror

Might just make even the skeptics think twice about playing around with the supernatural.