The 44th annual Sundance Film Fest begins Thursday through Jan. 30 in Park City, Utah.
Just like last year, it will be held virtually after canceling live events due to the pandemic.
Last year’s winner “CODA” wowed the crowd to win the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award before inking a record $25 million deal with Apple to become an Oscar contender.
It also introduced other contenders like “Passing” (Netflix) and “Summer of Soul” (Hulu).
So what is on the slate for this year’s Sundance Film Festival?
Below is an alphabetical list of movies to keep an eye on:
‘Alice’
This debut feature by Krystin Ver Linden follows a slave (Keke Palmer) who escapes her plantation seemingly in the Antebellum South only to discover that it’s actually 1972 beyond the tree line, a premise that sounds similar to the hell Janelle Monáe faced in “Antebellum” (2020).
‘Am I OK?’
Co-directed by real-life spouses Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne, “Am I OK?” follows Lucy (Dakota Johnson), who comes out of the closet to her lifelong best friend Jane (Sonoya Mizuno), who is about to move to London for a job. How will this news affect their friendship?
‘Call Jane’
“Carol” screenwriter Phyllis Nagy directs Elizabeth Banks and Sigourney Weaver in this account of the Jane Collective, an underground group that carried out abortions in early 1970s Chicago.
‘892’
Directed by Abi Damaris Corbin, “892” stars John Boyega as a Marine war veteran who faces mental and emotional challenges when he tries to reintegrate back into civilian life. The film also stars Connie Britton, Nicole Beharie, Selenis Leyva and Michael K. Williams in his final role.
‘Emily the Criminal’
Directed by John Patton Ford, “Emily the Criminal” stars Aubrey Plaza as a down-on-her luck woman who’s saddled with debt. As such, she gets involved in a credit card scam that pulls her into the criminal underworld of Los Angeles, ultimately leading to deadly consequences.
‘Fresh’
In this Hulu flick, director Mimi Cave explores the horrors of modern dating as a woman (Daisy Edgar-Jones) struggles against the unusual appetites of her new boyfriend (Sebastian Stan).
‘Happening’
Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, Audrey Diwan’s adaptation of Annie Ernaux’s novel details her experience with abortion when it was still illegal in 1960s France.
‘Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul’
Written and directed by Adamma Ebo, “Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul” stars Sterling K. Brown and Regina Hall as the pastor and pastor’s wife of a prominent Southern Baptist megachurch, who seek to rebuild their congregation after a massive scandal.
‘Jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy’
Directed by Coodie and Chike Ozah, this epic documentary chronicles the life and career of Kanye West as he rises from rapper to businessman to build a global brand. Will it take on the various controversies of recent years? Or focus mostly on his music? I guess we’ll have to see.
‘La Guerra Civil’
Directed by Eva Longoria, this boxing documentary chronicles the 1996 bout between Oscar De La Hoya and Julio Cesar Chavez and questions it raised for Mexican-American identity.
‘Lucy and Desi’
Arriving just a few months after Aaron Sorkin’s biopic “Being the Ricardos,” Amy Poehler directs the documentary “Lucy and Desi” about Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and the rise of “I Love Lucy.’
‘Nothing Compares’
Kathryn Ferguson directs this documentary of iconoclastic singer Sinéad O’Connor, who rises from her Irish roots to worldwide fame before being exiled from mainstream of pop music.
‘Phoenix Rising’
Director Amy Berg’s two-part HBO documentary allows actress Evan Rachel Wood to share her experience as a survivor of domestic violence allegedly at the hands of Marilyn Manson.
‘The Princess’
Princess Diana has been all the rage lately from “The Crown” to “Spencer,” but now Sundance is screening a new documentary by Ed Perkins, who tells the story entirely in archival footage.
‘TikTok, Boom’
This documentary by Shalini Kantayya interviews Gen-Z folks to chart TikTok’s incredible tech journey to become the world’s most downloaded app and an undisputed cultural phenomenon.
‘We Need to Talk About Cosby’
Stand-up comic turned filmmaker W. Kamau Bell explores Bill Cosby’s descent from “America’s Dad” to alleged sexual predator, interviewing comedians, journalists and survivors.
‘When You Finish Saving the World’
Actor Jesse Eisenberg (“The Social Network”) makes his directorial debut, casting Julianne Moore (“Still Alice”) and Finn Wolfhard (“Stranger Things”) as a mother and her oblivious son who search for replacements for each other while running a shelter and attending school, respectively.
‘You Won’t Be Alone’
Australian filmmaker Goran Stolevski directs this horror film starring Noomi Rapace about a young girl who is kidnapped and turned into a witch in a mountain village in 19th century Macedonia.
