art & design
The Good, the Bad, and the Really Unsuccessful of Sundance
Alexander Payne, a shoo-in Best Director Oscar nominee this year for The Descendants, first came to Hollywood’s attention with the quirky, smart Sundance Film Festival hit, Citizen Ruth. From the Coen Brothers to Quentin Tarantino, David O. Russell, Kevin Smith, Steven Soderbergh and Christopher Nolan, Sundance has launched a steady stream of amazing films and film careers. But for every profitable hit to come out of Fest, there have been many financial misses.
The Good!
The Blair Witch Project — A creepy concept with low production values and savvy internet marketing, this scare-crapping phenomenon made a fortune. Bought by Artisan for $1 million, the film went on to gross $140 million domestically.
Little Miss Sunshine — Before Toddlers & Tiara’s there was Little Miss Sunshine. Selling for $10.5 million at Sundance (the biggest deal in Sundance history), it went on to make $100 million and take home some Oscars. Not bad.
Saw — Sundance isn’t known for churning out Halloween horror fare; the original twisted, low-budget Saw was relegated to a midnight premiere. 6 sequels later, this is the Sundance hit that keeps on killing.
Napolean Dynamite — Love or hate its weird, awkward protagonist, Napolean Dynamite was a Sundance sensation. Selling for $3 million and prompting at least as many “Vote for Pedro” stickers, this cult classic went on to make $46 million domestically.
Sex, Lies and Videotape — This movie not only put Sundance on the map but ignited the 90’s indie film boom. Sold at Sundance for $1 million, it went on to gross $25 million domestically. As we all know, sex sells. Well, really weird, uncomfortable yet compelling conversation about sex sells.
The Bad!
Buried — An apt title for how it fared at the box office. Good reviews at Sundance convinced Lionsgate to shell out $3.2 million for Ryan Reynolds in a box, but Buried became more than just its title, taking in only $1 million. Ouch.
Hamlet 2 — Steve Coogan’s kooky portrayal of a delusional drama teacher pushed Focus Features into a costly $10 million bidding war. Even with aggressive promotion, the film made only $4.8 million. Seems like a Hamlet 3 is out.
The Really Unsuccessful!
Grace is Gone — Maybe John Cusack should stick to comedies. While Oscar talk was all over this widowed dad story, the Weinstein Company paid $4 million for this film that only grossed $50,000.
Happy, Texas — Yeah, we don’t remember this Steve Zahn tanker either. But it apparently caused a bidding war at Sundance that ended with Miramax ponying up $10million for it. Oops. It made around $2 million and went on to Netflix obscurity.
Son of Rambow — British accents, funny kids, 80’s nostalgia and still this film got lost in the shuffle. Sold for $8 million, it made only $1.8 million domestically.
Claudia Maittlen-Harris is a writer and comedian based in Los Angeles. She is the co-creator of the how-not-to dating/relationship blog, The Zeros Before the One.
Image: rasdourian
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