Sundance Competition Slate

Highlights on first glance. I don't know why,but I'm drawn to the ghost movies this year...

Documentary Competition

Chasing Ghosts (Director: Lincoln Ruchti)—Twin Galaxies Arcade, Iowa, 1982: the birthplace of mankind's obsession with video games. The fate of this world lies in the hands (literally) of a few unlikely heroes: They are the Original Video Game World Champions and the arcade is their battleground.

Ghosts of Abu Ghraib (Director: Rory Kennedy)—This inside look at the abuses that occurred at the infamous Iraqi prison in the fall of 2003 uses direct, personal narratives of perpetrators, witnesses, and victims to probe the effects of the abuses on all involved. World Premiere.

Girl 27 (Director: David Stenn)—When underage dancer Patricia Douglas is raped at a wild MGM stag party in 1937, she makes headlines and legal history, and then disappears. GIRL 27 follows author-screenwriter David Stenn as he investigates one of Hollywood's most notorious scandals. World Premiere.

Zoo (Director: Robinson Devor)—A humanizing look at the life and bizarre death of a seemingly normal Seattle family man who met his untimely end after an unusual encounter with a horse. World Premiere.

Dramatic Comp

Rocket Science (Director and Screenwriter: Jeffrey Blitz)—A 15-year-old boy from New Jersey with a stuttering problem falls in love with the star of the debate team and finds himself suddenly immersed in the ultra-competitive world of debating. World Premiere.

Snow Angels (Director: David Gordon Green; Screenwriter: Stewart O'Nan)—A drama that interweaves the life of a teenager with his former baby-sitter, her estranged husband, and their daughter. World Premiere.

Teeth (Director and Screenwriter: Mitchell Lichtenstein)—Still a stranger to her own body, a high school student discovers she has a “physical advantage” when she becomes the object of male violence. World Premiere.

World Documentary

The Future is Unwritten Ireland/UK ( Director: Julien Temple)—An invitation from Joe Strummer, the Punk Rock Warlord himself, to journey beyond the myth to the heart and voice of a generation. His life, our times, his music. World Premiere.

A Very British Gangster / UK (Director: Donal MacIntyre)—Given his many contradictions, Dominic Noonan, head of one of Britain’s biggest crime families, is a man who defies stereotypes. This close up look at his life, from gun trials to the murder of his brother on the streets of Manchester, reveals a community struggling with poverty, violence and drugs. World Premiere.

World Dramatic

Ghosts UK (Director: Nick Broomfield; Screenwriters: Nick Broomfield, Jez Lewis)—Based on a true story, GHOSTS is the tragic account of an illegal Chinese immigrant woman as she struggles relentlessly for a better life in the U.K. North American Premiere.

Once Ireland (Director and Screenwriter: John Carney)—ONCE is a modern-day musical set on the streets of Dublin. Featuring Glen Hansard and his Irish band “The Frames”, ONCE tells the story of a busker and an immigrant during an eventful week as they write, rehearse and record songs that reveal their unique love story. North American Premiere.

More to come tomorrow, apparently...