The genesis of what is now the Sundance Film Festival began 30 years ago, in 1978, when the Utah Arts Council created and funded the first “Utah/US Film Festival.” That year, Robert Redford and a handful of dedicated, passionate dreamers fashioned the first festival. I went along for the ride when I answered an ad in the paper for a temporary job with a state-sponsored film festival. I’d made a couple of short films with my brother, so thought I’d give it a shot. I was immensely under-qualified for the job, but shared the vision of its charismatic founder and leader, Sterling VanWagenen.
As publicity director, my job was to work with local and national media to promote the inaugural event. I was also tapped to structure the independent film competition and choose the films. Our offices were in the old Carriage House of the Governor’s Mansion on South Temple in Salt Lake City, which at the time was undergoing extensive remodeling. We toiled tirelessly amid a maze of scaffolding and ladders, peeled paint and sawdust.
We hired Laury Smith, a young energetic guy with a passion for film, to help find films for the competition. I think we screened a total of 16 independent films that first year. Smith went on to become an integral part of the festival, organizing and growing the independent film competition for almost 20 years. Smith, along with Sharon and Paul Swenson, respected Utah film critics, writers and teachers, and Barbara Bannon formed the creative nucleus of the festival that year and for many years to come. Sterling VanWagenen went on to Hollywood and produced several successful films.
Redford, who’d been in on the early planning stages with the Arts Council, graciously agreed to shepherd the big event, moderating some film screenings and hosting a lavish dinner during the festival at the old Trolley Corners Theaters. Not much different from what he still does today, only there are a lot more films and parties.
The theme of that first festival centered around western movies. We created what we called the “John Ford Medallion” award, which was to be given to John Wayne. The ailing star was not able to travel so we arranged for his wife, Pilar, and son, Patrick, to travel here to accept the award. Wayne died not long after the festival ended.
We screened just about every western that John Ford ever made, as well as a few of his other films. Since Redford was in the middle of things, we of course screened the venerable western, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” Katherine Ross flew in to attend, as did a bevy of lesser stars. I was star-struck.
When the dust settled after the first festival, state officials were chagrined to learn that we had gone grossly over budget. After nearly foundering, the festival was revived after Redford and Sundance stepped in and essentially took over. The rest, as they say, is history.
Borrowing from a line in the classic film, “Jeremiah Johnson,” one could say of the Sundance Film Festival, “you’ve come far, pilgrim.”
Steve Phillips is a Park City-based writer, actor and balloon pilot/instructor.