With this year's Sundance Film Festival launching in just under a week, the renowned international festival has finally announced their feature film jury for all primary feature competition categories. 22 acclaimed voices across the industry will announce this year's awards at a virtual ceremony taking place on February 2nd. The awards night will be live streamed at 8 PM EST, alongside a special extended-run of all the award winners the day following the ceremony.
In the US Dramatic category, Sundance-winner and alumni Julie Dash, Emmy winner and Academy Award-Nominee Cynthia Erivo, and New York Times Style Magazine editor-in-chief Hanya Yanagihara will lead the category with their official verdict on awards night. Curatorial director of the Criterion Collection Ashley Clark, Academy Award-nominee Joshua Oppenheimer, and Independent Spirit Nominee Lana Wilson will provide guidance in the US Documentary competition category.
European FIlm Academy winner and Istanbul-based producer Zeynep Atakan, Semaine de la Critique prize winner Isaac Julien, and Chilean actress Daniela Vega — who starred in the Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman — will all decide on the prize winners in the World Dramatic competition category. Sundance Film Festival alumni Kim Longinotto, Documentary Africa executive director Mohamed Saïd Ouma, and acclaimed producer Jean Tsien will lead the World Documentary competition category. The Mulleavy Sisters, who are best known for the criminally underrated A24-joint Woodshock, will also be joining forces with Sundance with their role as jurors on the NEXT competition category.
Finally, the jury members of the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, which was already awarded this year to Son of Monarchs, include Algorithmic Justice League founder Joy Buolamwini, 2018 Alred P Sloan winner Aneesh Chaganty, professor Dr. Mandë Holford of Hunter College, world-renowned producer and director Lydia Dean Pilcher, and Tribeca Institute fellow Lena Vurma. But don't forget! All attendees of the Sundance Film Festival have a key role in deciding the 2021 Audience Awards! The audience-based prizes will be announced at the 2021 ceremony, and the awards will be eligible for the U.S Dramatic & Documentary Competitions, World Dramatic & Documentary Competitions, and Next categories. So for all of our United States-based readers, buy your tickets for this year's Sundance Film Festival as soon as you can, and don't forget to vote in order to be part of festival history!
For more details on ticketing, films, and other general detail, please visit festival.sundance.org