Episode Details

Consider this your midnight toast to new beginnings—we're popping the cork on our Sundance episode just in time for the calendar reset. As 2024 turns to 2025, we're grateful for the documentary community that keeps showing up, keeps creating, and keeps walking these festival streets in search of collaborators, inspiration, and maybe a free hot cocoa. So grab a glass of whatever you're having, bundle up (it's 31 degrees in spirit), and ring in the New Year with Ben and Keith's man-on-the-street adventure through Park City…

We're walkin' and talkin' through the heart of Sundance, crashing the festival without a film and somehow finding exactly what we came for. From chance encounters with Iranian filmmakers debuting their first feature to freestyle raps from parking lot attendants, this episode captures the serendipity of showing up. We debate whether you need to be a "hopeless optimist" or a "pragmatic realist" to survive indie filmmaking (spoiler: legendary producer Sue Kim has strong opinions). Along the way we spot tuxedo pigeons, dodge UPS trucks, and nearly intercept Conan O'Brien. Plus: the house analogy for selling your film that actually makes sense.

Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome to Doc Walks: Sundance Day
00:49 First Impressions: 31 Degrees and Feeling Like Imposters
02:42 Why Sundance Matters (Even Without a Film)
04:13 The House Analogy: Films, Sales Agents, and Finding Your Plot of Land
07:41 Man on the Street: Volunteers, Skiers, and the Latino Flu Panel
11:17 Meeting Frank Mosley: In-Person Connection in a Virtual World
15:28 Iranian Filmmakers Debut: Cutting Through Rocks
17:48 The Adobe House and Free Hot Cocoa
19:56 Chosen Glory: Parking Lot Freestyle and Good Vibes
22:08 Speed and First: Hope for the Future Generation
25:32 Producer Sue Kim: The Case Against Hopeless Optimism
29:13 Hopeful vs. Hopeless: Finding Your Festival Philosophy
34:24 Wrapping Up Day One and Looking Ahead

Discussion Links:
CUTTING THROUGH ROCKS (2025) | OVEX (2025) | WINNEBAGO MAN (2009) | TOWER (2016)