Sundance announces juries

Akhavan, Chazelle and Campion will head to Utah

by Amber Wilkinson

Sundance has announced its juries
Sundance has announced its juries Photo: Sundance Institute

The Sundance Film Festival has announced big hitters, including Oscar-winners Jane Campion and Damian Chazelle and last year's director of US Grand Jury Prize Desiree Akhavan among its jury members for this year's festival.

Creed actress Tessa Thompson and Phyllis Nagy, who adapted Carol for the big screen, will join Sundance veteran Chazelle, The Miseducation Of Cameron Post director Akhavan and Film Society of Lincoln Center director of programming Dennis Lim on the US Dramatic Competition jury.

Piano director Campion will be joined on the World Dramatic Cinema Jury by French producer Charles Gillibert (Mustang, Personal Shopper) and Embrace Of The Serpent director Ciro Guerra.

The US Documentary jury will comprise Leviathan co-driector Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Strong Island director Yance Ford, Jesus Camp co-director Rachel Grady, Jeff Orlowski (Chasing Ice) and Vox film critic Alissa Wilkinson.

Director Maite Alberdi (The Lifeguard), ICA film curator Nico Marzano and Leviathan co-director Véréna Paravel make up the World Documentary Competition jury.

Playwright Young Jean Lee, Carter Smith (Jamie Marks Is Dead) and actress Sheila Vand (We The Animals) all feature on the The Short Film Jury.

The Alfred P Sloan award - which is given to a feature that has a strong science or technology theme or character - will be decided by Dr Mande Holford, an associate professor in chemistry at Hunter College, New York, Dr Katie Mack, a theoretical astrophysicist, producer Sev Ohanian (Searching), producer Lydia Dean Pilcher (Vanity Fair) and The Strain star Corey Stoll.

The Next Innovators award will be decided by filmmaker and artist Laurie Anderson.

The festival also announced that Scottish filmmaker and actress Marianna Palka - who now lives in the US and can currently be seen in Neflix's Glow - will host the awards ceremony.

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