Indie Roundup: 'Burma VJ' Pickup and Trailer, Sundance Speculations

Deals. As Eugene Novikov informed us, hard-hitting dolphin doc The Cove was picked up by Roadside Attractions. Via our friends at indieWIRE, we also learned:

• "Don't run! If we must die, we will die." Street protest doc Burma VJ will be released by Oscilloscope in theaters this spring. If you don't think a monk with a megaphone can make for riveting footage, watch the trailer, embedded below.
• Biopic Pedro (about the late gay activist who memorably appeared on MTV's The Real World) will skip a theatrical release and instead debut on MTV before hitting DVD.
• First Run Features acquired Andrew Jacob's Holocaust survivor doc Four Seasons Lodge for theatrical release.
• Lucrecia Martel's critically-acclaimed thriller Headless Woman will hit theaters in August through Strand Releasing.
• Heavy metal doc Anvil! The True Story of Metal, will get a very decent-sized release next month by VH1, of all companies, opening in at least 18 cities on April 10, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Box Office. The three-director team-up Tokyo! took the top spot last weekend, raking in $23,460 at a single theater in Manhattan, per Box Office Mojo. The film, featuring segments directed by Michel Gondry, Leos Carax, and Bong Joon-ho, opened to generally good notices. Eric D. Snider said: "Think Paris Je T'aime, only a lot weirder (and about Tokyo, not Paris, duh)."

Festivals. Michael Lerman posted the news that John Cooper has been named Director of the Sundance Film Festival. Cooper told indieWIRE that he wanted to "establish a clearer distinction between the event's festival director vs. its programming director." He also emphasized that Sundance is a "discovery festival, we're not launching Academy Award campaigns." That sounds good as a means of preserving Sundance's artistic integrity and stated mission, but he's not really saying Sundance will eliminate star-studded screenings, is he?

Is this a forward step for Sundance or simply the safe choice? It's definitely a vote of confidence for a man with a great reputation. By all accounts I've seen, Cooper is well-liked and respected both within the organization and by outsiders. He's been with Sundance for 20 years, serving as Director of Programming for the festival and Director, Creative Development for the Sundance Institute since September 2002.

Festivals in general face a difficult economy, and Sundance in particular will be intensely scrutinized to see how it adapts to changes in the independent film community. Presumably, Cooper's next big step will be selecting a new Director of Programming. Will he promote one of the festival's Senior Programmers? Or bring in fresh blood? Are major changes really needed at Sundance?

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