For an emerging filmmaker, the Sundance Film Festival provides a starting point for the life span of a feature-length work. There's a far greater sense of immediacy, however, for the filmmakers involved in the shorts program, where a wide variety of material tends to begin circulating the festival world before fading into complete obscurity. That's why the short films that screened yesterday as part of the third annual Sundance Institute at BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) signified the most important aspect of the two-week event: With few exceptions, the films on display received the kind of exposure that helped validate this frequently neglected format. While some of the titles are available on iTunes, many that were shown to a packed house finally got the long-delayed reception they deserved.

Animated efforts almost always offer the best ingredients in any shorts program, since it's here that you'll find a combination of inspired side projects from gainfully employed studio animators and the works of struggling independent artists. The latest program couldn't beat the sheer brilliance of cult animator Don Hertzfeldt's short Everything Will Be Ok in last year's showcase, but two particularly memorable films left distinct impressions this time around.

In Bigger, Stronger, Faster, a big hit at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, documentarian Christopher Bell takes a hard look at steroid culture and the bad rap it gets from mainstream America, tackling the Western obsession with body image. Clocking in just under two hours, Bell's sprawling overview deals with the impact of 1980's pop culture icons like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, then dives into the gritty details of steroid usage in sports and the recent congressional hearings where baseball players were reprimanded on national television.

Bell doesn't view the issue in black-and-white terms: His own brothers, featured in the film, continually use steroids to enhance their bodybuilding careers. Contrasting the personal with the political, Bigger, Stronger, Faster diagnoses a distinctly American malady. Cinematical spoke with Bell last week in New York, where Bigger, Stronger, Faster has been screening at the Tribeca Film Festival. The movie opens May 30.

Cinematical: The movie tackles a major issue that many Americans have strong opinions about, but it also has a personal component because of your family's story. What's it been like facing the growing public awareness of the film?

Christopher Bell: It's so rewarding to hear, "Hey, you made a good movie. Thanks for telling the truth." We haven't really been criticized or attacked by anybody. There was one woman at Sundance who really upset about 'roid rage, saying that we glossed over it. I think we actually explained it pretty well.

One of the more buzzed-about flicks coming out of Sundance this year was Hamlet 2, starring the very funny Steve Coogan as a drama teacher who, with no other ideas, attempts to rally his Tucson, Arizona students around a politically incorrect musical sequel to Shakespeare's Hamlet -- featuring a song called (I kid you not) "Rock Me, Sexy Jesus." Hamlet 2 also marked one of first and biggest sales at the festival, with Focus Features snatching it up for a reported $10 million. Was it worth that amount?

Well, Moviefone just debuted an R-rated (aka Red Band) trailer for Hamlet 2 that, truth me told, looks kinda funny. Unfortunately, I did not have the chance to see it at Sundance, so all I have to go on is James' not-so-nice review, AICN's very nice review and word of mouth, which, so far, seems to be fairly positive (see more praise from Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone). Hey, any film that features the Devil making out with the President of the United States during a wacky theatrical production of a sequel-ized Shakespeare play is okay in my book. Hamlet 2 stars Coogan, Catherine Keener, David Arquette and Melonie Diaz. It was directed by Andrew Fleming and it's due out in theaters on August 22.

Whatcha think?

It's kind of hard to get a read on The Wackness based off this first trailer (via MTV), but it does seem to sport a badass soundtrack -- never a bad thing, if you ask. As we previously told you, The Wackness first premiered back at Sundance to rave reviews from the online press (with the exception of our own Scott Weinberg, who felt the film as a whole was a tad too long). Two more of my friends recently attended a screening of The Wackness and loved it, but said not to expect too much going in. I'll be checking out the film myself later this month at the Tribeca Film Festival, and the rest of you can see it when The Wackness hits theaters on July 3rd. Odd release date, I know, but this film definitely has a summer vibe to it -- hopefully it won't get lost in the shuffle. Additionally, you can see stills from the film here and we'll bring you more of The Wackness in just a couple weeks.

Whatcha think?

When American Teen first premiered back in January at the Sundance Film Festival, audience reaction was very very positive. But then came the big, elephant-in-the-corner question: How do you sell a real-life, big-screen documentary about teenagers to teenagers? Would they look at it and think, "Um, okay, so it's like a longer episode of MTV's True Life?"

Early buzz (including some from our own James Rocchi) was touting American Teen as the next Breakfast Club, with one clear difference: This one was real. The first poster for the film took those early festival reviews to heart and offered up a remake of The Breakfast Club poster, but with these new kids in the old poses. Now comes the first trailer, which definitely keeps the same Breakfast Club tone only we don't hear any "Don't you ... forget about me" in the background. Check it out above and let us know what you think.

Teenagers: Will you go see this in theaters?

The very last film I saw at Sundance this year, at a lively 10 p.m. screening and seated next to the dapper James Rocchi, was The Escapist. It was a perfect ending for the festival, and a great "guy movie" to boot (Rocchi and I are nothing if not burly, rugged men): Brian Cox leads a bunch of Limey blokes, including Joseph Fiennes, on a daring escape from a British prison. Familiar premise, but well executed with a few twists. Rocchi's rave review is here.

The flick was well received during its world premiere at Sundance, and yet somehow it didn't get picked up by any distributors before the fest ended. Now, finally, THINKFilm has come to the rescue. Variety reports that the distributor has paid about $1 million for the film and plans to release it in October, starting small and expanding over the course of several weeks.

For the third year in a row, Sundance is partnering up with the Brooklyn Academy of Music to present the "Sundance Institute at BAM" series, where flicks from this year's film festival will play for New York audiences May 29-June 8. It's just like going to Sundance, only without the snow and ice. Oh, and Brooklyn is actually big enough to handle large crowds. So maybe it's nothing like going to Sundance, except for the movies.

The movies -- 22 features and 36 shorts -- include several must-see titles, some of which have not played anywhere yet except for Sundance. Hot-buzz documentary American Teen (pictured) is on the schedule (complete with a prom-themed BAM party!), as is the soldier drama American Son. Anvil! The Story of Anvil was one of the most popular films at this year's fest, and the heavy metal band featured in it will perform live at BAM. There's the Chuck Palahniuk adaptation Choke, Stacy Peralta's L.A. gang doc Made in America, the South American cannibalism doc Stranded, and award-winning documentaries Trouble the Water and Man on Wire. If you've been paying attention to the indie/film-fest scene this year, you've probably heard of some of these, so it's pretty cool that the Sundance/BAM partnership will give wider audiences a chance to see them.

Tickets for the "Sundance Institute at BAM" series go on sale to BAM members on April 21, and the general public on April 26. Neither Sundance nor BAM has the complete info on its website yet, but here's the BAM page to keep your eye on.

Known in some circles as "that movie where Sir Ben Kingsley hooks up with Mary-Kate Olsen," The Wackness premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival where it was met with an unbelievable online reception. Just about everyone I spoke to fell in love with this quirky drug-related dramedy from director Jonathan Levine (All the Boys Love Mandy Lane). While I didn't get the chance to see it (our own Scott Weinberg did), these good vibes have me all antsy to check out The Wackness when it hits the Tribeca Film Festival later this month.

Here's a bit from the synopsis: "... Luke (Josh Peck) is a socially uncomfortable teenage pot dealer with no friends, issues with his parents, and a whopping lack of confidence with girls. He trades weed for sessions with his therapist, Dr. Squires (Sir Ben Kingsley), whose much-younger wife (Famke Janssen) is slipping away from him. Squires, a drug-addled shrink with a hairline retreating to the back of his neck and a state of mind slouching back to adolescence, is an unlikely role model-but the two of them forge a friendship based on a mutual need: neither one is getting laid."

Check out both exclusive photos (including a larger version of the image above) from the film in the gallery below. The Wackness arrives in theaters on July 3rd. (And is it me, or does Kingsley have a little Keitel going on in that pic?)

I bet you'll look at this for a second and go, "Um, did they remake The Breakfast Club, or .... what?" No, they did not remake the John Hughes cult classic, but they did remake the poster for the new documentary American Teen. One of the more popular films from the Sundance Film Festival, American Teen was quite often the subject of debate. People loved it, but couldn't understand how someone would market it. After all, how do you sell a documentary about teenagers to teenagers? Sure, it works on MTV ... but would it work on the big screen?

Obviously, Paramount Vantage is running with the quote most often heard amongst critics in Park City: "It's like The Breakfast Club, but a documentary." Even our own James Rocchi was in agreement when he opened up his Sundance review with, "Nanette Burstein's documentary American Teen opens not far from John Hughes country, both geographically and artistically: we're introduced, in quick order, to four students at the high school in Warsaw, Indiana, on the first day of class."

Is American Teen the next Breakfast Club? I guess we'll find out when it arrives in theaters on July 25. (Oh, and for fun we've included the original Breakfast Club poster after the jump.)

[via Film School Rejects]

It's hard to believe it was just last month that the film industry was trudging through hill, dale and snow to watch movies at the Sundance Film Festival, but in this fast-paced world, it does feel like a million years ago. One of the buzz titles at the fest was Christine Jeffs' Sunshine Cleaning, a tale of two sisters that start a business tidying up crime scenes. Our own Kim Voynar felt it wasn't the best film she saw at Sundance, "but it certainly wasn't the worst. It does have its flaws, but overall it's a cute film that fans of [Amy] Adams and [Emily] Blunt will enjoy."

Indeed, with the very talented and attractive Adams (Junebug, Enchanted) and Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada, The Wolf Man) in the lead roles and Alan Arkin providing support as their scheming father, how did this film fail to get picked up during Sundance? Anne Thompson of Variety notes that Sunshine Cleaning "entered the fest as one of several highly anticipated movies with stars attached that were expected to make a big sale. It didn't happen, though, partly because the filmmakers behind the film, Big Beach ... were hoping to make back their $7-million investment in a quick sale."

Ms. Thompson reports, however, that Overture Films has now acquired the film and plans to release it at the end of the year. The distributor may change the title, though, perhaps concerned that it might be considered too similar to 2006 indie smash hit Little Miss Sunshine, for which Arkin won an Academy Award.