Our newsletter featuring conversations with industry leaders and filmmakers.
This week, DOC NYC introduces a new feature, 5 Questions With..., where we ask industry leaders and filmmakers to share thoughts on their work of the moment. This week, DOC NYC’s Artistic Director Jaie Laplante speaks with Sundance Film Festival’s Director of Programming, Kim Yutani, whom Jaie met for the first time nearly 30 years ago while working on the middle film of Gregg Araki’s “Teenage Apocalypse” trilogy, The Doom Generation. (The newly digitally restored film opens April 7 in NYC at IFC Center.)
"There’s been a steady increase in biographical docs [at Sundance]... There were so many wonderful films about incredible people who’ve led extraordinary lives."
5 QUESTIONS WITH...
KIM YUTANI
1. At the “From the Collection” screening of The Doom Generation, it was announced there would be a surprise Q&A moderator at the end of the screening, with the hint that it would be “Gregg Araki’s former assistant” for the film - and the surprise moderator was you! What did it feel like to revisit the memories of that production and time from the vantage point of your current role at Sundance?
KIM YUTANI: That was a fun night! The Doom Generation was my first and only time that I worked in production, so even though it’s been almost 30 years (!), I still have such vivid memories of that time. Doom’s premiere in 1995 was the first time I had been to Sundance, and the energy and enthusiasm for indie film in Park City was electric. That trip had a huge influence on me wanting to be a part of festivals and pursue a career in programming. By the way, I think it is only fair that the DOC NYC Artistic Director come out as the script supervisor of The Doom Generation–this means you, Jaie Laplante!
Kim Yutani moderates 2023 Sundance Film Festival “From The Collection” The Doom Generation conversation with (l-r) producer Andrea Sperling, actors James Duvall and Johnathon Schaech, and filmmaker Gregg Araki.
2. What trends did you note in Sundance’s 2023 competition documentaries, different from those of the past few years?
KIM YUTANI: We strive to program a wide variety of films in our competition, ranging in story, voice, style, impact, etc. There’s been a steady increase in biographical docs over the years, and I’d say the genre was represented at an all-time high in this year’s submissions. There were so many wonderful films about incredible people who’ve led extraordinary lives. The bar has also been raised in the way these films are told. Lisa Cortes’s Little Richard film tells his story with freshness and verve, and is so layered in how it approaches his complex identity and influence on music. Amanda Kim’s Nam June Paik documentary and Michele Stephenson and Joe Brewster’s film about Nikki Giovanni are also as artful as their subjects.
3. Do you project that Sundance will generally stick to its current hybrid parameters for the next few years, or what direction will its hybrid format evolve in the next few years?
KIM YUTANI: Having a digital festival during the pandemic years kept us inspired and allowed us to connect new films and artists to audiences, press and industry globally. After successfully executing a hybrid festival this year, we’re in the planning stages and applying learnings for the upcoming edition–all is currently under discussion.
4. What changes, if any, have you brought to Sundance’s programming philosophy and process since you became Director of Programming for the 2019 edition?
KIM YUTANI: I think the programming philosophy has remained similar throughout the years, centering the discovery of artists and diverse voices that exemplify independent cinema and global storytelling. This is what attracted me to Sundance in the first place, and it is a value I uphold in my work here. It was also important to me to make sure voices of new programmers were heard in our process, along with the others. All of our feature film programmers weigh in on the entire program, but our core nonfiction team is Basil Tsiokos, Ania Trzebiatowska, Sudeep Sharma, Stephanie Owens, and Ash Hoyle. They bring so much experience, knowledge, and perspective, and understand how to work collectively. I think the result is a rich program.
5. What goal have you not yet achieved?
KIM YUTANI: We showed the Pete Nicks documentary, Stephen Curry: Underrated. It would have been great to shoot a few hoops with Steph!
Kim Yutani with basketball legend Stephen Curry at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival world premiere of Stephen Curry: Underrated. Photo credit: Cameron Asharian
BONUS: What’s your cat’s favorite way to cuddle?
KIM YUTANI: I have two cats, Mountbatten and Andrew. They’re boy cats with a lot of energy, and Mountbatten in particular likes making Zoom appearances and sharing my screen. They’re also very cuddly, so when I’m in the height of programming season they like to sit on the couch or stretch out on my legs and watch some films too.
COMING UP
DOC NYC Selects Screening
Tues April 11, 7pm
After its New York City premiere at DOC NYC 2019, Alan Berliner’s visual essay reflecting on photojournalism took a hiatus from public availability. Re-launching at DOC NYC Selects, Berliner’s transformation of a 40-year collection of photographs (clipped from The New York Times) into a meditation on what will be lost if print newspapers go away is at once profound and playful. The screening will be followed by an on-stage conversation with filmmaker Alan Berliner.
Join Odyssey Impact’s Evyenia Constantine and director Nailah Jefferson (Descended from the Promised Land: The Legacy of Black Wall Street) who will share their insights on how to elevate your film to inspire action and offer examples of films with effective campaigns.
Save the date! America's Largest Documentary Festival returns for its 14th edition this November.
Interested in submitting a film? Find out how here.
DOC NYC PRO Fall Conference
Nov 9-16
Save the date! Join us in NYC this November for our renowned 8-day DOC NYC PRO conference, featuring panels and workshops organized around key facets of documentary filmmaking.
