Robert Redford earned recognition as both a leading man, most memorably as the Sundance Kid in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), and as an Academy Award-winning director for Ordinary People (1980). Yet his most lasting contribution to cinema may be neither his acting nor his directing.Redford's greatest cinematic achievement may be democratizing independent film through two groundbreaking institutions: the Sundance Institute, which he co-founded in 1981 to nurture emerging filmmakers, and the Sundance Film Festival, launched in 1985 to showcase their work to the world.Let’s learn about these indie mainstays.The Establishment of the Sundance Institute and the Sundance Film FestivalIn 1961, on a cross-country motorcycle honeymoon with his wife, Redford stopped in Utah, where he fell in love with the place. Following the back-to-back commercial successes of films like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Downhill Racer (1969), Redford had become a household name. But back then, studio control was slowly creeping back into the industry. Displeased, Redford left Los Angeles to move to Utah in 1980. “There was no room for independent film anymore—everything was becoming more centralized. I could see there was going to be a gap,” Redford said during the 2015 Sundance Film Festival (via Screen Daily).After moving to Utah, Redford put his land to practical use in addition to building a ranch. Although the Utah/United States Film Festival, organized by the Utah Film Commission, already existed, the whole affair was a bit underwhelming. In 1981, Redford brought in collaborators to nurture fresh filmmaking...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Today