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Sundance 2016: Day 2

Sundance Film Office 2016

Director of Programming James McNally is attending this year’s Sundance Film Festival from January 19th to 31st.

T-1 day until festival begins

Today was a training day, but between sessions I began helping Kevin complete all our filmmaker packages. We actually checked in three teams already, which will give us a jump on what will be an insane day tomorrow. Even though I had the same training last year, nothing really prepares you for the on-the-ground madness once festival begins. It’s good to remind myself (and the first-timers, too) that this will all make sense very soon, and not to worry about retaining everything today.

Tonight is the Staff and Volunteer party, and luckily it’s a short walk away. It’s nice to do this before we all get buried in work, but it’s also hard to completely relax with so much ahead of us. And I need to be back at HQ before 8am tomorrow, as do all of my Film Office colleagues. So it will be some prudent partying tonight. And hopefully a decent night’s rest.

I had my first “celebrity” sighting today, with actor Adam Scott sitting a few feet away while checking in for a film he’s a part of. Probably wise I didn’t introduce myself. Back around 2009, I made a huge social media gaffe, writing a not-entirely-positive review of a film he was in, while working for the film’s Canadian distributor. He was very unhappy with me at the time, though I doubt he’d remember my name.