CUSP,
Feature documentary selected at
SUNDANCE 2021,
realized by
Isabel Bethencourt & Parker Hill
FIRST VICTORY FOR THE GIRLS
CUSP is a feature documentary selected at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, presenting one year of the adolescence of three teenage girls who live or survive in the casual cruelty of a toxic
masculinity in a small town in Texas.
CUSP selected at Sundance
Do we still have to present the Sundance Film Festival? Well, come on, for those of you who have just hatched from your egg (from free range hens!), let's start with a word from Robert Redford,
its founder and president:
"Storytellers broaden our minds: they engage us, challenge us, inspire us and ultimately connect us."
As an advocate and curator of independent storytelling for the stage and screen, the Sundance Institute provides and preserves the space for artists in film, theater, film composition and digital
media to create and flourish.
A Brief History of Sundance
Sundance website: "Robert Redford founded the Institute in 1981 to foster independence, risk-taking, and new voices in American film. That year, ten emerging filmmakers were invited to Sundance
Resort in the mountains of Utah, where they worked with leading writers, directors, and actors to develop their original independent projects.
Today, our staff of 180 employees works from offices in Park City, Los Angeles, and New York City to provide 25 residential labs, grants exceeding $3 million, and ongoing mentorships that support
more than 900 artists each year. Each January, our Sundance Film Festival introduces a global audience to groundbreaking work and emerging talent in independent film. In addition to the Festival,
Sundance Institute hosts many public programs in the US and around the world to connect artists with audiences to present original voices, inspire new ideas, and create community around
independent storytelling."
Sundance's mission:
"Sundance Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the discovery and development of independent artists and audiences. Through its programs, the Institute seeks to discover, support,
and inspire independent film, media, and theatre artists from the United States and around the world, and to introduce audiences to their new work."
Sundance's vision:
"We believe that a story driven by an individual, authentic voice can awaken new ideas that have the power to delight and entertain, push creative boundaries, spark new levels of empathy and
understanding, and even lead to social change. We support independent storytellers and advance the impact of their work in the world."
Leading the call for diversity in the media, the Institute is launching three initiatives to open new avenues for production, including Women at Sundance, which supports women storytellers.
Sundance, a unique festival open to independent humans of all colors and genders, from the United States to China, from South America to North Africa and Central Europe.
Welcome to Sundance 2021!
The 2021 Sundance Film Festival begins January 28, and they are doing things a little differently this time. Connecting artists and audiences wherever they are - online and in person - the new
version of their flagship event will feature a series of culturally-changing independent feature films, think tanks, New Frontier exhibitions that push the boundaries, and much more.
CUSP selected at Sundance Festival 2021
Among tens of thousands of films submitted to the festival's selection, CUSP was chosen! This is already a beautiful and incredible victory in itself and a great joy for all the girls and
teenagers around the world who see their voices heard, their stories and their suffering recognized.
Let's bet that CUSP will have a great run at the Sundance Festival 2021! This documentary film is so necessary to the future of humanity! A toxic, masculine culture must be absolutely and quickly
abolished to make way for the necessary equality and respect between women and men. For dignity to be granted to all women, for all women to allow themselves to consider themselves as human
beings with the right to exist for themselves and to be heard.
So that all the girls and teenage girls and women who are currently living situations similar to those experienced by Aaloni, Autumn and Brittney, filmed in Cusp by Parker Hill and Isabel Bethencourt, can say to themselves: no one has the right to mistreat me, I have the right to be protected. So that all authorities: parental,
state, become aware and hear and recognize their children.
I would like to thank the women of The 51 Fund for giving me the opportunity
to participate in this beautiful project.
Gabrielle Dubois
Gabrielle Dubois, storyteller, Founding General Partner of THE 51 FUND ― fund for films written and realized by women.
#Sundance #the51fund
#Gabrielle #Dubois