Short films directed by Spike Jonze and Rory Kennedy, and starring the likes of Will Farrell and Crispin Glover, will debut at this year's Sundance Film Festival.
The Sundance Institute unveiled the list of 70 short films selected to screen at this year's film festival on Monday. This year's list was culled from 6,092 submissions, representing an 8 percent increase from last year.
In a break from tradition, the festival will kick off with screenings of several films in multiple categories instead of having only one opening-night film. The shorts "I'm Here" directed by Jonze; "The Fence" directed by Kennedy; "Logorama" directed by François Alaux, Hervé de Crécy and Ludovic Houplain; and "Seeds of the Fall" directed by Patrik Eklund will premiere on the first night of the 10-day festival.
Short film categories at the festical include U.S. dramatic short, U.S. documentary short, international dramatic short and animated short.
"Sundance has a long legacy of supporting short filmmaking. Short films are at the core of what independent filmmaking is about -- these films are made out of pure passion without commerce in mind. This year, we're especially excited to screen a short film program as part of the opening of the festival," Trevor Groth, the festival's director of programming, said in a statement.
"We are also continuing the tradition of holding the short film awards midweek during the festival. It's proven to be a great way to bring attention to these artists and their films," he added.
During the festival, a short film jury will select short films for awards. This year's jurors are Sterlin Harjo ("Barking Water," "Four Sheets to the Wind," "Goodnight Irene"), Christine Vachon ("I Shot Andy Warhol," "Boys Don't Cry," "Hedwig and the Angry Inch"), and Brent Hoff (Wholphin DVD).
Here's the complete list of short films:
U.S. DRAMATIC SHORTS
This year's 35 U.S. short films were selected from a record 3,504 submissions.
Charlie and the Rabbit (Directors: Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck and Robert Machoian) -- Charlie, a 4-year-old who loves Bugs Bunny, decides to hunt a rabbit of his own.
Family Jewels (Director and screenwriter: Martin Stitt) -- Carol, a mother and a U.S. soldier ready for deployment, finds that the most painful part of leaving is spending the last night with her family.
Fiddlestixx (Directors and screenwriters: David Zellner and Nathan Zellner) -- Fiddlestixx is about a monkey. A very special monkey.
Gone to the Dogs (Director and screenwriter: Liz Tuccillo) -- A dinner party turns ugly when one of the guests brings her dog along.
Herbert White (Director and screenwriter: James Franco) -- Based on the poem by the same name, a man struggles with his inner demons while trying to live a normal family life.
I'm Here (Director and screenwriter: Spike Jonze)
Laredo, Texas (Director and screenwriter: Topaz Adizes) -- Sam trains Juan for his first day at his new job, fixing pay phones in the border town of Laredo, Texas. However, tensions boil as Sam suspects that Juan is an undocumented worker.
Little Accidents (Director and screenwriter: Sara Colangelo) -- A desperate young factory worker recruits a mentally disabled ex-boyfriend to steal a pregnancy test for her.
