January 4, 2010 - The 2010 Sundance Film Festival kicks off January 21, bringing together the best collection of independent films from around the world. The festival will take place in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah and runs until January 31. This year, a number of Sundance selections are “Made in NY” films:

The Extra Man
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini; Written by: Robert Pulcini, Jonathan Ames, Shari Springer Berman
Producers:  Anthony Bregman, Stephanie Davis
Starring: Kevin Kline, Paul Dano, John C. Reilly, Katie Holmes
Dreaming of becoming a writer, Louis Ives (Paul Dano) moves to New York City and rooms with eccentric “extra man” – a social escort – Henry Harrison (Kevin Kline) as the two form an unexpected bond.

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Written and directed by: Josh Radnor
Executive Producers: Glenn Williamson, Bingo Gubelmann, Peter Sterling
Producers:  Jesse Hara, Austin Stark, Benji Kohn, Chris Papavasiliou
Starring: Malin Akerman, Josh Radnor, Kate Mara, Zoe Kazan, Pablo Schreiber, Tony Hale
After helping a young boy separated from his family on the subway, struggling writer Sam finds friendship and complications.

Holy Rollers
Directed by: Kevin Asch; Written by: Antonion Macia
Executive Producers: Dave Berlin, Kevin Asch, Isaac Gindi, Marat Rosenberg
Producers: Danny A. Abeckaser, Tory Tunnell, Per Melita, Jen Gatien
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Bartha, Q-Tip, Ari Graynor
Based on true events, the film follows the lives of young Hasidic Jews smuggling Ecstasy between Amsterdam and New York in the late 1990s.

Howl
Written and directed by: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Executive Producers: Jawal Nga, Gus Van Sant
Producers: Elizabeth Redleaf, Christine Kunewa Walker, Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Starring: James Franco, David Strathairn, John Hamm, Mary-Louise Parker, Jeff Daniels
Howl uses three interwoven threads to beautifully capture the birth of the artistic counterculture of 1957 San Francisco.

The Imperialists Are Still Alive!
Written and directed by: Zeina Durra
Executive Producers: Rami Makhzoumi, Matthew Chausse
Producer: Vanessa Hope
Starring: Elodie Bouchez, Jose Maria de Tavira, Karim Saleh
The film takes a thoughtful look at the way the war on terror creeps its way into the lives of two post-9/11 New Yorkers.

Jack Goes Boating
Directed by: Philip Seymour Hoffman; Written by: Bob Glaudini
Executive Producer: Philip Seymour Hoffman
Producers: Peter Saraf, Marc Turtletaub, Beth O’Neil, Emily Ziff
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Ryan, John Ortiz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Tom McCarthy
Jack Goes Boating is the story of love, friendship, and betrayal. The story follows four New Yorkers as their lives change for better and worse.

Please Give
Written and directed by: Nicole Holofcener
Executive Producers: Caroline Jaczko, Stefanie Azpiazu
Producer: Anthony Bregman
Starring: Catherine Keener, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Rebecca Hall, Sarah Steele, Ann Guilbert
As Kate and her husband attempt to expand their New York apartment into the adjacent unit of an elderly woman, a poignant tale of love, death, and liberal guilt unfolds as the couple develop a bond with the elderly woman and her family.

Twelve
Directed by: Joel Schumacher; Written by: Jordan Melamed
Producers: Ted Field, Charlie Corwin, Bob Salerno, Jordan Melamed, Christophe Riandee, Sidonie Dumas
Starring: Chace Crawford, Emma Roberts, Rory Culkin, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Kiefer Sutherland, Ellen Barkin
Based on the novel by Nick McDonell, Twelve delves into the world of a high school drop-out from the Upper East Side, who sells marijuana to his spoiled friends until the reality of his actions catches up with him.  

Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, Sundance Institute is a not-for-profit organization that fosters the development of original storytelling in film and theatre. The Institute is internationally recognized for its artistic development programs for directors, screenwriters, producers, film composers, playwrights and theatre artists. To learn more about the festival, visit http://festival.sundance.org/2010/.