--- title: Sundance 2016: The Movies You'll Be Hearing About All Year description: These are the biggest movies out of Sundance 2016, from Nate Parker's "The Birth of a Nation" to Casey Affleck's "Manchester By the Sea." canonical: https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-02-01T20:45:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:00:30.720Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: These Are the Sundance Movies That Will Be Big in 2016 og:description: These titles generated buzz among festival-goers and big offers from distributors og:url: https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: These Are the Sundance Movies That Will Be Big in 2016 twitter:description: These titles generated buzz among festival-goers and big offers from distributors twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # These Are the Sundance Movies That Will Be Big in 2016 > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account.  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Feb 1, 2016 8:45 PM UTC  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Feb 1, 2016 8:45 PM UTC **Correction appended, Feb 2\.** The [Sundance International Film Festival](http://time.com/4193759/netflix-amazon-streaming-services-sundance-film-festival/) in Park City, Utah, has seen the premieres of dozens of critically acclaimed films, from Oscar nominees ([_Brooklyn_](http://time.com/4097071/brooklyn-irish-immigrants-history/), [_Boyhood_](http://time.com/2970210/boyhood-movie-review/)) to cult comedies (_Welcome to the Dollhouse_, _Napoleon Dynamite_) to indie hits (_Little Miss Sunshine_, _The Blair Witch Project_). If 2016 was any different from years past, it was not in the number of potential future hits the festival churned but in the names of the distributors that snatched them up: More than ever, [Netflix and Amazon ](http://time.com/4193759/netflix-amazon-streaming-services-sundance-film-festival/)were first to the bidding table with the biggest offers. The shift in acquisitions reflects the changes in how people consume movies—with indies often finding bigger audiences on couches than in theaters. Still, no matter the vehicle by which they’re transmitted to viewers, these titles generated buzz among festival-goers and big offers from distributors. Here are the films to watch for this year: ### _The Birth of a Nation_  Nate Parker of 'The Birth of a Nation' at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 25, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images By far the buzziest premiere at Sundance this year was this drama about Nat Turner’s slave rebellion in 1831\. Written, directed and produced by [Nate Parker](http://time.com/4195539/birth-of-a-nation-nate-parker/), who also stars as Turner, the film took home the festival’s Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the U.S. dramatic competition, prompting early discussions of the 2017 Oscar race. It also [broke the record](http://time.com/4194287/fox-the-birth-of-a-nation-nat-turner-record-breaking-price/) for the highest amount ever spent to acquire a film from the festival, with Fox Searchlight doling out $17.5 million for distribution rights. ### _Manchester By the Sea_  Actor Lucas Hedges, writer/director Kenneth Lonergan and actor Casey Affleck from "Manchester by the Sea" at the Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 24, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images Many deemed writer-director Kenneth Lonergan’s Boston-based drama _the_ must-see movie of the festival. The film stars Casey Affleck as a handyman summoned to his hometown by the news of his brother’s death who learns, upon his return, that he must assume guardianship of his teenage nephew (played in breakthrough fashion by Lucas Hedges). Acquired by Amazon, the film will debut theatrically before it’s available for streaming. ### _Goat_  Nick Jonas of 'Goat' poses at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait in Park City, Utah on Jan. 22, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images Former teen idol Nick Jonas makes a play for Serious Actor in this fraternity hazing drama adapted from Brad Land’s 2005 memoir. Jonas plays an Ohio teenager who survives a brutal post-frat party assault only to face further trauma as a pledge the following fall. With all of the unsavory headlines the Greek system has earned in recent years, the film is less exposé than it is exploration of the drivers and consequences of young male aggression and peer pressure at American universities. _Goat_ was jointly acquired by Paramount Home Video and MTV. ### _Tallulah_  Ellen Page of 'Tallulah' poses at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 24, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images Netflix acquired the streaming distribution rights to this Ellen Page drama, which finds the _Juno_ star once again playing a reluctant mother-figure—in this case, to a baby neglected by an irresponsible parent. Playing opposite Allison Janney (as she did in _Juno_), Page is a vagabond whose aversion to attachment of any kind makes caring for an infant a tricky proposition. The film is the directorial debut of _Orange Is the New Black_ writer Sian Heder. ### _Equity_  Alysia Reiner of 'Equity' poses at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 25, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images This financial thriller is positioning itself as the first female-driven Wall Street flick, and its themes of workplace inequity are indeed timely. _Breaking Bad_’s Anna Gunn stars as a high-achieving investment banker who, along with her deputy, is denied a well-deserved promotion. Tension builds as she forges ahead into the fray, becoming further entangled in the sketchy finance-world scene as a prosecutor played by _Orange Is the New Black_’s Alysia Reiner pokes around for dirt. Sony Classics snatched up the movie prior to the festival’s start. ### _Morris From America_  Craig Robinson and Markees Christmas of 'Morris From America' pose at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 22, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images In a coming-of-age tale that won the Special Jury Award for Individual Performance for Craig Robinson and a screenwriting award for scribe Chad Hartigan, breakout star Markees Christmas plays a teenager, Morris, who has just moved with his widowed father (Robinson) to Germany. An adjustment that would be difficult for any teen is compounded by Morris’ finding himself the only black teen among a sea of white peers, and he copes by immersing himself in the world of hip-hop (writing rap lyrics actually penned by Hartigan as a teen). Distributor A24 nabbed the rights to the film. **Correction:** The original version of this story misstated the actor who won the Special Jury Award for Individual Performance. It was Craig Robinson. ### _The Fundamentals of Caring_  Director Rob Burnett of 'The Fundamentals of Caring' poses at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 22, 2016. Maarten de Boer--Getty Images Another win for Netflix, this indie comedy stars Paul Rudd as an unemployed father, grieving the loss of his son, who becomes caregiver to a teen with muscular dystrophy. Rudd’s Ben Benjamin forces newcomer Craig Roberts’ Trevor out of his self-imposed seclusion by dragging him on a road trip to see the country’s strangest roadside attractions. Along the way, they pick up a runaway (Selena Gomez) and a pregnant woman (Megan Ferguson). It’s just the kind of charming human story that might have struggled in theaters but could draw a solid audience on the streaming service. ### _The Hollars_  John Krasinski of 'The Hollars' poses at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 24, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images John Krasinski’s sophomore directorial feature, which prompted a late-stage acquisition by Sony Classics, is a quirky family dramedy anchored by Krasinski as the son of a small-town matriarch (Margo Martindale) who embarks on a hometown visit rife with dysfunction. Richard Jenkins plays dad while Anna Kendrick lends her quirky charm to the role of pregnant girlfriend. It’s a premise we’ve seen before, but its solid cast, along with the perennial appeal of watching a family that may indeed be crazier than your own, should attract an audience. ### _Sing Street_  Lucy Boynton, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Jack Reynor, Mark McKenna and John Carney of 'Sing Street' pose at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 24, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images From John Carney, the Irish writer-director of _Once_ and _Begin Again_, comes another charming musical dramedy, this one set in his home country during the mid-1980s. Newcomer Ferdia Walsh-Peelo stars as a teenager attempting to win the affection of a girl (Lucy Boynton) by forming a band with a rag-tag team of misfits. Their original songs draw inspiration from Duran Duran, Depeche Mode and Joy Division. The film is as much a portrait of brotherly love as it is one of young love, and its testament to the power of standing out, rather than blending into the adolescent mass, feels as good as the songs themselves. ### _Swiss Army Man_  Daniel Radcliffe and Paul Dano of 'Swiss Army Man' pose at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 22, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images Easily the most divisive film at this year’s festival, _Swiss Army Man_ had audiences running for the doors during a scene in which a corpse, played by Daniel Radcliffe, unleashed a torrent of flatulence. But testing the boundaries of that discomfort was sort of the point, [says Radcliffe](http://variety.com/video/daniel-radcliffe-fart-swiss-army-man-sundance/)—who stars alongside Paul Dano and Mary Elizabeth Winstead—for he believes there is a real need to examine our unease with certain aspects of the human existence. Directors Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan, veterans of the music video scene, won the Directing award in the U.S. Dramatic Competition. ### _The Intervention_  Clea DuVall and Natasha Lyonne from 'The Intervention' pose at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 26, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images The feature directorial debut of actress and writer Clea DuVall finds a group of friends gathered at a remote cabin as they attempt to convince one of the married couples among them to divorce. Starring, among others, Natasha Lyonne, Alia Shawkat, Cobie Smulders and Melanie Lynskey—who won a Special Jury Award for Individual Performance—it’s an update to the kind of thirty-something dramedy pioneered by _The Big Chill_. Paramount Home Media will partner with a theatrical distributor to release the film. ### _Weiner_  Elyse Steinberg and Josh Kriegman from the film 'Weiner' pose at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Getty Images Portrait Studio in Park City, Utah on Jan. 25, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images This behind-the-scenes look at Anthony Weiner’s 2013 campaign for mayor of New York City won the Grand Jury Prize in the U.S. Documentary Competition. The doc, co-directed by a former aide, details how the progressive politician went from serious contender to laughingstock [Carlos Danger](http://poy.time.com/2013/12/09/the-11-most-influential-fictional-characters-of-2013/slide/carlos-danger/) thanks to a sexting scandal, examining both media spin and the candidate’s own attempts to reclaim the narrative. _Weiner_ will be released in theaters before playing on Showtime. ### _Wiener-Dog_  Actors Zosia Mamet, Greta Gerwig, Julie Delpy, Kieran Culkin, Danny DeVito and writer/director Todd Solondz from the film "Wiener-Dog" pose at the Getty Images Portrait Studio during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah on Jan. 22, 2016. Maarten de Boer—Getty Images The festival’s other wiener was not a disgraced politician but a canine, the titular Dachshund in Todd Solondz’s first Sundance film since his 1995 black comedy _Welcome to the Dollhouse_ won the festival’s Grand Jury Prize. The movie, nabbed by Amazon, plays like a series of shorts, connected by the dog’s passage from one miserable set of humans to the next. Studded with stars like Greta Gerwig, Ellen Burstyn and Danny DeVito, it will win fans among those who appreciate unfettered oddness and honest, if not always sunny, human observation. ### _Gleason_  NFL player D'Qwell Jackson, former NFL player Lonie Paxton, film subject Steve Gleason, producer Scott Fujita, Chief Content Officer for IMG Mark Shapiro, former NFL player Eric Johnson, and NFL quarterback Drew Brees attend the "Gleason" premiere during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah on Jan. 23, 2016. Phillip Faraone—Getty Images This documentary portrait of former NFL safety Steve Gleason offers an intimate look at what it’s like to live with ALS. Gleason, who was diagnosed at 34, when his wife was pregnant with their first child, captured much of the footage himself over the span of four years, with director Clay Tweel weaving it all together. The film is as heavy on the laughs as it is on the tears, as its subject faces both fatherhood and his deteriorating physical condition with a mix of humor and vulnerability. Amazon will partner with Open Road to release the documentary both theatrically and on its streaming service. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/"},"headline":"These Are the Sundance Movies That Will Be Big in 2016","datePublished":"2016-02-01T20:45:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:00:30.720Z","description":"The festival, which ran from Jan. 21 to Jan. 31, found hits in a Nat Turner biopic, a Casey Affleck drama and the movie that could make an actor of Nick Jonas","url":"https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/","keywords":["movies","Sundance"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliza Berman","jobTitle":"Berman is a senior editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4200767/sundance-2016-biggest-movies/","name":"These Are the Sundance Movies That Will Be Big in 2016"}}]}] ```