Park City, Utah. There’s a new new thing here at Sundance 2000. Sure, major studios still clamber to pick up the few “buzz” features that don’t already have distribution deals. But thanks to a bunch of dot-coms that have set up shop on Sundance’s Main Street thoroughfare, this year there’s also a burgeoning new market for previously neglected short films.
Atomfilms.com, one of the big forces in this shorts wave, is running its operation out of well-staffed Winnebago parked on the strip. Interviews and deals transpire on the RV’s faux leopard-skin covered bed. “Last year, we were the only Internet company at Sundance to acquire a whole bunch of shorts,” says Mika Salmi, Atom’s Finnish founder and CEO. “This year, there are five other companies.”
More Must-Reads from TIME
- How Joe Biden Leads
- TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2024
- Javier Milei’s Radical Plan to Transform Argentina
- How Private Donors Shape Birth-Control Choices
- What Sealed Trump’s Fate : Column
- Are Walking Pads Worth It?
- 15 LGBTQ+ Books to Read for Pride
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Contact us at letters@time.com