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The Revenant stood tall in the face of the freak winter storm Jonas - which blanketed the American Northeast in feet of snow and shut down hundreds of theaters - finishing the weekend in first place at the domestic box office with $16 million and reaching a domestic total of $119. 2 million.

Golden Globe-nominated director Ava DuVernay announced a new collaboration between ARRAY, an LA-based film collective dedicated to amplify works by people of color and women that she founded in 2010, and Indiegogo, the largest international crowdfunding organization that so far has helped over 40,000 films getting made. "On behalf of ARRAY's Maverick and Rebel members and our Founding Leaders, I'm thrilled to hold hands with our friends at Indiegogo on this intimate gathering of film artists and advocates focused on community and change," explained DuVernay.

As snow falls on Park City, Sundance is knee deep in the first weekend and as usual the only constant is variety – in subject matter, origin and quality, all of which vary widely. Originality and creativity don’t always equate with a successful film and so far the festival has alternated hits and misses, sometimes succumbing to that indie film mainstay: quirkiness.

Part of the “widening palette” promised on opening day by Keri Putnam, Executive Director of the Sundance Institute, is “episodic fiction”. That’s the genre formerly known as TV series to you and me and one that, in this “golden age” of premium cable and subscription streaming, is arguably the most vital area of storytelling.

The Sundance film festival opened under clear Park City skies and a relatively balmy 45 degrees with the traditional Day One press conference at the Egyptian theater where Salt Lake Tribune movie critic Sean Means welcomed festival director John Cooper, Keri Putnam who heads the Sundance Institute and Sundance founder Robert Redford. The actor, producer and all-around Sundance legend said: “What I’m looking forward is to most is the audience response.

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The 32nd Sundance Film Festival kicked off today in Park City, Utah, with the traditional press conference headlined by festival creator/mentor/ president of the Sundance Institute Robert Redford. With Sundance Institute Executive Director Keri Putnam and Sundance Festival director John Cooper also in attendance, the annual press conference has become a kind of state of the independent cinema assessment.

The biographical drama Trumbo about blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo received two Golden Globes nominations in 2015: Bryan Cranston for his portrayal of Trumbo, the highest-paid screenwriter of his day, and Helen Mirren for her role as Trumbo's nemesis, Hollywood actress turned gossip columnist Hedda Hopper. The red scare that stalked America and most visibly Hollywood after the end of the Second World War was one of the most shameful chapters in the history of the United States.

While we were eagerly waiting for the Golden Globes ceremony, a rehearsal of some sort for the event took place 100 miles east of Los Angeles in the California desert at the Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF). Many of the Golden Globes nominees and future wiiners marched down the red the carpet in Palm Springs in their shimmering gowns, sharp tuxedos and dazzling diamonds to the Festival Awards Gala, which was held at the city’s convention center on Saturday, January 3rd, evening.

Who would think that the Force could be beaten by a couple of guys? But yes, Ice Cube and Kevin Hart did just that this weekend. The second installment of Universal’s Ride Along franchise took the number 1 spot at the domestic box office with a total of $39.