Craig Zobel, Lance Weiler and Cherien Dabis among Dozen Selected for Sundance’s Screenwriters Lab

I usually begin these type of “Sundance Institute” updates by stating that these are the future names to watch out for on the indie film scene or in future editions of the festival, but the truth of the matter is, this year’s batch of twelve are names we already mention on this site. Filmmakers such as Craig Zobel and Cherien Dabis are returning with their latest screenplays-in-progress and folks such as Lance Weiler, Sean Durkin (producer of Afterschool) and Edwin (multiple fest winner Blind Pig Who Wants to Fly) are making this an 2010 group to watch out for.

The fellows will work with a distinguished group of creative advisors, including Lab Artistic Director Scott Frank, Sebastian Cordero, Naomi Foner, Rodrigo Garcia, Nelson George, Michael Goldenberg, Deena Goldstone, John Lee Hancock, Erik Jendresen, Richard LaGravenese, Jessie Nelson, Tom Rickman, Susan Shilliday, Zach Sklar, Dana Stevens and Tyger Williams.

2010 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows and Projects:

Lance Edmands (writer/director) / Bluebird (U.S.A.): In the frozen woods of an isolated Maine logging town, one woman’s tragic mistake leads to unexpected consequences.

Craig Zobel (writer/director) / Canary (U.S.A): The residents of a small West Virginia coal mining town intersect and affect one another in surprising, often humorous ways, as their lives are inextricably shaped by their surroundings.

Sydney Freeland (writer/director) / Drunktown’s Finest (U.S.A.): Three Native Americans—a rebellious father-to-be, a devout Christian, and a promiscuous transsexual—find their self-images challenged, and ultimately strengthened, as they come of age on an Indian reservation.

Saodat Ismailova (writer/director) / 40 Days of Silence (Uzbekistan): Four generations of women under one roof look to each other for comfort while resisting the strictly proscribed life for women in Uzbek culture.

Lance Weiler (co-writer/director) and Chuck Wendig (co-writer) / HiM (U.S.A.): When a mysterious sleep virus begins to affect the adults in a small rural town, those under 18 find themselves cut off from civilization and fighting for their lives. As weeks turn into months, they must struggle against the infected adults, one another, and their own worst instincts.

Cao Baoping (writer/director) / How Many Trainings Must I Take Before I Can Be as Hard as Steel? (China): After spending her entire adolescence fighting with her psychologically abusive mother, a young woman is forced to come to terms with the love underlying the hatred she feels.

Sean Durkin (writer/director) / Martha Marcy May Marlene (U.S.A.): Haunted by painful memories and increasing paranoia, a damaged woman struggles to reassimilate with her family after fleeing an abusive cult.

Cherien Dabis (writer/director) / May in the Summer (U.S.A., Jordan): A Palestinian American woman grapples with culture shock, religion, and her loving but strong-willed family when she reunites with them in Jordan to plan a wedding that no one knows she’s called off.

Myna Joseph (writer/director) / My Favorite Nightmare (U.S.A.): A willful teenager, pregnant with her cousin’s child and determined to get an abortion, travels to New York, only to discover her unpredictable father has followed her.

Edwin (co-writer/director) and Daud Sumolang (co-writer) / Postcards from the Zoo (Indonesia): After being abandoned at a young age at the zoo, a young woman leaves her magical childhood behind to discover the world outside.

Dash Shaw (writer/director) / Slobs and Nags (U.S.A.): Told with hand-drawn animation, a disconnected family is thrown into chaos when the scientist father loses the test subject of his experiment with appearance-altering technology.

Samantha McIntyre (writer) / Unicorn Store (U.S.A.): A lonely young woman who has never had a boyfriend tries to fix her life by purchasing a unicorn.