Snow, Cinema, Stars: Sundance Film Festival

The starriest of the film-glam parties dons its mittens and prepares.

WHAT TO PACK? There are many interesting and lively gatherings on the yearly calendar, and several attract actors and musicians and non-rock-star, non-famous-actor awesome people, too. We're pretty sure that the Sundance Film Festival sits at the top of this particular hallowed heap, which can make the wintertime movie-tacular pretty dang exhilarating even while it makes it knotty to pack for. If you've been to the Park City spectacular, you know the feeling of standing over your suitcase, wanting to put in the coolest warm stuff you own, but wondering if you'll look as if you're trying too hard. That's one of the charms of this event, of course: No one looks like they're trying too hard, what with the slouchy knit caps and mucky boots. Sundance has many charms, in fact, outside of sitting in a seat in the dark for 90 minutes while watching an independent movie, from the fliers and handouts and stickers one gets handed while walking -- ice-sliding? -- out and about on the streets, to the satellite festivals to the exclusive-y DJ-thumping lounges to the skiers who only leave the slopes for Very Special Movie Events. It's one-of-a-kind, still, is what we're saying, and it is ready to roll again, from Thursday, Jan. 16 through Sunday, Jan. 26.

TICKETS AND SUCH: The Sundancers make it extraordinarily easy to see movies, with various packages and deals and such, but if you want to go for the straight-up, no-muss-no-fuss individual tickets? Those go on sale on Tuesday, Jan. 14, you don't have to register, and they're twenty bucks apiece. As for finding a friend of a friend of a cousin's couch to crash on, well, we can't help you there. But trust, as you're scrunched up on said couch, that there shall be many other cinefans around Park City in your situation. Because everyone wants to go Sundance once, for the movies, for the snow, and, yes, to stroll -- er, ice-slide -- around, looking effortless and knit-cap-slouchy. Total movie-star-meets-Park-City chic, yep yep.

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