• by Paul Gough , July 31, 2003

There isn't much in the way of commercial space available on Sundance Channel. The seven-year-old digital tier network runs its independent movies and original series and documentaries in an ad-free environment. But it's a different story off channel.

Actor Robert Redford's Sundance Institute in Utah has always had corporate sponsors who support the work of independent filmmaking in general and the annual film festival in Utah. Now Sundance will lend its name and expertise to a film festival that will run between August and October at Loews Theatres in 10 cities. The films include two American independent films as well as movies from Spain and the United Kingdom. The Sundance Film Series has big-time corporate sponsors, including Coca-Cola, Kenneth Cole Productions, Volkswagen and Entertainment Weekly.

Larry Aidem, president and chief executive officer of Sundance Channel, said the corporate-sponsored film festival was a great way to showcase several great movies that aren't getting blockbuster exposure.

"We're able to bring these films to a wider audience," said Aidem.

The festival also brings Sundance's brand and independent films closer to advertisers that want to be a part of it. Aidem said because viewers have to pay to receive the channel in the digital tier, Sundance's subscribers tend to skew upscale, educated and technically savvy. Sundance's surveys have found that many have Internet connections and they consume less television than the average viewer even though there are more channels in the digital space that Sundance inhabits.

Each of the sponsors will use their time with Sundance to boost business. There will be print ads and other material listed with sponsors, and a trailer that precedes the film that will include spots for the sponsors. Volkwagen's new SUV, Touraeg, will be the center of its activities with Sundance Film Festival. Aidem said VW will be doing a wide range of activities, including parking the vehicle near the venues so potential buyers can see it up close. He said VW's attitude works well with Sundance's philosophy.

He said that's true for all of the sponsors, who come at their brands and their advertising in a creative way not unlike that of Sundance.

"Every one of these sponsors, if you listen to each of them talk about what their brand stands for in this space, it's incredibly consistent to the Sundance mantra that Bob Redford outlined," Aidem said. "We stand for diversity, we stand for opportunity, we stand for discovery and cutting edge and a lot of themes that are quite meaningful."

John McCauley, Loews senior vice president of marketing, said the Sundance Film Festival has been provided some of the theatre chain's highest-profile locations, including midtown Manhattan. He said Sundance's desire to extend its brand and bring its brand off channel helps boost Loews' profile in the upscale, artsy crowd that subscribes to the digital tier.

"We like to be part of that company and that brand," said McCauley.

Four films will be featured in the festival over the course of two months, beginning with the Spanish film The Other Side of the Bed on Aug. 29. In This World, a story of two Afghan boys who travel from Pakistan to hoped-for refuge in London, will follow Sept. 19. Dopamine, starring John Livingston and Sabrina Lloyd, will debut Oct. 10 and Die Mommie Die starring Frances Conroy, Philip Baker Hall and Jason Priestley, concludes the festival Oct. 31. The Loews locations include New York, Los Angeles, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.