I've heard that the parties at Sundance tend to be packed wall to wall and Film Maker Magazine and Carmichael Films certainly recreated that hopping vibe with their Sundance After Party at Select on Feb 9 th. The bar was absolutely packed with art designers, costume designers, actors and writers from NYC and of course, some of the filmmakers who made it to Sundance. I caught up with filmmakers Gill Holland (LoggerHeads), Paola Mendoza (On the Outs) and Marc Simon whose documentary After Innocence won the Sundance Special Jury Prize – Documentary.

Producer Gill Holland was there promoting his film, LoggerHeads. Loggerheads is a moving story set in North Carolina about adoption and the quest to find your true family. It was directed by Dear Jesse director Tim Kirkman and starred Kip Pardue, Bonnie Hunt, Chris Sarandon, Michael Kelly and Tess Harper. Holland has produced many films and told me that he enjoys the entire experience of filmmaking, from development to distribution. As Holland said, "it's all part of the journey."

Filmaker Gill Holland and Phil Morrison (Junebug director)	Stephen J.Szklarski

Paola Mendoza is one of the lead actresses in the film On the Outs, which was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. Mendoza (who has graced the stages in New York City), and directors Liri Silverbush and Michael Skolnick spent time at the Jersey City Detention Center, learning about the lives of the inmates so they could use this knowledge to help develop the characters in On the Outs.

Marc Simon is a first-time filmmaker whose documentary After Innocence was the winner of the Sundance Special Jury Prize for Documentaries. Simon is also an attorney and the idea for After Innocence grew out of his work as a law student helping ex-prisoners who were exonerated through DNA testing. He said that he had a great time at Sundance, that it was a whirlwind of activity and that he is very excited to have won an award with his debut film.

It was a great celebration of accomplishment and while it was hard to navigate through the crowd of filmmakers to get to the open bar, FILMMAKER and Carmichael's annual Post-Sundance celebration in NYC was a blast!