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My first trip to the Sundance Film Festival has barely begun, and I’m already overwhelmed with choice.
I’ll be attending the festival for just the first three days, but I’m still having trouble figuring out how to prioritize all the films I would like to see while I’m there. I’ve been poring over the schedule for weeks, reading film descriptions over and over again, trying to decide which movies sound the most interesting to me. It’s tough to make cuts to my schedule, but timing constraints (and making sure I have enough time to go to the bathroom and actually feed myself between movie screenings) cannot be ignored.
After many a sleepless night, I’ve got my schedule as jam packed as I can afford for it to be. Here are the five movies I’m most excited about.
“Magic Farm” (dir. Amalia Ulman)
Chloe Sevigny appears in Magic Farm by Amalia Ulman, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute).
There are a few things that never fail to pique my interest in a film, and one of those things is actress Chloë Sevigny. But Sevigny is far from the only intriguing thing about this film, the second feature from artist and filmmaker Amalia Ulman. “Magic Farm” is billed as a satire about media exploitation, following a film crew who inadvertently find themselves in the wrong place after heading to Argentina to profile a local musician. Satire can be a tricky thing to get right, and I hope to see Ulman and this incredible cast – which also includes Alex Wolff and Simon Rex – rise to the occasion. This is the first film I’ll be seeing, so hopefully it sets the tone for the rest of the weekend.
“The Dating Game” (dir. Violet Du Feng)
A still from The Dating Game by Violet Du Feng, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Wei Gao).
I won’t get to see as many of the documentaries coming out of Sundance as I had hoped, but this is one I’m happy I’ll be able to make time for. “The Dating Game” follows two dating coaches in China who have vastly different ideas about how to best help their clients find love. The twist? They’re also married to each other. This premise promises a wealth of both interpersonal and professional conflict, as well as a closer look at a dating culture that I’m admittedly pretty ignorant about. And who doesn’t want to watch two so-called relationship experts struggle through the same problems as the rest of us?
“By Design” (dir. Amanda Kramer)
Samantha Mathis, Juliette Lewis and Robin Tunney appear in By Design by Amanda Kramer, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Patrick Meade Jones).
“By Design” might be the film with the best logline in all of Sundance: “A woman swaps bodies with a chair, and everyone likes her better as a chair.” Now that’s an attention grabber! “By Design” is written and directed by Amanda Kramer, the filmmaker behind the 2022 film “Please Baby Please,” and stars Juliette Lewis as the woman (and chair) in question. If the colorful and zany “Please Baby Please” is anything to go by, there’s no telling what to expect from Kramer this time.
“Omaha” (dir. Cole Webley)
John Magaro, Molly Belle Wright, and Wyatt Solis appear in Omaha by Cole Webley, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute).
This film is the first feature from filmmaker Cole Webley, starring John Magaro as a father who takes his two children on a road trip after tragedy hits. I’ve always loved a road movie, but this one promises something a little less raucous than what that term usually implies, I think. Both kids are played by newcomers (Molly Belle Wright and Wyatt Solis), and I’m interested to see what this small cast cooks up together within the confines of their car.
“Rabbit Trap” (dir. Bryn Chainey)
Dev Patel appears in Rabbit Trap by Bryn Chainey, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Andreas Johannessen).
It wouldn’t be a good film festival experience if I didn’t throw a little horror in the mix. “Rabbit Trap” is the debut feature from British Australian filmmaker Bryn Chainey, starring Dev Patel and Rosy McEwen as a couple whose lives are uprooted by a mysterious young child after moving to Wales. There’s not much given away about the premise besides that, but Chainey’s bio emphasizes his interest in folklore – a subject ripe for the horror taking.
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