SUNDANCE INSTITUTE -- Sundance Institute has selected eight first-time filmmakers for its signature Directors Lab, which helped launch the careers of award-winners Cary Fukunaga, Dee Rees, Marielle Heller, Benh Zeitlin and Quentin Tarantino. Taking place May 30 – June 23, the annual lab supports the next wave of independent filmmakers exploring new ideas and shaping the future of storytelling.
Boots Riley, “Sorry to Bother You”: A black telemarketer with self-esteem issues discovers a magical key to business success, propelling him to the upper echelons of the hierarchy just as his activist comrades are rising up against unjust labor practices. When he uncovers the macabre secret of his corporate overlords, he must decide whether to stand up or sell out.
Riley studied film at San Francisco State University before ending his studies in favor of a major label recording deal for his band, The Coup. He has never won an award for artistic achievement, but has decided that being the only musical artist whose surveillance was uncovered via Wikileaks is just as good as an Oscar or a Grammy.