I have been lucky enough in my life to attend two of the major film festivals. From my experience, it can be somewhat difficult to obtain tickets and information unless you reside in the town where the festival will be held. Unless you’re in the film industry, in which case getting tickets is fairly easy.
I highly recommend both Venice and Sundance if you are interested in film, but I personally enjoyed Sundance more for many reasons – I was living / working in Park City at the time, knew my way around plus all the advertisements were in English. In Venice, most of the advertisements were in Italian. I also enjoyed the laid back / casual atmosphere at Sundance, plus it is held in various theatres around town. Whereas Venice Film Festival is exclusively held on the Lido which is kind of a pain in the ass to get to unless you stay at an overpriced hotel there. The Excelsior (http://www.hotelexcelsiorvenezia.com/en/) is where the stars and executives stay. The festival is worth a stopover if you are planning to be in / around Venice at that time anyways. It also offers more foreign films than Sundance, if that’s your thing.
I have summarized my experiences below and provided links with additional helpful information to consider when planning your film festival experience.
Sundance Film Festival – “Focus on Film”
Where is it?
It is held in and around Park City, Sundance and Salt Lake City, UT. There are multiple auditoriums / theatres which have been transformed into screening areas. The majority of screenings happen in Park City, but there are others in Sundance and Salt Lake City as well.
When is it?
It’s always in January / February. This year the dates are- January 22nd – February 1st 2015.
How do I get tickets?
There are lots of tricky rules and regulations to follow when buying festival tickets, which I have summarized below. I recommend memorizing all the info on the website to ensure you get the best possible tickets to all your desired screenings. https://www.sundance.org/festival/tickets/how/
Festival Passes and Ticket Packages – You must register online first, and then you will receive a timeslot confirmation. You are only permitted a certain time to choose what tickets you want and must purchase them right then and there. It’s important to have Plan B, C, D and E because you never know what tickets will be left over by the time you step up to the counter. You must register online for a timeslot to go buy tickets. Festival Pass price – ($250 – $3,500 USD), Ticket Package price- ($400 – $1,200 USD)
Individual Tickets- No timeslot needed, but these tickets will be on sale to the general public last. ($20 USD each)
Utah Locals – Get ticket buying perks for putting up with the festival crowds each year. They can buy tickets before the general public and have access to special Festival Passes and Ticket Packages.
Waitlist- If tickets are sold out when it’s your turn to purchase, fear not! You can sign up to be on the waitlist. You can sign up online 2 hours prior to the screening for your waitlist number. Then you wait at the theatre and if your number is called, you will be allowed to purchase a ticket! ($15 USD each)
Student Packages- These tickets are for students and range from $250 – $300 USD.
Volunteers- The best way to see a lot of films and truly experience the festival on a budget would be to volunteer. Volunteers get FREE tickets to films and also get to see backstage areas of the festival. Basically 4 hours of volunteering = 1 free ticket. For more info on volunteering, visit the website https://www.sundance.org/festival/volunteer/
What should I wear?
WARM CLOTHES! The dress code is pretty laid back because it will no doubt be snowing, wet and cold. Leave your stilettos at home and opt for boots and a scarf.
Who will be there?
The usual film industry people, celebrities, indie-film stars and unfortunately, all of their many fans.
What else to expect:
This is where the “Focus on Film” saying comes from. Many people flood Park City for superficial reasons such as celebrity spotting and glamorous parties. You will no doubt see at least one celebrity “in their natural habitat”, but don’t be a freak about it, seriously. There will be lots of parties with “swag” giveaways. We got into some parties via Craigslist.com. The major parties are invite only, but many times some guests don’t show up and you can take their place if you know the right people. Swag giveaways we received included full bottles of vodka, wine, cosmetics, headphones and lotion.
The website is very comprehensive and easy to navigate. Anything you could possibly want to know can be found here https://www.sundance.org/festival/
Venice Film Festival (71. Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica)
Where is it?
The Lido island in Venice, Italy. Venice Lido (Palazzo del Cinema, Casinò, Sala Darsena, and PalaBiennale) The Lido is also known as “Giudecca” in Italian.
Screening Theatres Palazzo del Cinema: Sala Grande (1,032 seats) and Sala Pasinetti Sala Darsena (1,300 seats) PalaBiennale (1,700 posti) Palazzo del Casinò: Sala Perla (400 seats) and Sala Perla 2, Sala Volpi, Sala Casinò
When is it?
It’s typically late August / early September. This year it is – 27th August to 6th September 2014
How do I get tickets?
The film lineup will be announced about 1 month before the festival and you can buy them on the http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/ shortly after that. The website is in English and Italian. However, I had to use google translator upon checking out to ensure I was buying the correct tickets for the correct dates because Italian was the only option there. They accept payment by credit card which will be charged in Euros only and you can print eTickets. Otherwise, you can risk getting tickets the day of the screening.
How much do tickets cost?
Tickets range from 5 Euro to 45 Euros. You have options for “concession” or “full price” tickets with “numbered” or “unnumbered” seats, all of which are available at different price points.
Concession Tickets are basically discounted tickets and only for holders of Festival’s subscriptions, Biennale Card 2014, Trenitalia customers with a Frecciargento / Frecciabianca ticket with destination Venice (travel date should not be more than 3 days before), CartaFRECCIA members. (For example, a full price ticket would e 15 Euros and the Concession price would be 10 Euro)
Numbered – assigned seat
Unnumbered– unassigned seat
Subscription– basically a season ticket which will allow you into certain areas of the theatre (40 Euro – 1,600 Euro). You will also have the ability to purchase the cheaper Concession tickets.
DO NOT be late to screenings, they won’t grant you access. Arrive no later than 10 minutes before the film is scheduled to start.
What should I wear?
It’s hard to obtain information about the dress code, which is officially “black tie”, but don’t worry about renting a tux on your holiday. Definitely consider wearing a suit, or at least a dinner jacket (men) or a cocktail dress (women). The actors / actresses and film crew will be in formal gowns and tuxedos, but that isn’t necessary for the audience. The dress code isn’t enforced and you may see film / university students there in jeans and t-shirts (gasp!). I was nervous a black cocktail dress wouldn’t be nice enough, but it was perfect. I would have felt ridiculous in a gown because it was such a hodgepodge of formality and style.
Who will be there?
The usual celebrity suspects from the U.S. and other countries along with any film crew members and other lesser known actors / actresses. I’m sure we saw several international celebrities and didn’t recognize them. We were actually mistaken for celebrities by the Italian paparazzi – probably because we were the best dressed younger people at the bar, which was directly across from the theatre. As much as we didn’t know any Italian celebrities, the paparazzi didn’t know American non-celebrities either. He followed us with his camera for a hot minute as we entered and kept saying “Over here! Look over here!” It was a TMZ moment.
What else to expect:
Venice is actually pretty small, but it’s impossible to not get lost due to the tiny winding alleyways and labyrinths. Use the public Vaporetto (waterbus) when possible to avoid getting hopelessly lost. Like other parts of Italy, the tickets are on the honor system, but can be purchased at minimarts or ticket counters. Here are some prices to give you an idea http://www.venicewelcome.com/actv/vaporetto.htm
You’ll have to take the Vaporetto or private taxi to get to the Lido. We paid 90 Euro for a one way transfer by private water taxi which was unnecessary, but nice because we were in black-tie attire. Who wants to ride public transportation in a little black cocktail dress?
We saw the premier of “In the Skin” directed by Jonathan Glazer at Sala Grande, which I believe is known as “Under the Skin” now.
I thoroughly enjoyed it, even though the plot was a bit slow. Some people left during the screening and others even booed at the end. Don’t be the sweaty guy in jeans at a film premier who boos the director and lead actress to their faces. Just don’t.
Afterwards everyone spills out onto the street and nearby bars / cafes for drinks. It’s a lively, exciting atmosphere. Just make sure you were somewhat comfortable shoes because you will be doing a ton of walking.
Official 71st Venice Film Festival Lineup
http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/71st-festival/line-up/
Events happening at the 71st Venice Film Festival
http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/71st-festival/docs/events.html
For additional information, you can visit the official website. They have an email list so you won’t miss anything! http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/
http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/information/
There’s also an application you can download for free http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/news/24-07.html
Angela Killian 
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