By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent filmmaking. While we can learn a lot about the filmmakers from the 2024 Sundance Film Festival through the art that these storytellers share with us, there's always more we can learn about them as people. This year, we decided to get to the bottom of those artistic wells with our ongoing series: Give Me the Backstory!
Filmmakers Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss each have a decadeslong history with Sundance, but the excitement of taking a project to the Festival has never worn off. There is nothing to compare to the experience of a Sundance premiere, says Gerber. It will never get old and I hope to have a few more in my lifetime! Gerber first came to the Festival in 1997 with his short A Small Taste of Heaven, and he's been back several times as both a participant and an audience member. Moss' first encounter with the Festival was in 1999 with On the Ropes, for which he served as associate producer and sound recordist. Moss would go on to act as a creative advisor for Sundance Institute artist programs in addition to premiering more films - like the award-winning Boys State - at the Festival. Gerber and Moss first teamed up in the 2000s to co-direct the Sundance lab and grant-supported Full Battle Rattle, and the latest product of their partnership, War Game, premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. I can't overstate the valuable role Sundance has played in my artistic development, says Moss. There is no better festival in the world to premiere a film.
War Game was part of the Festival's Special Screenings section, and it's clear that the unique experience of making the film was just as special as the audience's first viewing. Gerber and Moss' documentary captures a six-hour exercise - conducted by the nonpartisan Vet Voice Foundation - where a room of real-life U.S. defense, intelligence, and policymakers play out a scenario in which another insurrection takes place following the results of a presidential election. Keeping the events of January 6, 2021, in mind, the organizers of the exercise heightened the stakes: This simulated coup would include support from rogue active-duty members of the U.S. military. The day of production, January 6, 2023, was like the Super Bowl, says Gerber. It was terrifying and thrilling like a live broadcast.
Read on to learn more about the documentary and its filmmakers, including the biggest challenges involved in making the film and why Gerber and Moss believe War Game is essential viewing today.
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