
Sudance.org is dispatching its writers to daily screenings and events to capture the 10 days of festivities during the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Check back each morning for roundups from the previous days events.
The Stanford Prison Experiment by Nate von Zumwalt
Kyle Patrick Alvarez may not be the second coming of Dr. Philip Zimbardo, the groundbreaking psychologist at the helm of the Stanford Prison Experiment, but that doesn't preclude his new film from playing like a microcosm of those chilling events. One could speculate that every film screening is an experiment of sorts, as a number of audience members intimated during The Stanford Prison Experiment's Q&A session, but Alvarez is loath to concede that his film manipulates with the same scheming tendencies as the experiment itself.
About that experiment (which Alvarez worked pedantically to adhere to in the film, even going so far as to enlist Zimbardo as a consultant). In the summer of 1971, Zimbardo (played by Billy Crudup in the film) conceived a project that would simulate the conditions of a prison by soliciting 24 exceedingly normal men to play the roles of guards and prisoners. Assigned at random, the participants inhabit their roles on a 24/7 basis and under the analytical surveillance of Zimbardo and his team. With only a basic and albeit ambiguous condition that the guards may not physically assault the prisoners, the experiment develops with an escalating dubiousness as a number of guards adopt a nearly fascistic attitude that is perpetuated by unruly behavior from the prisoners most notably an increasingly unstable Ezra Miller. Just as the guards begin to revel in their newly instituted authority, the prisoners find that the ostensible experiment is more closely aligned with reality than simulation. Not even two days into the project, Miller's character begins to break down after a protracted stint in the hole,' a room for solitary confinement from which he implores for a release while proclaiming that the experiment is not allowed to fuck with my head. As the project takes on a life of its own, Zimbardo and his team are forced to reconcile the potential benefits of their research with the traumatic repercussions for its subjects.
Dr. Philip Zimbardo at the premire of The Stanford Prison
Experiment. Sundance Institute | Stephen Speckman It would be facile to call The Stanford Prison Experiment a challenging' film that designation should be reserved for the emotionally gripping experiment itself. But there is a tinge of a test (despite the director's belief otherwise) in Alvarez's dedication to veracity, which does not play as a fault in this case. We really were careful to make sure the movie didn't hit too hard too fast so that hopefully it wouldn't become a test. I wanted to make sure that it always felt accessible as opposed to the movie being a constant endurance test for the audience.
Perhaps more notable than the film's stellar direction and Alvarez's deftness in working with the confines of the true story is the way the film is entirely hands-off in dealing with the moral ambiguity of the experiment. That fueled Alvarez's inclination to remind the audience that, ultimately and arguably, nothing truly horrific happened. One of the things that I found really fascinating about the experiment was that they walked away they ended it, said Alvarez. It was ultimately more an expression of humanity than it was of how bad humanity is.
Zimbardo himself, who was in attendance for the screening but did not take the stage during the Q&A, spoke with a similar sentiment. What's not in the film is that when the study was ended, we spent a full day in psychological debriefing, he said. We spent hours with all the prisoners, hours with all the guards, and then we brought the prisoners and guards together. And we literally called it moral reeducation.' I was able to say, all of us did bad things, including me. Aside from the guards that did bad things, the good guards never once interfered to prevent the bad guards from doing what they did. The prisoners who didn't break down, never gave support to the fellow prisoners that did break down.
For Alvarez, he hopes that audiences can glean the significance of the story. I think what's important is to acknowledge that it's still incredibly relevant today in terms of how we're given authority and what that authority means. And i think it's really important to note that a lot of people involved in this experiment, Dr. Zimbardo and many of the grad students, went on to participate in prison reform.
Results by Jeremy Kinser
Andrew Bujalski returns to Sundance with Results, a perceptive comedy set in the world of fitness trainers that examines the relationship between money and happiness.The movie premiered at the Eccles in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, and it's not only his most accessible project to date, it also marks his first foray into directing professional actors.
Newly-rich, recently-divorced, perpetually schlubby Danny (Kevin Corrigan) decides to change his life by visiting a local gym, but unwittingly and inextricably becomes entangled in the low-simmering romance between fitness guru Trevor (Guy Pearce) and trainer Kat (Cobie Smulders). During the Q&A that followed the screening, Bujalski, who will likely forever be known as the Godfather of Mumblecore, seemed as surprised as anyone to have made such a mainstream romantic comedy.
Cobie Smulders, Festival Director John Cooper, and
Brooklyn Decker. Sundance Institute | Stephen
Speckman He said while attending the festival two years ago he was pressured to come up with a new project to pitch. After directing four movies with non-professional actors, he decided to break out of his comfort zone and
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
24/09/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) is supporting Virginia Public Media (VPM), the ...
24/09/2026
RED Digital Cinema's RED V-RAPTOR [X] and RED V-RAPTOR XL [X] cameras with the Phantom Track feature are the first cameras to receive GhostFrame Pro Certifi...
24/09/2026
Bringing together the full family of networks, FOX Sports is also adding Tubi, F...
24/09/2026
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) has unveiled...
24/09/2026
The blog collects SVG's reporting on AI across U.S. and European sports broadcasting
Since SVG launched the AI Innovation Lab in April to advance the devel...
24/09/2026
SVG's annual TranSPORT conference, which will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 20 in...
24/09/2026
The self-built Master Control Room has cut streaming operations incident-respo...
24/09/2026
Ortana Media Group, the software systems integrator behind the Cubix workflow platform, has connected AudioShake's audio separation models to ScorePlay thro...
24/09/2026
AudioShake has released Multi-Speaker 2.0, the company's newest Multi-Speaker model, which removes 75% more noise and offers 32% better separation of overla...
24/09/2026
By Jon Morgan, Founder and Executive Producer, Ryval Studios
For Major League B...
24/09/2026
Spectrum SportsNet has revealed its comprehensive programming and live game broa...
24/09/2026
The Charlotte Hornets has unveiled new broadcast partnerships with Gray Media an...
24/09/2026
DAZN will be the exclusive direct-to-consumer streaming partner for the Detroit Pistons beginning with the 2026-27 season. Subscriptions are available at DAZN.c...
24/09/2026
The National Hockey League (NHL) has made an agreement with Spectrum that will allow Spectrum TV customers in the Minnesota Wild local broadcast territory to wa...
24/09/2026
The Carolina Hurricanes has reached a multi-year distribution agreement to provi...
24/09/2026
The St. Louis Blues has introduced Blue Note as the name of the new, exclusive ...
24/09/2026
Blue Jackets Hockey Network, the television home for Blue Jackets hockey, is coming to Spectrum TV under a new carriage agreement between the National Hockey Le...
24/09/2026
The next generation of multitrack recording for live sound
The latest version of Waves' dedicated live multitrack recording software delivers an array ...
24/09/2026
An idea machine for musicians
Described as an idea machine for musicians , the latest addition to Polyend's growing collection of guitar pedals combin...
24/09/2026
Alignment tool gains multitrack layout
Synchro Arts have just launched the latest version of their renowned time-alignment plug-in, and it's said to be ...
24/09/2026
Synth gains DAW Control & Ctrl-e integration
Expressive E have just released a major firmware update that brings some interesting new features to the Osmose...
24/09/2026
Rohde & Schwarz expands its system amplifier portfolio with the R&S SAM200 for a...
24/09/2026
September 24, 2026
The Hitachi Startup Challenge FY26 invites innovative startu...
24/09/2026
Download Now!
To receive a short case study showcasing NHK Technologies, Inc. (NT) s audio setup, please enter the following details:
--
First Name* Fir...
24/09/2026
Manifold Technologies Appoints Ryhaan Williams as CCO for North America
Brie Clayton September 24, 2026
0 Comments
Brings three decades of broadcast e...
24/09/2026
UNIFACHA Expands Educational Program with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton September 24, 2026
0 Comments
Brazilian university empowers next generat...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Viewers watching videos from the Austrian Parliament online will soon find it easier to verify the authenticity of the content. Big Blue Marble, an internationa...
24/09/2026
nsign, the digital signage SaaS platform built around its Simplify Complexity principle, is now officially certified for BRAVIA Professional Displays from Son...
24/09/2026
Encompass Digital Media today announced the successful migration of multiple Viaplay free-to-air channels, including TV3, TV6, TV8 and TV10, to its Altitude Sch...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
24/09/2026
Music Supervisor, Composer, and Mixing Engineer Santiago Uribe has built a career around producing music for film and television, contributing to more than 40 p...
24/09/2026
The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) will hold a full-day cybersecurity summit focused on defending against growing cyber threats facing the broad...
24/09/2026
Reinaldo Marcus Green, director of six-time Academy Award-nominated King Richard...
24/09/2026
From the buzz of your phone when a message arrives to surgeons being able to feel' the patients they are examining from hundreds of kilometres away, these ...
24/09/2026
As Q4 approaches, retailers enter the most critical sales window of the year the golden quarter.
Stretching from October through December, this period encomp...
24/09/2026
Key Takeaways
Harmonic's cOS virtualized platform enables Lightcurve to de...
24/09/2026
COLD Launches Insider Club on Supercast, Giving True Crime Fans Ad-Free Listenin...
24/09/2026
The home interiors retailer signs up for third year as sponsor
RT Commercial today announced that Harry Corry has signed up to a third year as sponsor of Live...
24/09/2026
When COVID-19 emerged, scientists had a crucial advantage: Decades of prior research on coronaviruses meant they understood the virus' key proteins well eno...
24/09/2026
RT Radio 1 Folk Awards Tickets on Sale
Dolores Keane to be inducted into the...
24/09/2026
A warped Manhattan is waiting in the cloud this week. Remedy Entertainment's CONTROL Resonant brings Dylan Faden's extraordinary abilities and a paranat...
23/09/2026
Four control rooms support B1G+ streams, videoboard shows, creative content, and...