'Chicago 10' kicks off Sundance

The January 2007 edition of the Sundance Film Festival will kick off with "Chicago 10," a documentary about the anti-war protests that took place during the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

The film, directed by Brett Morgen (2002's "The Kid Stays in the Picture"), will have its premiere Jan. 18, 2007, in Park City's Eccles Center.

This marks the second time a documentary has opened the Sundance festival, the first being in 2004, Stacy Peralta's "Riding Giants."

According to festival director Geoffrey Gilmore, "Chicago 10" expands the boundaries of many of the traditional aspects of documentary filmmaking in a way "that speaks to audiences beyond what one might expect, and that exemplifies the range of creativity and diversity that we support at the Festival," Gilmore said in a news release.

Sundance will unveil the 100-plus films scheduled to play in its various categories — from the dramatic, documentary and World Cinema competitions to the more star-studded premieres — later this month.

Those announcements will also include the identity of the film premiering at the Salt Lake City opening-night event, to be held Jan. 19, 2007, in the Rose Wagner Theater, as well as the selection for the Closing Night Premiere in Park City.

The Sundance Film Festival is the premier U.S. showcase for independently produced features and short films from the United States and around the world.

The festival will run Jan. 18-28, 2007. In addition to Salt Lake City and Park City, screenings and events will also take place in Ogden and at the Sundance Resort in Provo Canyon.

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