The Next Generation Filmmaker Series Presents “Happy Christmas”

Photography by Rodrigo Gaya on January 20th, 2014 in Celebrity, Sundance 2014

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Anna Kendrick

Park City, UT – January 19, 2014 – On Sunday The Next Generation Filmmaker Dinner Series presented “Happy Christmas” at Sundance Film Festival. The film reflects on an irresponsible 20-something named Jenny who arrives in Chicago to live with her older brother who is a young filmmaker living a happy existence wife and kid. Jenny’s arrival shakes up their quiet domesticity as she and a friend instigate an evolution in her brothers life and career. Meanwhile, Jenny strikes up a rocky relationship with the family’s baby sitter-cum-pot dealer. Throughout the film, writer/actor/director Joe Swanberg explores both sibling relationships and the roles of women in young families. Using his unique improvisational technique, Swanberg created a dramatic experience that resulted in a natural, relatable peek into his characters’ lives, filled with engaging warmth and the actors’ own natural sense of humor.

The film viewing and dinner party attendees included writer/director Joe Swanberg, actors Anna Kendrick, Melanie Lynskey, Mark Webber, Kris Williams and producer Alicia Van Couvering. Additional celebrity guests that came out to support included actors Christopher Abbott, Jason Ritter, Joshua Leonard, Alison Pill, Vinessa Shaw, Billy Eichner and filmmaker. Guests sipped on Patron XO Café cocktails and Chambulls (champagne and Red Bull) throughout the evening. Anna Kendrick and Joe Swanberg started an awesome dance party and got the whole room going until the early morning.