Redford remembers past, looks to future
by Wishelle Banks, Outpost staff
He may be considering the future, but Sundance
founder Robert Redford seems equally loyal to the lessons of
the past. Comfortably present at the vortex of both, he has
the capability to make personal statements that tend to
influence the masses.
"To be sure, there are amazing things to come," Redford wrote in his address inside the January 2000 edition of the Sundance catalog. "Could we ponder some of the things we've lost in getting here? Not a bad idea, I believe, to think of some of the ways that our past might be held in place, not just for ourselves but for future generations as well."
To illustrate his point, Redford started Sundance Farms 11 years ago. Located in Charleston, Utah, the company makes and markets fine natural soaps, fresh teas and spice blends used in the institute's award-winning restaurants, all featuring herbs grown on his land, where some of "The Horse Whisperer's" own horses run.
The community of Sundance includes more than 100 homes, the Sundance Mountain School and the North Fork Preservation Alliance, an environmentally conscious group of Redford's friends and neighbors dedicated to maintaining and enhancing the beauty of the Wasatch Mountains where he thrives.
The grandfather of four is also reaching out to children with "Imagynasium," a frolicking CD-ROM with "storytelling, music and art" that allows kids to "build their very own picture collages, songs and stories." Sounds curiously similar to filmmaking. The project, launched last year, is another collaboration -- between the Sundance Institute and SouthPeak Interactive -- and features the voice talents of Glenn Close and Jonathan Winters.
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He is, after all, a working filmmaker currently editing "The Legend of Bagger Vance," the feature film he directed and produced to be released this spring starring Matt Damon and Will Smith.
This work prevented Redford from attending the Native Film Initiative's bash at the lavish Silver Lake Lodge on Jan. 23. The celebration began with Ute tribal members performing traditional dances, then kick-started with a sweaty dance frenzy to the sounds of Keith Secola and His Wild Band of Indians.
About three hours later, actor Edward James Olmos, whose "Americanos: Latino Life in the United States" documentary screened at the festival, was toward the front of a round dance line that snaked from room to room.
Posted
March 10, 2000
Copyright 2000, Nevada Outpost
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