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Big Shiny Robot: Remembering the DIY inspiration of Sundance

Robert Rodgriguez, the 1993 festival, and turning fans into creators

As the Sundance Film Festival takes its final bow in Park City, it’s hard to not look back at what it’s done for those sitting around the creative campfires in Utah and lament its loss, even though we sometimes shook a fist at the commercialized Hollywood tool it could sometimes appear to be.

When I first moved to Utah, Sundance was on the cusp of having one of its best years ever. The 1993 festival saw Robert Rodriguez bring home the Audience Award for El Mariachi , an action film put together on a shoestring budget where the funding came from Rodriguez literally donating his body to science.

I…

This is a 600 character excerpt. Read the full story at City Weekly, where it was published on January 21, 2026.

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