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Film Buff Rhoda Glickman sees the significance of Sundance.

Glickman is no stranger to film festivals. As the wife of Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) President Dan Glickman, she's more than adept at maneuvering the ins-and-outs of festival premieres, symposiums, panels and VIP passes. This year both she and her husband made their first trip to the Sundance Film Festival, perhaps signifying what the Sundance community hopes is another important step in the festival's development. Washington Life is pleased to publish Rhoda's reflections on her experience in Park City.

There was an air of excitement at Sundance. It was an amazing feeling to be there for thefirst time, surrounded by people who love cinema. When you're in a situation like that you realize instantly there's more to movies than movies. I think a barrier was broken this year when my husband, Dan, attended the festival, the first MPAA president to do so. People were thrilled he was there, and the MPAA was very well received.

More than anything, it's the incredible energy at Sundance that strikes you. It personally made me appreciate the strength of the film community and how crucial it is to continue to nurture up-and-coming talent. Often, lost in the shuffle, however is how much work it takes to put the festival on every year, especially by Robert Redford, who remains Sundance's driving force.

Each year, more often than not, the independent films, documentaries and shorts screened at the festival create an electrifying buzz throughout the industry. Jjust think about the class of 2004: "Super Size Me", "Napoleon Dynamite" and "Garden State", or "Hustle and Flow" last year. I was fortunate enough to see several very diverse movies that are having the same effect this year. It was especially refreshing to see major actors working for far less money than what they would earn on a big-budget production purely for the love of making good movies. In sum, it's the spirit of the love of film that has overtaken Sundance filmmakers and in turn, the fans who follow them—including me. In that spirit, here are my thoughts on four interesting festival films, a documentary, a thriller and two very distinct comedies.

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris' film is a hysterically funny, delightful movie with a wonderful message about the importance offamilyThe film focuses on a dysfunctional family who pile into aVW bus to get seven-year-old Olive-daughter, sister and niece to the rest of the characters-to a beauty pageant. It's a feel-good movie, but the jokes continue throughout. I thought this was a great example of wonderful actors, like Greg Kinnear, Toni Colette and Steve Carrell, working for less money because they really wanted to do the film. There was also considerable buzz about Abigail Breslin's great performance as Olive.

CLEAR CUT: THE STORY OF PHILOMATH, OREGON
This documentary by Peter Richardson is the true story of a timber town with a generous benefactor. As a former secretary of agriculture, my husband thought he knew everything about the harvesting of our ancient forests but this film provided fresh perspective. For 40 years, the Clemens family, wealthy from logging, has given college scholarships to all graduates of the local high school. With the timber industry dwindling and new ways of life arriving, things begin to change in Philomath. The Clemens foundation, upset that the school is teaching what they considered to be a "politically correct" forest preservation curriculum, threatens to do away with the scholarships. What follows is a compelling story of tradition and change that provides a balanced look at the controversy, proving that no complex human drama is truly "clear cut."

NIGHT LISTENER
In this disturbing thriller, Robin Williams plays a role you don't expect him to play. In his portrayal of a writer and Garrison Keillor-esque radio host, Williams must walk the blurry line between truth and deception when a listener's story, which may or may not be true, invades his psyche. The film is peculiarly timely since it deals with a soon to be published book that is based on events that may not be real. It inadvertently reminds one of the controversy surrounding James Frey and "A Million Little Pieces"—a real life example of the issue of truth in publishing.

FRIENDS WITH MONEY
This one is a bit troubling. It revolves around three wealthy couples and a struggling maid (Jennifer Aniston) who goes to great lengths to keep up with her friends, including visiting a store to get free samples of a face cream she can't afford. It's an interesting movie because you get to look at the psychology of how people relate and how money can affect relationships for better or worse. I thought the cast, which also includes Catherine Keener, Joan Cusack and Frances McDormand, was great and had real chemistry. Aniston's adept performance was deeply moving as she portrays a totally different persona than her role as Rachel on "Friends," a true testament to her acting ability. She's not glam, but she's still Jennifer Aniston.