In the last few years,Sundancehas moved beyond just showing feature films and documentaries with the Festival making huge strides towards embracing television, short-form series, and even VR installations. In the ever-changing landscape of entertainment, Sundance has tried to be a step ahead of the curve and it’s one of the reasons the Festival is the place to be every January.
This year, Sundance launched the Indie Episodic program, which put its emphasis on independent perspectives and innovative storytelling told in multiple installments. One of the shows that premiered in the category wasHalfway There. StarringMatthew Lillardas a recovering addict that runs a sober living facility teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, the show weaves in an interesting group of characters, includingBlythe Danner, who plays Lillard’s mother and who has her own addictions to overcome. Directed by Rick Rosenthal and written by Nick Morton,Halfway Therealso starsEsai Morales,Sarah Shahi,Nishi Munshi,Paige Hurd,Matt O’Leary,Sheaun McKinney, andJane Stephens Rosenthal.
Shortly after seeing the pilot I got to sit down with Matthew Lillard, Rick Rosenthal and Nick Morton at the Collider Sundance Studio. They talked about how the show came together, how they got financing, memorable moments from filming, how they decided to premiere at Sundance, if the intention was always to make the show thirty minutes, and a lot more. In addition, Rick Rosenthal shared an awesome story about how he landed the job directingHalloween 2and Matthew Lillard shared a great story about how he got his SAG card. Both are really worth hearing and they’re towards the end of the interview.
Check out what they had to say in the player above and below is exactly what we talked about.
Finally, ahugethank you to everyone atKiaandThe Future Partyfor helping to make these interviews happen at the Kia Supper Suite and offering up transportation in the all new Kia Stinger high performance Sportback for our guests. We’d also like to thank Altec Lansing, Kunde Wines, Blue Moon Brewing, and Topo Chico for their support
Matthew Lillard, Rick Rosenthal and Nick Morton:
Here’s theHalfway Thereofficial synopsis:
When recovering addict Jimmy Bishop finds his sober living facility teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, he is forced to take in his wealthy alcoholic mother as a client. Her arrival solves his immediate financial crisis but also unleashes every other problem he has struggled his whole life to contain.
