Sunrise? Sundance expansion slated for Brooklyn [UPDATE: Or not]

I don’t know if it’s Brooklyn that needs more indie crap, or if it’s indie crap that needs Brooklyn, but either way, it looks like we’re about to score a big one, as the Sundance Film Festival is considering expanding into the borough, according to the Post. On top of being a popular backdrop for a number of films and TV shows (think of every time your damn street was blocked off because of a movie shoot), Brooklyn has been expanding its film culture with the openings of NiteHawk and IndieScreen, as well as the projected openings of Alamo Drafthouse and a film school in the Navy Yard.

The festival isn’t completely foreign to Brooklyn — they’ve been hosting a “Sundance Institute at BAM” screening series around these parts since 2006. Now, according to the Post, they’re scouting locations for their permanent expansion, including a spot under the Brooklyn Bridge. Redford will be working with the Independent Filmmaker Project on the upcoming endeavor, which apparently could be anything from a screening series to a film festival large enough in scale to start beef with Robert DeNiro and Jane Rosenthal’s Tribeca Film Festival.

So what does this mean for your Brooklyn movie experience? Well, presumably a borough-wide upgrade to haute film culture and an annual influx of indie snobs. Don’t worry though, for as long as there’s summer in Brooklyn, we’ll still be able to enjoy the simple things in life, like the Princess Bride playing at every outdoor film screening ever.

UPDATE: Sundance’s festival director, John Cooper, quashes our dreams of a Redford v. DeNiro duel atop the Brooklyn Bridge