Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 12-2009 The Question Concerning the Cooptation of the Sundance Film Festival: An Analysis of the Commodification of Independent Cinema Matt Dee Cottrell Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd Part of the Sociology Commons Recommended Citation Cottrell, Matt Dee, "The Question Concerning the Cooptation of the Sundance Film Festival: An Analysis of the Commodification of Independent Cinema" (2009). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 485. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/485 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. THE QUESTION CONCERNING THE COOPTATION OF THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: AN ANALYSIS OF THE COMMODIFICATION OF INDEPENDENT CINEMA by Matt Dee Cottrell A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE in Sociology Approved: _______________________ _______________________ Christy Glass Richard S. Krannich Major Professor Committee Member _______________________ _______________________ Richley Crapo Byron R. Burnham Committee Member Dean of Graduate Studies UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY Logan, Utah 2009 ii Copyright Matt Dee Cottrell 2009 All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT The Question Concerning the Cooptation of the Sundance Film Festival: An Analysis of the Commodification of Independent Cinema by Matt Dee Cottrell, Master of Science Utah State University, 2009 Major Professor: Dr. Christy Glass Department: Sociology, Social Work & Anthropology The Sundance Film Festival has transformed from being a fringe festival to a leading showcase for independent cinema.