How Social Media Is Shining a Spotlight on the Sundance Film Festival.

A man checks his smartphone at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

Image: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

By Samantha Murphy Kelly7 hours ago

PARK CITY, Utah — Star Trek actor George Takei takes a seat in front of an Instagram photo station inside a building on snowy Main Street at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
"We love what you're doing on Facebook," an Instagram spokesperson tells Takei, as the actor finishes a thumbs-up pose adjacent to an iPad.

See also: Watch 15 Sundance Short Films Online Now

He's one of the many celebrities in town to promote a film who took a few minutes to take a selfie at the InstaStop portrait booth at The Hollywood Reporter's lounge this weekend. Big names like Zach Braff, Anna Kendrick, Christina Hendricks, Elle Fanning and Lance Bass have all posed for photos uploaded to the publication's Instagram account.

George Takei smiles at the InstaStop photo station.

Image: Mashable/Samantha Murphy Kelly

Instagram's partnership with the Sundance Institute and The Hollywood Reporter is part of a larger effort to gain access to some of the hottest names at the largest and most high-profile events across the U.S. In the past year alone, InstaStop has already popped up at ComiCon, the U.S. Open, New York Fashion Week, the Golden Globes, the One Direction movie premiere and, most recently, the SAG Awards.
"It's great that fans are able to discover behind-the-scenes, authentic content coming straight out of Sundance on both Facebook and Instagram," a Facebook spokesperson told Mashable. "Not only is this beneficial for fans, but it's a great way for filmmakers and a cast to connect with their audience."
During major events, brands see a huge lift in followers on Instagram as fans check out behind-the-scenes pictures of their favorite stars. In fact, the Golden Globes' Instagram account grew by 65,000 followers in 24 hours due to the partnership. The InstaStop interactive booth takes things a bit further by letting celebrities watch video questions from fans and respond with a 15-second video.
Facebook, specifically its Instagram arm, is one of the many tech companies with a large presence at the 10-day long festival. In addition to real-life Instagram cut outs at all the theaters, there's also a massive wall inside the HP Live tent on the main drag, highlighting photos taken by both celebrities and fans throughout the festival.
A dedicated Instagram staffer is also on standby to help answer questions from celebrities about setting up accounts and getting verified. For example, actress Rose McGowan needed help linking her Facebook and Instagram accounts and got verified along the way, too.
Although this is the first year Instagram has been at the festival, efforts from other companies have also increased this year. HP has a large set-up featuring interactive ways for attendees to get more out of their time in Park City. For example, thanks to a partnership with Aurasma Technology, users can watch their favorite movie posters come to life via augmented reality, a feature also included in the official Sundance Festival app.
The HP Live tent also features an "animation hotline," where festival attendees can pick up the phone and leave a message for animator Dustin Grella. These audio notes could become a voiceover for a animated short film he's working on.

Sundance Film Festival attendees can leave a message on these phones to become a part of an upcoming animated short film.

But perhaps the largest presence this year comes from YouTube. The company rented out a two-story shop and completely remodeled the interior, so it could play host to a series of filmmaker panels.
The space also offers free coffee, food, yoga classes and Google Glass demonstrations. It's also where YouTube's Live@Coverage broadcast show is filmed, featuring live interviews with actors and filmmakers. Viewers at home can tweet questions to the hosts and guests using hashtags #Sundance and #Live.

YouTube's set up on Main Street in Park City, Utah for the Sundance Film Festival.

Image: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

"Sundance and YouTube are both about championing the independent creator, so it's a natural fit for us to be here," Derek Callow, director of partner marketing at YouTube, told Mashable. "We want to help make some connections between those creators and filmmakers and give them a space to meet and network."

Inside the YouTube house at Sundance.

Image: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

Film fans monitoring the festival from afar can also check out 15 short films on YouTube.
At the festival grounds in Park City, you can't go a few blocks without running into a #Sundance Spark hub, which (in partnership with Twitter and Wayin) monitors and displays social media conversations about the festival in real-time. This offers a fascinating look at what people are discussing by highlighting social stats, tweets, Vine videos and photos taken at events and premieres. It also ranks the top most-discussed films on Twitter.
The stunning data visualization is also being shown at 18 different locations at official Sundance venues, including monitors and wall projections. Filmmakers and attendees are also encouraged to share their perspectives, various check-ins and photos associated with the hashtags of the films via Twitter.
Other brands like Acura, Oculus Rift, Dove and Airbnb have also set up shop throughout the festival, encouraging attendees to tweet with hashtags and join the Sundance conversation.

bron: mashable