Tomorrow morning, I’m jetting off from sunny Burbank to snowy (frigid, icy, frozen) Park City, Utah to cover the 2018 Sundance Film Festival here on the COW. I’ve got furry snow boots, long underwear, and a handful of tickets that cover everything from the fest’s most anticipated to most experimental offerings. And I’ve got my own angle.

Before the lush celebrity gift suites, the sold-out Q&A sessions, and the long lines of frozen but eager cinephiles trying to grab the hottest ticket in Park City, a movie was made — and it was hard work. And behind the producers and directors and actors who led the charge, a “below-the-line” crew of anywhere from tens to hundreds of craftspeople worked to bring filmmakers’ visions to life. They’re the post production engineers, the editors, the camera operators, or the composers whose names are in the credits but not the numerous story pitches to Sundance press outlets like the COW. Union or non-union, aspiring or veteran, these individuals spent weeks of their life behind the scenes dedicated to telling a story. And in my 2018 COW Sundance Film Festival coverage, I’m telling their stories.

I’ll be talking to directors and producers and writers of course, and I’ll tell you all about the films I see and the scene that’s set in Park City, but my goal is to bring you insight into the daily lives of the crew — the ones with the 10 or 12 hour days, the ones who worked their way up through unpaid “for exposure” promises, and the ones who unwaveringly service someone else’s story.

In our current political climate, in Hollywood and everywhere else, learning more about each other and respecting one another’s work and life has never been more important. The #MeToo movement has opened a dialogue we’ve never been able to have with each other before. Time’s Up, the legal defense fund set up support those who have experienced sexual harassment, assault, or abuse in the workplace, is making the right moves toward keeping that dialogue happening and protecting those who want to have it.

But we can’t forget our below-the-line crew in these conversations. For every actress who has been assaulted by a filthy producer, or every director coerced by a power-hungry executive, there are thousands of female crew members in production and post who are caught in a nuanced power struggle every day. Many of them are harassed, assaulted, and abused too. Most of them can’t or won’t ever speak up because they remain in a position where they would lose work, maybe forever.

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

#MeToo is going to shape a lot of Sundance coverage this year because it’s going to change how we view the films in the festival. That will be challenging for some people who have old traumas reawakened, and offensive to others who view equality as a loss of power. But regardless of your opinion or your past experience, something has shifted and its affecting Hollywood — and the best thing we can do is try talk to each other. A lot.

In the coming days I’ve got conversations to share with operators, assistants, producers, editors and many more. I’ll be sharing what I see here on this blog, as well as shorter, quicker takes on my Twitter and Instagram feeds. Film and television editor Meaghan Wilbur will also be on the ground in Park City serving as a contributing editor and tweeting some #hottakes from the theaters.

Back to packing now — is four scarves enough? I’m bringing four.