Adventures at Sundance-->U2 pictures + videos

[wolf_Q]

If you don't like U2, that is fine, just ignore this thread. I know there's a few of you that may enjoy it though. :)

So, as some of you already know, I'm a bit of an obsessed U2 fan. :D I have been for the past 14 years. I've seen them in concert several times, and I've been right up close at those concerts which was amazing. I've never been able to be at the right place at the right time to meet them before/after a concert though. I've known about the U2 3D movie for a while, but only recently found out that it was premiering at the Sundance film festival here in Utah.

The tickets were of course sold out, and the ones on ebay were going for hundreds. But they do have a waiting list so we decided to head up there (hour drive) on the slim chance that we could get in. We got up there around 3:30, there's so many people in the city right now that parking downtown is nearly impossible, so we ended up having to park at Deer Valley (ski resort) and take the shuttles down. This should normally take maybe 20 minutes...we didn't get down to the theather until 6:00. :rolleyes:

This is at Deer Valley, we wandered around for a bit and watched all the skiers. I live so close to some of the best ski resorts and I've never been skiing. :o
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance03.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance01.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance04.jpg
In the shuttle bus...we were bored so we took some pics
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance08.jpg
The way the line was run was completely messed up. While we were waiting we were interviewed by some guy, I wish I knew what it was for...he looked familiar but I'm not sure who he was. They made those waiting for the U2 3D movie wait outside in the freezing cold while the others for the movie before stood inside the heated tent. Those who didn't get into that movie were put ahead of us to get into the U2 movie! We were originally maybe 30-40th in line and we ended up being 79 and 80. They gave us numbers and said we could leave and come back to line up before the movie.
So we wandered around taking pictures.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance10.jpg
And climbed snow drifts.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance23.jpg

[wolf_Q]

While wandering we came across some people getting into SUVs at the back of the theater. We came up right as Bruce Willis came out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance13.jpg
Then Robert De Niro
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance24.jpg
We heard people saying that most of the people arrive in the front so we headed out there. We had a prime spot along the rail as everyone arrived. I'm sure several of the people were celebrities, but I didn't recognize any of them. Well, except Al Gore walked right behind us lol.
Anyway, you all know who I was waiting for ;) and sure enough they arrived!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance21.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance20.jpg
Shortly after that photo was taken I was shaking his hand. Yes I'm a complete dork, I know, but that was very cool for me to have Bono standing right in front of me smiling and shaking my hand. :D I had something for a signature but I didn't even think to ask until after he had walked off...oh well, I will get a signature...hopefully all from all of them...one of these days.
The Edge!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance19.jpg
Adam, he briefly shook my hand too, here he was grabbing a pen that was dropped to sign a flag. Larry didn't really stop he just went by.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance18.jpg
After that we headed back to the line, with little hopes of getting in. They sold tickets to the first 25 then acted like that was all that they were going to let in. But our good luck continued and they ended up letting everyone in...and we got front row seats!
Inside the theater
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance25.jpg

[wolf_Q]

I'm ready for the 3rd dimension :P
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance26.jpg
U2 came in with Robert Redford, they weren't that far back, maybe 1/3 of the way on the bottom, but I didn't get any pics of them coming because of everyone standing up.
They introduced the film. Pics...(I'll post the videos at the end)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance28.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance29.jpg
The film was amazing, the 3D was very well done. Even better because the band, directors, etc. were all watching the film in the theater with us.
They had some Q & A after
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance31.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance32.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance34.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance35.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance37.jpg
Sorry for the bad image quality, these were taken with my old A95. I really wish I would have brought some of my better cameras, I could have taken some great shots. But I didn't know if cameras were allowed and its not like I could have just ran it back to my car (this one is small enough to fit in my purse).
Then we wandered around Park City riding the shuttle buses until 2 am.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance40.jpg

[wolf_Q]

Here are the videos
Introducing the film
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/th_U2Sundanceintro.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/?action=view&current=U2Sundanceintro.flv)
Q & A (Warning...contains some bad language )
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/th_U2SundanceSLC.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/?action=view&current=U2SundanceSLC.flv)
There's more photos and 2 more videos in this album
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/?mediafilter=all
*Edit* here's a pic my friend just sent of me shaking Bono's hand...just pretend you can see the rest of Bono lol
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/cassiespics1small.jpg

[Giselle]

:eek: That is SO cool!!! I'm very jealous!! Bono's quite an amazing person, IMO, and you're so lucky to have seen him in person (and shake his hand LOL)

[Rachel]

But our good luck continued and they ended up letting everyone in...and we got front row seats!
Inside the theater
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance25.jpg

How cool is that! Congratulations, Amy, on living your dreams.
:cool:

[RobiLee]

All I can say is AWESOME!!!! What an absolute thrill that must have been for you. I can't believe you actually sat in the same theatre and watched the film with all of them.

I would have been thrilled to have spotted Bruce Willis and Robert DeNiro in the crowd. Loved those pics! Wish you would have been able to get a pic of Redford too.

I still can't believe you live around all those great ski resorts and haven't even been skiing. What's wrong with you girl?! :p :D ;)

I'm so happy that you had such an exciting adventure.

[ramanth]

What an awesome experience Amy. Congrats! :D

[lizbud]

Wow, what a great time you guys must have had. :) Loved the pictures
you got. I can't believe you got a picture of Robert DeNiro, or someone
who looks a whole lot like him. :D



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance24.jpg

[CountryWolf07]

Amy, that is such an unbelievable experience! :) WOW! Bruce Willis and Robert DeNiro? That is so awesome, seriously!!!

So happy for you!

[jennielynn1970]

OMG!!! How freaking awesome!!! I would have been dying being that close to Bono, I can't even imagine shaking his hand! He and his band have just done so much, to help everyone, around the world. They are just amazing people.

SIGH... Robert DeNiro!! Seeing him would just put the icing on the cake for my visit!!


** You don't ski??? I didn't think you could live in Utah, with all that snow, and those mountains and ski resorts, and not ski! Granted, we have a bunch of ski resorts in PA and I don't ski either, but I'm not a big snow person. I love seeing it snow, but can do without the shoveling and dealing with it, lol.

[Vermontcat]

:D :D :D Amy! I'm so happy you finally got to meet them! :D :D :D
I remember the last two years they were at Sundance and you didn't get to see them.
I totally know what it's like to be face to face with Bono and not even think about getting an autograph. Hey at least you remembered to take pictures and you did get a handshake from Bono! :D
Typical Larry being so elusive and you just getting a photo of the back of his head. Actually I heard that he may not have been feeling too well and that he went home before the midnight showing.
You should check out the U2 sites for photos, maybe someone else will have a photo of you there with U2.
So did you like the movie? Was it just like being at one of their live concerts?
I bet it was extra special getting to see it with U2 right in the audience with you! :D
I am so happy for you getting to meet them, next time you will have to get their autographs, I still need 3 more to complete my collection. ;)

Oh, and while you were out having fun with U2 yesterday, I was out skiing. :)

[anna_66]

Oh Amy I bet you were SO excited! I know how much you love U2 and Bono. It must have been living a dream for you:D
I'm happy for you girlfriend!!!!

[Karen]

I knew Vermontcat would find this! :) Great pictures, Amy, thanks for sharing!

[shais_mom]

oh Amy - I'm so happy for you!
that's so awesome!!!

[slleipnir]

Cool! Sounds like a lot of fun! congrats!

[lizbud]

Turns out it was Robert DeNiro in the picture you guys took. :)

He's picture # 24 in this online review of celebs at Sundance. So cool. :cool:


http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/env-2008sundance-scene17jan17-pg,1,4722265.photogallery?coll=chi_mezz

[Cinder & Smoke]

:)
:D

Yeeeeee-HAW!, Kiddo!!

Now that sounds like it was a Totally *PHUNN* Day & Night!!

And this Really **NICE** snappie of you pretty much Tells the Tail >>>


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance40.jpg




*ENJOY* your great Memories!

:D

[shais_mom]

:)
:D

Yeeeeee-HAW!, Kiddo!!

Now that sounds like it was a Totally *PHUNN* Day & Night!!

And this Really **NICE** snappie of you pretty much Tells the Tail >>>


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/U2Q/Sundance%202008/sundance40.jpg



*ENJOY* your great Memories!

:D

:)
she probably hasn't SLEPT yet! :D

[pitc9]

OH how FUN that had to have been!!
I'm so happy for you that you got to shake hands with Bono!!

Great pictures!

[wolf_Q]

Thanks everyone! :D It was indeed a great experience. :) The movie was nicely done, but not close to being at a concert, to me that is. I like to be down there in the GA crowd, that's a whole different atmosphere! It was neat how the audience acted like it was a concert...cheering and clapping after the songs, etc.

Oh, and I haven't gone skiing simply because I don't know anyone around here who skis...and I don't know how and I'm not about to go try by myself. :o I go sledding! ;)

I have checked out some U2 sites, haven't seen any photos of me, but who knows. I posted the pics on Interference.com and Zootopia (free part, haven't renewed my subscription yet). I just read this article and really enjoyed it, so I thought I'd post it in here. Man, if only I knew they were at Sundance, I would have been there...that's not far away...its right on the way to the trail to hike Timp.

Anthony Breznican, USA TODAY

PARK CITY, Utah — Bono and The Edge walk across a footbridge over an ice-crusted stream, surrounded by onlookers whose cellphone cameras are raised in a kind of group salute.
The U2 bandmates have just finished a lunch with Sundance Film Festival founder Robert Redford, and now they're heading away from the actor's ski resort in snowy Provo Canyon for the hour-long trek back to Park City, where the annual movie showcase is in full swing.

It's Saturday, and this evening the band will gather at the town's 1,200-seat high school auditorium for the premiere showing of their new concert film, U2 3D, a state-of-the-art three-dimensional immersion into their 2006 Vertigo tour that opens in select theaters nationally on Wednesday.

The Edge hops into the back seat of the SUV, and Bono takes shotgun. (Their driver, Jordan, says the singer likes to play with the stereo.) Some of the dozen or so fans gather at the passenger side, pressing their hands against the windows, and the singer and guitarist roll them down to wave goodbye.

[wolf_Q]

One man in his mid-20s has watery eyes over his encounter with one-half of the world's biggest rock band and offers blessings, choking for words. Then they are off, leaving the onlookers with only memories. What's it like to have that intense effect on people?

"It's the weight of responsibility," The Edge says in mock graveness. He smiles. "And it's fun, really. It's fun."

Bono leans back. "Which is it, Edge? A weight of responsibility or fun? Come on, now. You can't have it both ways."

The Edge says flatly: "The first was irony on my part."

Bono: "Sorry, I might have missed that. We hate whinging rock stars. Come on, why else do this?"

Throughout the long drive through the northern Utah countryside, the pair banter like the schoolyard friends they are, discussing their past, present and future in the context of a movie they hope will set a new standard for concert films. By the end of the ride, they're playing a demo CD of songs they hope to include on an upcoming album.

The Vertigo tour grossed roughly $377 million from March 2005 to March 2006, a tally surpassed only by the Rolling Stones' Bigger Bang tour, according to Billboard. The band has sold more than 30 million albums domestically in the SoundScan era (since 1991) and won 22 Grammys.

U2's hits have resonated through the culture for decades with Sunday Bloody Sunday, Beautiful Day and One. They joke about it, but there is a power there.

"It's only when it's finished that you start thinking about … how people are going to receive it out there," The Edge says. "We're objective enough to know if we have a song that's going to resonate beyond just the way we're feeling about it at that minute. Objectivity is hard to keep."

It's all about the music Bono says the movie tries to put the focus only on the music, not the personalities.

[wolf_Q]

"This is what people don't understand. There are such strong attachments to the songs that we have nothing to do with," he says. "I went to see Bruce Springsteen, and he played Promised Land. I was screaming! I was grateful to Bruce, but what was going on was what was in my life when I heard that song first. That's the humbling bit that performers don't want to admit to; they're only a small part of what's really going on."

Sheer rock canyon walls drip with ice as the car maneuvers the icy road. Bono turns and says they try to write songs less about their internal feelings and more about the world outside themselves. "To express yourself, the kind of modus operandi for the iGeneration, can lead to some unpleasant results."

U2 3D, with its three-dimensional camera-roving, aspires to not just put the moviegoer in the best seat in the house, but the 50 best seats.

When he talks about the film, Bono grins and raises his eyebrows behind circular purple-tinted glasses. "It's got some rock 'n' roll. It's got some swagger, and that'll either annoy you, or it won't. But in the end, it's the emotional force of it."

He says his favorite sequence is the song Miss Sarajevo, which includes an opera part originally recorded by the late Luciano Pavarotti. "It takes on a lot of extra resonance, and it's very hard to listen to that." The Edge nods quietly, and Bono goes on: "It's my favorite U2 song, I have to say. Normally, when I hear a U2 song on the radio I cringe. Either, a) I sound like a girl, or the lyric isn't finished. … But there are some songs that I really, really do enjoy. Miss Sarajevo is one of them."

The Edge says, "For me, it was great to see the film for the first time because I've actually never seen U2 live." Bono laughs, and The Edge jokes: "I've been to a lot of U2 concerts, but I've never seen the band! So this is the closest I've ever seen to what the fans experience."

Bono says knowing he was going to be captured by some of the most advanced camera technologies in the world created a few moments of personal anxiety. "I think I was on the summer holidays, and I can, uh … I can put on weight when I'm on my holidays. I like to eat and drink wine."

[wolf_Q]

When the band arrived in Mexico to start the film production on the South American leg of the tour, he says, "I'm embarrassed to say I wasn't looking the best. I don't think I'm the most vain of rock 'n' roll stars you'll meet, but I had a panic attack at the thought of a 3-D, 40-foot arse. But by the time we got to Buenos Aires, I was back on track. But some of the shots I can see, I can't help thinking, 'You fat bastard …' "

The movie also has had an effect on band unity, giving them all a clearer perspective on what the others do. Bono marvels at bassist Adam Clayton's renewed prowess, while The Edge says he wondered if Larry Mullen Jr. felt isolated stuck on the top platform of the massive stage with his drums.

"He's very assertive, Adam is, in this," Bono says. "On this last tour, he really came out of himself. He's kind of the 'wise owl' of the band, and he has become a bit of a hermit. He withdraws to his fine art and quite cerebral life, and on this movie, he's a real proper rock star."

Keeping emotions in check

Bono recalls the performance in Sydney during the early 1990s when Clayton "had a terrible turn" struggling with alcoholism and missed a show, threatening the unity of the band. In those days, Bono says, Clayton "was hanging on to his bass for dear life, and he's frightened about what's happening to him. You cut to where he is now, this person who is filled by the music and strength and joy … and he's with his friends, and he's alive and loving being alive. You can never know what that feels like."

Though fans might not notice such nuance, Bono says the movie captures the inner lives of his friends. "I see Edge's frustration. He was going through some tricky things at the start of this tour in Buenos Aires, and there's proper violence in the guitar playing. That is the right arena for your despair."

The Edge adds, "Some of my best shows and indeed probably the worst shows I ever played in U2 were filmed for this 3-D movie. The final show of the tour, for some very sort of personal reasons to do with family and health, what have you — it was the only time I ever played a U2 show where I didn't want to be there. Thankfully, looking at the film I can't see that."

[wolf_Q]

What surprised him about the footage was "how separate we are onstage. When I'm playing and Bono is singing, we're lost in the music, and our physical proximity to each other is not actually that important. But when you see that happen in a 3-D movie, you see that Larry is at the back, and for a minute I thought, 'Wow, that must be a slightly lonely place,' to be sitting at the drums giving it everything he has as he does every night, but it's like his bandmates are scattered around this huge room."

Another reason they wanted to do the movie was to reach out to fans who can't afford tickets. Bono says they try to keep the price of some seats low, but there are never enough. "I'm hoping that all the people in high school or who are college-age and don't have the cash to go see us can go see us for a low price with this film."

So why Sundance for the premiere? Both men have been to Sundance as moviegoers in the past, and say they simply enjoy it. "There's a great nobility to the Sundance Film Festival," Bono says, describing it as "a nexus of art and commerce, culture and politics."

A wide, frozen lake spreads out next to the salt-whitened Utah freeway, and Bono points out the gauzy sundown, the sun slipping beneath white clouds that blend with snowy mountaintops in the distance.

"Can I interrupt this broadcast?" he says. "There's an amazing moment in Ireland, where we live, when the sea and the sky can have the same color and the line of the horizon disappears. And I look at these mountains, and it's just about to happen here."

He reaches beneath the seat and pulls out a CD case, withdrawing a hand-labeled disc. "I have just the right song for it … if I can find it."

He slips the CD into the player and heavy distortion fills the car. It's a song called No Line on the Horizon, which the band is developing for their next album. "It came out of a new distortion box that my guitar tech got," The Edge says.

"This is a little full on!" Bono shouts. "But it's worth it, just to get a flavor of this. It's only a demo."

The song is rough, weaving between brutal guitar blasts underscoring the mellow title refrain. "These are just first drafts," Bono explains. He slips in another CD, this one U2's version of a lively Irish folk ditty about folk singer Ronnie Drew, one of the founders of The Dubliners.

Bono sings along with his own voice from the speakers, stopping to point out when Sinead O'Connor and Andrea Coor come in to sing the chorus: "Here's to you … Ronnie Drew …"

The bandmates say they conceived it as a way to cheer up the 73-year-old Drew, who is ailing with cancer. They may put it out as a single in the next few months.

Since the recordings are still in the embryonic phase, it's not clear what direction the band will be headed with their next collection of songs, but as the car winds through the traffic of Park City's bustling Main Street, Bono and The Edge provide some clues to their mind-set while talking about what they like in other movies.

[wolf_Q]

"Joy is the hardest thing, always, for any artist, for any writer, for any photographer," Bono says. "It's the hardest thing to capture because it's impossible to contrive, whereas despair — you can have a good go at despair."

"You don't have to try too hard to summon it up," The Edge adds.

"It's a little bit too easy," Bono agrees. "Or melancholy, which we can sometimes suffer with."

The car pulls up at their destination, they bid farewell and step out to where the crowd of fans from the start of their journey is seemingly waiting for them at the end of it. Different faces, of course, but they share the same expression. And it's definitely not despair.


*Sorry, didn't realize it would take that many posts! :o

[ChrisH]

Wow! Excellent! Amy, I am so very happy for you! :D :D

[Jadapit]

I think U2 is absolutely amazing, not only their music but what they contrubite to the world. I'm so gald you got to see that Amy. I'm so jealous.