Culture Beat – Sundance 2022

Andre Hyland appears in CULTURE BEAT by Kitao Sakrai and Andre Hyland, an official selection of the Indie Series Pilot Showcase at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

Culture Beat is a doc-style prank show that marks Andre Hyland’s fourth time appearing as a filmmaker at the Sundance Film Festival.

Cory Palmer (Andre Hyland) is our guide through everything pop culture. In this first episode, he seeks to find out the answer to the question, “What is art?” Hyland also portrays cyclist Phil Gower in the second bit before we get back to the main Culture Beat on art. Following this, Palmer returns with Kevin and Karen at a high-end art-gallery. Everything is blurred out in the background. After this, we get another bit where Andre plays someone wishing to remain anonymous. A teaser at the end shows a clip for the following episode on nature.

Cory Palmer is probably not the best person to introduce us to such subjects but this where we find the absurdity of it all. But in spite of it all, he’s still enthusiastic about whichever subject that he is introducing to his audience. Andre Hyland pulls it off so easily. Imagine bringing a Blade drawing to a high-end art gallery and wanting to hang it up? The idea is so hysterical in and of itself that you can’t stop laughing!

The Sundance premiere is only six minutes long that it’s hard to say a whole lot more about it. I could totally see this working as a half-hour series but it definitely works in a shorter form, too. If you have the time, it’s definitely worth watching during the film festival.

The indie episodic is produced by Eric Andre, Kitao Sakurai, and Andre Hyland. Culture Beat is hysterical and is a series in the same vein as Da Ali G Show and Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown.

DIRECTOR: Andre Hyland and Kitao Sakurai
CAST: Andre Hyland

Culture Beat holds its world premiere during the 2022 Sundance Film Festival in the Indie Episodics program.

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Danielle Solzman

Danielle Solzman is native of Louisville, KY, and holds a BA in Public Relations from Northern Kentucky University and a MA in Media Communications from Webster University. She roots for her beloved Kentucky Wildcats, St. Louis Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, and Boston Celtics. Living less than a mile away from Wrigley Field in Chicago, she is an active reader (sports/entertainment/history/biographies/select fiction) and involved with the Chicago improv scene. She also sees many movies and reviews them. She has previously written for Redbird Rants, Wildcat Blue Nation, and Hidden Remote/Flicksided. From April 2016 through May 2017, her film reviews can be found on Creators.