Higher Ground

Director: Vera Farmiga
Screenwriters: Carolyn S. Briggs

Institute History

  • 2011 Sundance Film Festival

Description

Charting one woman’s spiritual journey through life while exploring and embracing her own humanity, Higher Ground is that rare film that is rich in ideas but also charged with emotion.
As a child growing up in the 1960s, Corinne’s defining feature is her sense of inadequacy. When she reaches high school, her home life begins to unravel, driving her into the arms of Ethan, a guitarist in a local band. An event propels them to join a small fundamentalist community where they find meaning and stability. But some of its more conservative tenets leave Corinne unsettled, driving her into a profound crisis of faith that turns her world upside down.
Vera Farmiga gives yet another richly nuanced performance, but this time she unleashes her equally formidable talent behind the camera as well. She tackles complex issues with sophistication and graceful insight, crafting a moving story about the transformative powers of faith and doubt.


(Archives note: see also Vera Farmiga's Meet The Artist interview on our YouTube Channel.)

— Trevor Groth

Screening Details

Credits

As you use our Online Archives, please understand that the information presented from Festivals, Labs, and other activities is taken directly from official publications from each year. While this information is limited and doesn't necessarily represent the full list of participants (e.g. actors and crew), it is the list given to us by the main film/play/project contact at the time, based on the space restrictions of our publications. Each entry in the Online Archives is meant as a historical record of a particular film, play, or project at the time of its involvement with Sundance Institute. For this reason, we can only amend an entry if a name is misspelled, or if the entry does not correctly reflect the original publication. If you have questions or comments, please email [email protected]