Sundance 2012 ended on Sunday and dozens of films were purchased with the promise that they will one day see the light of day—or better yet, the dark insides of a movie theater.
But before the filmmakers and actors can rejoice in their happy, Hollywood ending, they first will have to see how the films fare at the box office.
While many purchased Sundance films later struggle at the box office, there have been a few successful surprises to come out of the film festival.
The last two years have seen a giant surge of Sundance films that are nominated for Academy Awards as well as a spike in box office results. And throughout the over 25-year history of Sundance, several films have had surprisingly high box-office results considering their low-budgets.
Since this year's Sundance films haven't yet been released to the public...
"Garden State" (2004)
Box Office Gross: $26,782,316
It seemed like a joke. "Scrubs" TV sitcom star Zach Braff wrote and directed a movie and got Natalie Portman to star in said movie? And then the film released and the world got it.
"Garden State" was a runaway hit at Sundance and ended up doing fairly well for being such a low-budget film. The plot centered around Braff's character Andrew going back to his childhood home for his mother's funeral, where he deals with a dysfunctional relationship with his father and finds love with Portman's Sam.
"Bend it Like Beckham" (2003)
Box Office Gross: $32,543,449
This 2003 adorable comedy proved to be a celebration of Indian film as well as a fusion of East and West.
Starring a much younger Keira Knightley and "ER" star Parminder Nagra, "Beckham" was about an Indian girl living in London who wants nothing more than to break away from the stereotypical Indian traditions so she can play professional soccer. Of course, her parents and family don't understand this at all.
The film ended up raking in over eight times its production budget.
"In the Bedroom" (2001)
Box Office Gross: $35,930,604
This gripping tale of an elderly couple who deal with losing their son and seeing the murderer go free was a monster hit with audiences and critics in Park City.
But no one figured it would have the mainstream success it received after the theatrical release.
The box office result was most unexpected as the film was made for a mere $2 million. But the cherry on top was the five Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and noms for actors Sissy Spacek, Tom Wilkinson and Marissa Tomei.
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