Sundance title 'I Origins' receives Dolby grant for sound mix

We don't know much about the movie "I Origins," one of the films in the Premieres section of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival — but we now know that the movie's sound quality will be superb.

"I Origins" is the first recipient of the Dolby Family Sound Fellowship, established by the Sundance Institute and the Dolby Institute, along with the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Family Fund. The fellowship provides post-production resources to allow the film "to fully realize the creative potential of the film's sound design," according to a news release.

The movie, written and directed by Mike Cahill ("Another Earth," SFF '11), stars Michael Pitt and Brit Marling as lab researchers who make a discovery that has existential implications.

"'I Origins' is exactly the kind of film that we were looking for," said David Dolby, Ray Dolby's son and a member of Dolby's board of directors, in a statement. "It needed to achieve an immersive and detailed sound environment to communicate the director's vision, and we're providing a boost to get it across the finish line."

Cahill and his team will use the grant to assist with the sound design and mixing at Skywalker Sound in Marin County, Calif., supervised by sound designer Steve Boeddeker (whose credits include "All Is Lost" and "Alice in Wonderland"). The movie will have the Dolby Atmos mix when it premieres at Sundance on Saturday, Jan. 18.

Cahill and Boeddeker will take part in a panel discussion, "The Sound of 'I Origins'" at Sundance, on Sunday, Jan. 19. Also on the panel will be rerecording mixer Brandon Proctor and the film's music composers, Phil Mossman and Will Bates. Glenn Kiser, director of the Dolby Institute, will moderate the discussion.