A Utah filmmaker who co-founded the Sundance Film Festival and produced an Oscar-winning movie in the mid-1980s has pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a child. Sterling Van Wagenen, 71, entered the plea as part of an agreement that includes a sentence of six years to life. Van Wagenen wanted to "acknowledge wrongful conduct," Shapiro said. Produced The Trip to BountifulVan Wagenen co-founded a Utah film festival that came to be known as Sundance Film Festival with Robert Redford and was the Sundance Institute's founding executive director, but hasn't been with the organization for more than two decades. Van Wagenen's resignation came after a man came forward to accuse Van Wagenen of molesting him as a boy in 1993.

Source: CBC News April 30, 2019 18:54 UTC