PARK CITY, UTAH — Mary Lynn Rajskub is no stranger to the Sundance Festival, having stopped here throughout her long apprenticeship in the independent film and independent comedy worlds. But this time she returns not only as the star (of the film Toy's House featuring Rajskub's fellow comedy icons Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally and Allison Brie), but as a wife and mother, having brought her family along for the ride.
We caught up with Rajskub on Main Street and chatted with her about seeing the festival through grown-up eyes.
BuzzFeed: So you've come with your child?
Mary Lynn Rajskub: I did. We're trying to do everything. We went tubing this morning. And then my husband and I tried to have a gluten-free lunch with our kid but at the place we went into they said, there' alcohol here, you can't come in. And we said, but we're starving! So they put us in a back room and served us water and gluten-free food. We're doing ski school with him tomorrow and we're doing premiere and parties with him tonight.
BF:You've were here before you had kids. Do you feel like you're missing out on the big parties this time?
MLR:It's a weird tug of war between wanting to party and then saying, like — why? Because the best thing is watching your kid go tubing in the snow And then you leave that and get a little bit of this craziness and then go back to your family.
BF:You were a young It Girl here and now you're a grown up It Girl, how does that change your place in the Sundance firmament?
MLR:We drove here, and I was lucky enough to go visit the Podcast network, where there was a part. Pete Holmes was there, Chelsea Peretti and Scott Aukerman and Thomas Lennon, and I was like, just by the skin of my teeth, feeling, I'm able to do this still. I can still show up for and do comedy. So that set the tone for me. And also, now more than ever, I know four people who have projects here. So I feel alright. I don't feel like I'm coming for no reason. It kinda feels like the opposite. All the people now are like, oh you have a project here, rather than years ago when I would come and it would seem like this big impossible place.
BF: What are you plans for tonight?
MLR:We're going to go gifting. We're going to get some gifts. And dinner.
BF:Do you take every bag they hand you at the gifting suites?
MLR:I don't know. We may not even make it in there. I kind of want to get some Uggs if that's available. There's a lot of like, Djs, and cocktails.
BF:You can do that, go listen to Djs?
MLR: No, not really, actually. I'm kinda masquerading. We're going to go act like we're going to do that for about 40 minutes and then we're going to go have a civilized dinner and premiere.
Photo: BuzzFeed