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HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: An entertaining and enlightening drama about a young Mexican-American woman who sees sports as a means to escape her small Texas community.

Overlooking Rio de Janeiro stands the iconic statue of Christ the Redeemer, arms outstretched, facing south, overlooking the people of Rio. But not all of the people.

At least two of the films in this year’s SBIFFrunning take advantage of the film medium’s unique ability to take us on a trip to small town Americana.

Holiday Reporter - Maya Entertainment has acquired worldwide rights to Amy Wendel’s All She Can, starring Corina Calderon as a high school student in a small Texas town who enters a powerlifting competition to earn a college scholarship.

In All She Can Luz wants to get the hell out of Benavides, Texas. The way she can get out is either through the Army or through a weight lifting scholarship to college.

From its first, sweaty shots of grunting young athletes, "All She Can" looks for all the world like a conventional sports movie about a scrappy teen trying to overcome the odds. And so it is, for the next couple of reels.

A high school senior with college dreams and no financial means, Luz’s plans depend on her winning a weightlifting championship, which would award her a scholarship.

Luz is a teenager in a small town. While balancing family obligations, a job at a fast food joint, a boyfriend, and school, she’s also competing in the state championship for high school female weightlifting.

Sundance has a reputation for putting new acting talent in the spotlight. Recent years have yielded more break-outs on the distaff side, such as Carey Mulligan (2009’s An Education and The Greatest) and Jennifer Lawrence (2010’s Winter’s Bone).

Sundance Film Festival