Old school Hollywood glamour came to South East London today as Robert Redford opened his Sundance film festival at the 02 in Greenwich.

The Oscar-winning actor flew in to open the first international offshoot of his annual US event in Utah, championing independent cinema.

During a press conference at the arena’s Cineworld cinema, the 75-year old actor said the London event, was as a chance for Sundance to continue to “grow audiences” for independent films.

Tonight Redford and grammy veteran T Bone Burnett will discuss the relationship between music and film in an opening event chaired by novelist Nick Hornby.

On Saturday Redford will be joined by Prince Charles to introduce the world premiere of Harmony, a documentary looking at the Prince’s environmental work over the last 30 years.

Around 22 American films from this year’s Sundance Film Festival are screening at this year’s event along with special events and concerts.