Why is Hilton attending Sundance: Redford

New York: Sundance Film Festival founder Robert Redford admits that as the likes of Paris Hilton and Wilmer Valderrama descend upon Park City, it has all become too much of a circus.

During a panel discussion, the 76-year-old actor complained that Hilton, a socialite, didn't have anything to do with the films, reported New York Post online.

"I said, 'What movie is she in?'. She and her hard-partying, swag-grabbing cohorts have made the festival not as much fun. There are too many people who come to the festival to leverage their own self-interest," Redford said.

Hilton has been partying it up in Sundance for years.

Redford also talked about Sundance's transformation from a sleepy, indie movie festival in Utah to party circuit destination.

"We were besieged by the ambush mafia. Fashion houses would come in and they would take over the houses on Main Street and pay three times the rent to get the space. Then they bring celebrities in to give them free stuff," he said.

He added that the economic downturn chased some of the marketers away.

"Then the recession hit and those people went away. And now we can focus again," Redford said.