THR’s Matthew Belloni and Stephen Galloway sat down with Focus Features CEO James Schamus in advance of his receiving the Hollywood Reporter’s Indie Icon of the Year award up at the Sundance Film Festival Friday.

They covered a lot of ground, but among the moments that stand out of the interview is mention of a new project Schamus has just begun writing for his frequent collaborator Ang Lee (”Hulk,” “Lust, Caution,” “Taking Woodstock”). Schamus jauntily describes the unnamed material as “going back to the good old, tragic, suicidally depressing Ang!”

Schamus also strenuously defends Focus as a solid indie space in the face of multiple closures in the last few years. He claims that the resources he’s being given to create a continuing slate mean that Focus isn’t going anywhere.

Which bodes well for the presence of another solid potential buyer up at Sundance, which launches tomorrow.