Jennifer Lawrence in 2010.Photo:Fred Hayes/Getty

Jennifer Lawrence attends the SAGIndie Actors Brunch during the 2010 Sundance Film Festival at Cafe Terigo on January 24, 2010 in Park City, Utah.

Fred Hayes/Getty

You can tell whichSundance Film Festivalattendees are first-timers, saysJennifer Lawrence. “Because they’re the ones that aren’t wearing proper snow boots.”

And in 2010 during the award-winning debut ofWinter’s Bone, the film that launched her to superstardom, “that was me,” she tells PEOPLE exclusively.

“I was in, like, Louboutin boots sliding all over the place,” recalls the actress of her first time at the snowy Park City, Utah, fest — now celebrating its 40th anniversary afterRobert Redfordand the Sundance Institute created the event.

“Trying to walk in high heels through frozen streets,” Lawrence says, “that stood out.”

What theSilver Linings PlaybookOscar winner mainly recalls of that “beautiful and so cold” experience, of course, was her first real exposure to Hollywood’s spotlight. “I remember it being the first time that somebody wanted to interview me and was really interested because they thought I was a good actor.”

Winter’s Bone, from director and co-writer Debra Granik, stars thethen-19-year-oldLawrence as a teenaged survivalist in the rural Ozarks of Missouri on a quest to find her father. It won a Grand Jury Prize and screenplay honor at the 2010 fest. She and supporting actor John Hawkes were then nominated for Oscars at the 2011 ceremony — the first of Lawrence’s four total nods — where the film was also a Best Picture contender.

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(Left to right:) Brett Cullen, Melissa Leo, Jennifer Lawrence and Adrien Brody in 2010 at the Sundance Film Festival.Fred Hayes/Getty

Actors Brett Cullen, Melissa Leo, Jennifer Lawrence and Adrien Brody attend the SAGIndie Actors Brunch during the 2010 Sundance Film Festival at Cafe Terigo on January 24, 2010 in Park City, Utah.

Navigating the snow at Sundance is “fun, it just makes things harder to get to,” she adds. “It’s also the first time I learned the term ‘catty corner!’”

And she can’t resist shouting out one of her favorite television phenomena, taking place right next door to the fest: “Of course I want to give a shout-out to the ladies ofThe Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.”

Jennifer Lawrence in 2010 at the Sundance Film Festival.Fred Hayes/Getty

Jennifer Lawrence attends the SAGIndie Actors Brunch during the 2010 Sundance Film Festival at Cafe Terigo on January 24, 2010 in Park City, Utah.

Among Lawrence’s upcoming projects is playing Hollywood agent Sue Mengers in the biopicSue. Her performance in last year’sNo Hard Feelingsearned a 2024Golden Globe nomination, her sixth.

The2024 Sundance Film Festivalruns from Jan. 18 to Jan. 28. It’s celebrating 40 years of launching indie cinema into the mainstream, including such titles asLittle Miss Sunshine, The Blair Witch Project, Get Outand this year’s Best PictureOscar nomineePast Lives.

source: people.com