The largest and most prestigious independent film festival in the U.S. could soon be getting a new home. Taking place now through Feb. 2, Sundance has been held in Park City, Utah, since 1981. But organizers are deciding between three other cities set to start hosting in 2027, while Park City residents are rallying to keep at least part of the festival’s presence in the state.
Where might it move to?
The three finalists are Boulder, Colorado; Cincinnati; and Salt Lake City. (If Salt Lake City is chosen, Sundance will still maintain a smaller presence in Park City, as the two cities are but a short distance apart.) The reason for the change: “organizers have said, essentially, that the event has gotten too big for Park City,” said The New York Times.
Sundance takes place every January, turning the “ski town of 8,200 full-time residents into a snowy circus, with over 20,000 people streaming in from around the globe,” the Times said. When this happens, the town’s “hotel prices skyrocket, the streets become clogged with black S.U.V.s, and what should be a simple five-minute ride down Main Street can turn into a 30-minute crawl.”
Locals are “still holding out hope that Sundance chooses the Salt Lake City option, because Park City would still hold some ancillary events,” the Times said. The festival brings in significant money for Utah; the 2024 edition raked in $132 million in total economic impact, according to the festival’s report. Despite this push, Sundance’s organizers “worry it has developed an air of exclusivity that takes the focus away from the films,” said The Associated Press. The “ideal home would make Sundance more centralized, affordable and accessible to all who appreciate independent film.”
What does this mean for the film industry?
Sundance “plans to remain very much a place for discovery, where new talent and fresh artistic voices can emerge,” said the Los Angeles Times. But wherever the festival ends up, the “clock is ticking on an experience people have long known — even if what makes the festival truly unique goes well beyond the snowy confines of Park City.”
Many film fans see the possibility of a change to the Sundance locale as a detriment. Sundance “is sick, because there’s so much film stuff that doesn’t make it to Hollywood and the theaters,” filmmaker Jacob Willford said to The Salt Lake Tribune. The festival leaving Utah means it would “miss the focus it brings to the state’s film industry — and the chance for Utah filmmakers to connect with others,” filmmaker Sean Madsen said to the outlet.
Others are hopeful that Sundance’s impact on the industry will remain profound no matter where it is held. We “witnessed during the early phases of the pandemic, the spirit of Sundance doesn’t necessarily exist in a physical location but is made up of the community,” director Andrew Ahn said to the Los Angeles Times. People “really believe that wherever it goes, we’ll find that same feeling of magic and excitement and creative expression. It really doesn’t matter to me where it goes, as long as it’s a place where we can celebrate independent film.”