It’s official: the Sundance Film Festival will move to Boulder, CO in 2027. The festival inked a 10-year-deal with the city following an extensive search that led to three finalists. Boulder was in contention along with Cincinnati, OH (which was eliminated earlier today) and remaining in Park City/Salt Lake City.
The decision pulls Sundance from the home it’s had since 1981 (when it was still known as the US Film and Video Festival), having launched in 1978 by Robert Redford in Salt Lake City. Festival leadership chose Boulder as its new base of operations due to its natural beauty, and its status as a college town and technology hub.
“One of the things that we also thought about is one of Robert Redford’s founding principles, which is this notion of making sure that the festival has a sense of space and a sense of place,” said Amanda Kelso, Sundance Institute’s acting CEO. “One of the things that you’ll see when you walk around [Boulder] is we are surrounded by this breathtaking Flat Iron Mountain Range, and it’s truly an incredible vibe. So when you’re walking from theater to theater, you’ll really get this opportunity to sort of metabolize what you just watched while convening in nature.”
I’ve made no secret of my desire to see Sundance stay in Park City, a town that I love dearly. The people of Park City have treated me well since I first started attending the festival more than a decade ago. It’s safe to say that going to Sundance was the biggest boost this site ever got, helping us to reach brand new audiences and make connections with the larger film critic community. It’s my favorite time of year, but I can admit that Sundance has been lackluster the last few years while the leadership negotiated for a new home. Park City is NOT cheap and it’s clear that other outlets started making the decision it was too costly to send people there each year. I don’t blame them. But is Boulder any different?
For certain, we will attend the final Sundance in Park City next year. How could we not? It’s going to be one Hell of an event! And after that…well, I’ll decide whether Boulder is a place I want to go or maybe we’ll start doing SXSW or another festival to start the year. On one hand I’m excited to see what’s next, but on the other I’ll miss Sundance at its height in Park City, which has been so instrumental in this little blog’s success over the years. [Variety]
