After months of proposals and site visits, Sundance has whittled the swath of contenders for a potential new home for the festival down to three.
Among the trio, there is a bit of the old, a bit of the new, and a bit of WTF?
To that end, with a possible relocation set for 2027, the united Utah bid of Salt Lake City/Park City has made the cut, along with Boulder, Colorado, and Cincinnati, Ohio.
Coming out of a process that started in April when organizers said that the festival was open to proposals to move, the winner will be unveiled early next year around the time of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival in Park City. The Robert Redford founded SFF will remain its home of nearly four decades for the 2026 shindig before pulling up stakes – if Boulder or Cincinnati grab the indie film golden ring.
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An unlikely and head scratching contender for many when the final six locations (SLC/Park City, Atlanta, GA, Boulder, CO, Cincinnati, OH, Louisville, KY, and Santa Fe, NM) were made public in late July, Cincinnati is said to have charmed Sundance brass with its riverside and ambition, I’m told.
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On another practical note for penny pinching execs, time crunching agents, talent, and filmmakers, Cincinnati is 4 hours and 10 minutes on a direct flight from LA. Boulder is 2 hours and 25 minutes out of LAX. SLC, as many SFF visitors love to brag, is just under two hours out of Burbank straight to the Utah capital’s shiny new-ish airport.
With a possible relocation set for 2027, the winner will be unveiled early next year after the 2025 Sundance Film Festival in Park City. The Robert Redford founded SFF will remain in its home of nearly four decades for the 2026 shindig too before pulling up stakes – if Boulder or Cincinnati grab the indie film golden ring.
“As we move to the next phase in our search for a sustainable home for the Sundance Film Festival, we see great promise and potential in Boulder, Cincinnati, and Salt Lake/Park City,” said Eugene Hernandez, Festival Director and Head of Public Programming today of the finalists. “Each has shown us the blend of exciting possibilities, values, and logistics needed to produce a vibrant, inviting, and inclusive Festival. We’re excited for a future Sundance that can discover, support, and inspire artists and audiences for the next forty years.”
A renewed probe of the Utah, Boulder and Cincinnati proposals respectively and more visits to the locations is in the cards over the next few months, I’m told.
The decision on the last candidates unveiled today comes as the Sundance Institute selection committee concluded its site visits to the previous six jurisdictions that were in the running. Keeping it close to home, so to speak, the last visit was to SLC to be feted by Gov. Spencer Cox, various mayors, the Utah Film Commission and more.
With a proposal that was long overdue regardless of if Sundance was thinking of moving or not, the Beehive State team have put forth making the accessible and less expensive SLC the heart of SFF with a designated “Festival District” in the city’s downtown. Under that scheme, Park City would still show films during the festival, but become designated as more of a special event and weekend hub.
Earlier this week, UFC director and Sundance Institute alum Virginia Pearce told Deadline that for her the expansive Utah bid had a bit of the feel of equating “trying to woo back a long-term lover.”
It is no secret that Sundance has seen dipping attendance, as well as loss of venues and sponsors in recent years thanks to the pandemic, going virtual for two years and the overall changing economics of the industry.
With that in mind, Boulder’s proposal promises to inject $2 million into the fest if they were to win the bid. Spotlighting infrastructure as well as continuity of values and context, the united Utah proposal is based to some degree on the long-established tax breaks and infrastructure the state has provided Sundance for decades. To that, the Utah bid offers a “restructuring” of millions the festival receives directly from government sources and the significant “in cash and in-kind support” that comes from donors, both individual and corporate.
Cincinnati’s mayor and the had their heart on their sleeve and eye on the prize Thursday as news broke that the Ohio city had made the final trio.
“We are ecstatic to continue being considered as the next host city for the Sundance Film Festival, said Mayor Aftab Pureval & Kristen Schlotman, President/CEO, Film Cincinnati in a statement.
“As long-time attendees, we believe Cincinnati’s dedication to the arts, hospitality, and historic theaters make it a great fit,’ the duo added. “We are inspired by the idea of partnering with the Sundance Institute to celebrate the festival’s rich legacy while introducing a dynamic, walkable and accessible new venue. Cincinnati’s blend of creativity, culture, and community promises to be an unforgettable experience for both filmmakers and audiences.”
With that, don’t forget to unpack your boots and big coats for next year, as the 2025 Sundance Film Festival will be back on Park City’s Main Street, as well as various venues in the tony resort town and in SLCfrom January 23-February 2.