New + Next

The Race to Host Sundance and Why It Matters

Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. You know it. You love it. The charming mountain town, the indie darlings, the Hollywood-meets-flannel vibes. But the festival’s organizers are officially eyeing a new location, with Salt Lake City/Park City (as a joint bid), Boulder and Cincinnati all in the running. This isn’t just a venue switch — it’s a full-blown experiential case study in the making. So, grab your notebooks (or at least your Notes app), because this is where things get interesting. THE DEATH OF THE “IT” VENUE? Park City and Sundance have been synonymous since the ‘80s. But let’s be honest: the festival has been busting at the seams for years. Housing is a nightmare, traffic is a mess and the cost of entry — literally and figuratively — has made it feel less like an indie filmmaker’s dream and more like an exclusive club. Now, the festival’s organizers have a chance to rethink not just where Sundance happens, but how it happens. Moving the festival to a new city is an opportunity to: Diversify the audience: Boulder’s crunchy creative scene, Cincinnati’s emerging arts movement, Salt Lake’s existing film infrastructure — each destination has the potential to  bring in...