The Sundance Institute has announced six finalist cities in its search for a host site for the Sundance Film Festival beginning in 2027.
Along with the festival’s longtime home in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, the other cities under consideration are Atlanta; Boulder, Colo.; Cincinnati; Louisville, Ky.; and Santa Fe.
In the coming weeks, the Sundance Institute‘s selection committee, made up of board members and staffers, will be visiting each city with plans to announce a selection by the end of this year or early 2025.
“As we very carefully consider this important decision for our festival, we believe these six finalists allow us the best opportunity to not only secure a sustainable future for our festival, but also to build upon its legacy while continuing to support the next generation of storytellers and highlight bold new works of art,” said Ebs Burnough, Sundance Institute‘s board chair, and Amanda Kelso, Sundance Institute‘s acting chief executive, in a joint statement.
Among the traits being assessed for each city are infrastructure, geographic footprint, event capabilities and logistics, local equity values and costs.
The 2025 and 2026 festivals will continue to take place in Park City and Salt Lake City. Festival insiders stress that this search process is very real and is not simply a negotiating tactic for more support in a contract renewal from the state of Utah and the cities of Park City and Salt Lake City.
“Getting to six finalists was a difficult decision,” said Eugene Hernandez, festival director and director of public programming, in a statement. “These cities understand our ethos, are aligned with our key values, and have shown us interesting possibilities for partnership with our Festival — for our artists, audiences, and all who want to be a part of the Sundance Film Festival — and that makes us want to see more.”