Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Gov. Spencer Cox is optimistic about Utah retaining the Sundance Film Festival beyond 2026.
- Utah is competing with Boulder, Colorado, and Cincinnati, Ohio, as potential hosts.
- A decision is expected sometime after this year's festival ends on Feb. 2.
SALT LAKE CITY — Gov. Spencer Cox says he still feels "very good" about Utah's odds of retaining the Sundance Film Festival in the future, as the renowned event returns to Park City next week.
The governor was asked about the festival's future as negotiations continue between festival organizers and three finalists to host the event beginning in 2027 and beyond. Utah's bid would split the event between Park City and Salt Lake City, which are the only two cities that have ever hosted the event since it originated in the 1970s.
"I'm not privy to what the discussions are happening internally, but if you just look at the history of Sundance, if you look at the package that was put together to work with them to help them stay here, I feel very good about it," he said during his monthly briefing with Utah reporters on Thursday. "The plan that we worked together with Salt Lake City and Park City together, I think, is a brilliant plan and a brilliant model, so I would be surprised if they didn't stay."
Park City/Salt Lake City is up against Boulder, Colorado, and Cincinnati, Ohio, after the Sundance Institute narrowed its field of future hosts in September 2024. The festival will remain in Park City next year, but the organization behind it opened the door for a new host when it began exploring "viable" U.S. locations to host the event beginning in 2027 and beyond as it has grown from a small event to a global phenomenon.
It originated as the Utah/United States Film Festival in Salt Lake City in 1978 before it was moved to Park City after a few years. The Sundance Institute took control of the event after the move.
Utah's challengers are reportedly offering strong incentives to lure the event out of the Beehive State. Colorado lawmakers, for example, are looking to offer up to $34 million in tax incentives for a festival that sells over 100,000 tickets and brings in more than 10,000 out-of-state visitors, the Durango Herald reported.
Cox said Utah's proposal isn't the "most lucrative package," adding that it likely wouldn't match that high of an offer offer. However, he said the state will likely consider additional items it can offer while Sundance is still weighing its options. He added that he's heard support from actors and others in Hollywood who want to keep the event in Utah.
Last year's festival generated $106.4 million in out-of-state spending and $132 million in economic impact while supporting over 1,700 jobs, according to Y2 Analytics.
The governor said it's a big economic driver the state wants to keep around, but it's also something that wouldn't break Utah if the state lost it. He likens the situation to Outdoor Retailer nearly a decade ago. Event organizers moved the event from Salt Lake City to Denver over issues with Utah's stance on public lands, while also receiving incentives, only to move back to Salt Lake City in 2023.
"I think it would be a huge mistake for Sundance — themselves — to move," he said. "It'd really be a death knell for Sundance. ... Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two, so (public and private sectors are) really hopeful we can provide the right type of package that keeps Sundance here."
The organization is expected to make a final decision sometime after the 2025 festival wraps up on Feb. 2.
