Sundance Film Festival Is ‘Meeting Audiences Where They Are’

The Sundance Film Festival has been a virtual affair the past two years. Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Institute // Jemal Countess

PARK CITY, Utah. — The Sundance Film Festival announced Wednesday (Dec. 2) the multiple ways film fans can participate in the annual event scheduled for Jan. 28 through Feb. 3, 2021. From drive-ins in Alabama to independent movie theaters in Puerto Rico and livestreaming via an online platform, these are the “new normal” ways to “Sundance”.

The 2021 Festival will be the the same celebration of films, only how and where viewers watch them will be different. The Sundance Institute released a statement that this online method of broadcasting “will provide global access for storytellers and audiences alike to come together, experience artists new work, connect with one another, and participate in conversation.” Those who wish to stay in the know and participate in online streaming should create an account to begin their 2021 festival experience.

The Festival’s goal this year is to “meet audiences where they are” by working within Covid-19 guidelines and restrictions. In doing so, the Sundance Institute is supporting local independent movie theaters across the nation and increasing accessibility to film screenings by sharing them online.

“Thanks to a constellation of independent cinema communities across the U.S. we are not putting on our Festival alone,” Tabitha Jackson, first year Festival director said in a statement. “At the heart of all this is a belief in the power of coming together, and the desire to preserve what makes a festival unique — a collaborative spirit, a collective energy, and a celebration of the art, artists, and ideas that leave us changed.”

Further details about festival programming will be released later in December. To view a list of organizations and locations partnering with the Festival for 2020, visit Sundance.org.