Park City will compete with five cities to keep the Sundance Film Festival

The egyptian theater Sundance Film Festival Photo: Sundance Institute.

The six cities selected to move forward in the next phase of the process to host the Sundance Film Festival are Atlanta, Boulder, Cincinnati, Louisville, Park City/Salt Lake City, and Santa Fe.

PARK CITY, Utah — The nonprofit Sundance Institute has announced six finalists in its request for proposal process for the 2027 Sundance Film Festival host location. The selected cities are Atlanta, Boulder, Cincinnati, Louisville, Park City/Salt Lake City, and Santa Fe. Submissions opened on May 7 and closed on June 21.

The evaluation focused on each city’s infrastructure, event hosting capabilities, and alignment with the festival’s values of equity and sustainability. Site visits will be conducted to further assess the potential of each location.

Sundance Institute Acting CEO Amanda Kelso stated, “We believe these six finalists offer the best opportunity to secure a sustainable future for our festival while supporting the next generation of storytellers.”

The 2025 and 2026 festivals will be held in Park City and Salt Lake City. The decision for the 2027 location will be announced after thorough site evaluations.

Two Cities. One Experience

The future vision for hosting the festival in Park City includes expanding the event in both Park City and Salt Lake City. While the Festival has always held screenings and events outside Park City, the committee’s RFP plan expands on that dual city approach. The bid committee hopes that the restructuring will provide opportunities to utilize additional venues and reach new audiences.

A statement from the Park City/Salt Lake City RFP Bid leadership said that “We’ve been fortunate to host the Sundance Film Festival and witness some of the greatest films made over the past 40 years. And now, we are committed to working in partnership on a new vision of ‘Two Cities, One Experience’ with a shared goal of reinvigorating the Festival with an even greater tradition for storytelling over the next 40 years. At the heart of our proposal is a commitment to ensuring it remains an inspiring showcase of independent film, bringing together audiences and creators from all walks of life.” – Mayors Nann Worel (Park City), Erin Mendenhall (Salt Lake City), Jenny Wilson (Salt Lake County)