Free Sundance films coming to Park City and Salt Lake City this summer

Photo: Sundance Institue.

PARK CITY, Utah — The Sundance Institute announced the 2026 Sundance Film Festival: Local Lens, a free summer screening series for Utah residents, set for July 18-19 at two venues across the state.

Screenings will take place at the Library Center Theatre in Park City and the Utah Film Center in Salt Lake City, in collaboration with Park City Film and Utah Film Center. Tickets are available now at sundance.org/local-lens.

“We are incredibly excited to host the 2026 Sundance Film Festival: Local Lens free movie screening series for our beloved local Utah community as a part of our year-round programming,” said Eugene Hernandez, Director, Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming. “We have immense gratitude for our Utah audiences and look forward to bringing them some of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival’s most groundbreaking, inspiring projects. We can’t wait to see you there!”

The series will screen four films, two fiction and two documentary, before their wider releases. Filmmakers will introduce their films and participate in Q&As following each screening.

The films

“Union County,” a fiction film directed and written by Adam Meeks, follows Cody Parsons, a young man assigned to a county-mandated drug court program who embarks on a tenuous journey toward recovery amid the opioid epidemic in rural Ohio. The film stars Will Poulter, Noah Centineo, Elise Kibler, Emily Meade and Annette Deao, and is distributed by Oscilloscope.

“Take Me Home,” written and directed by Liz Sargent, won the 2026 Sundance Film Festival Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award in the U.S. Dramatic category. The film centers on Anna, a 38-year-old Korean adoptee with a cognitive disability, who cares for her aging parents in a fragile balance of mutual need. When a Florida heat wave disrupts their lives, Anna must find a way to build a world where she can thrive. The film is distributed by WILLA.

“The Lake,” directed by Abby Ellis, received the 2026 Sundance Film Festival U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Impact for Change. The documentary follows two scientists and a political insider as they race to save Utah from what the filmmakers describe as an environmental nuclear bomb threatening the state.

“TheyDream,” directed by William David Caballero, received the 2026 Sundance Film Festival NEXT Special Jury Award for Creative Expression presented by Adobe. The documentary chronicles a filmmaker and his mother as they face devastating losses after 20 years of capturing their Puerto Rican family on film. Together, they craft animations to bring loved ones back to life, finding that every act of creation is also an act of letting go.

Schedule

Utah Film Center | 375 W. 400 North, Salt Lake City

Saturday, July 18, 1 p.m. — Union County

Saturday, July 18, 4 p.m. — Take Me Home

Saturday, July 18, 7 p.m. — The Lake

Jim Santy Auditorium at Library Center Theatre | 1255 Park Ave., Park City

Sunday, July 19, 1 p.m. — The Lake

Sunday, July 19, 4 p.m. — TheyDream

Sunday, July 19, 7 p.m. — Union County

The Local Lens series is part of Sundance Institute’s year-round programming as a Utah-based nonprofit. The Utah Community Program is supported by Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts & Parks (ZAP); Peggy Bergmann; Salt Lake City Arts Council; Salt Lake City Mayor’s Office Arts, Culture & Entertainment Grant; and major sponsors Acura and Adobe.

You buy dinner, Park City Film buys the movie tickets