There is more becoming known about the cast of cities seeking the Sundance Film Festival.
Media reports this week point to efforts by Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Nashville, Tennessee, to become the host city of the festival, the top marketplace of independent films in the U.S.
The media coverage in Santa Fe and Nashville provided limited details about the bids by those two communities, but the information is notable with Sundance itself providing almost no information as it continues the selection process.
The effort by Santa Fe is likely not a surprise to those who follow Sundance. The capital of New Mexico is one of the nation’s top arts destinations and has the infrastructure that would be needed to stage Sundance. There has been scattered chatter for years, long before the current process, about Santa Fe perhaps someday becoming the Sundance host.
Nashville, another state capital, also offers the infrastructure required by Sundance. It has a thriving arts scene, and the music scene stretches beyond the country genre for which it is known.
The information about the work by Santa Fe and Nashville follows shortly after bids by Boulder, Colorado, and Atlanta received publicity. Officials in Colorado and Atlanta have crafted seven-figure incentive packages for Sundance, should the festival relocate.
Park City is mounting a bid to keep Sundance in its longtime location. The festival is the most lucrative event on the community’s calendar, with the lodging, restaurant and transportation industries usually enjoying some of the best numbers of the year during Sundance.
City Hall has declined to provide details about the submittal to Sundance and recently declined to provide comment regarding the total dollar value of the proposal, the parties that contributed to the proposal, and the mechanism to fund the proposal.
Park City and Sundance have an agreement that covers festivals through 2026, and the 2025 and 2026 editions are planned to be held as normal. Any relocation of the festival would begin with the 2027 event.