The spotlight is on the Sundance Film Festival at an unusual time of the year.
And unlike the annual festival in January, when there is plenty of information coming from Sundance and the Park City government, both have said little as the high-stakes process of selecting a place to host the top marketplace of independent films in the U.S. continues. Park City, where Sundance has been held for decades, is interested in keeping the lucrative event locally even as places across the United States vie to become the host.
Little is known about the status of the process other than an early phase, when Sundance requested information from prospective hosts, closed this week. Sundance declined to comment about the results of the early phase. The festival organizers refused to detail how many responses they received.
City Hall, meanwhile, did not immediately process a Park Record request filed under state open-records laws seeking information about a submittal to Sundance. The request seeks the municipal submittal to Sundance and any attachments, appendices or similar addenda related to the effort. The request, in the alternative, sought materials compiled by the municipal government that were considered for inclusion in a submittal by another party if City Hall itself did not file the materials with Sundance.
It is not clear when Park City leaders will address the issue in any depth in a public setting. Mayor Nann Worel and the Park City Council are believed to be playing a key role in the effort, but the details of their work are not clear. It is also likely the Park City tourism industry is already heavily involved or will be if the community advances to another step in the selection process.
Sundance is the largest and most lucrative event on the Park City calendar. It is widely considered to be one of the elite festivals on the global circuit, alongside those in places like the French Riviera city of Cannes, Toronto, Berlin and Venice, Italy.