Sundance leaves Park City

Daily Blog - 31 March 2025 - Sundance leaves Park City
Inline image

Much strum und drang has been generated around town (Park City, UT) about Sundance Film Festival moving, after forty years being held in Park City, to Boulder, Colorado. Many Parkites fret about the lost income to the city and about the loss of a cultural icon that set Park City apart among ski towns.

Some city officials claim that the Utah state legislature's decision this year to ban pride flags from state buildings and schools drove the festival to seek a more culturally hospitable venue. One Park City councilman even put forward a proposal to poke a finger in the state of Utah's eye and incorporate the pride flag into the city logo The bill actually said that only the US flag or the Utah state flag can fly in public buildings, a principle with which I am in agreement. The state should be seen to represent all of its citizens and not this or that group. Can you imagine Utah public buildings being draped with LDS banners? Same goes for the city. Incorporating religious or quasi-religious tropes into the city's ethos fans the flames of controversy. The city should concentrate on "roads and commodes" and facilitating a positive ski vacation experience.

It is true that the woke, Hollywood oriented Sundance acolytes (and maybe even some in Park City's leadership) are increasingly at loggerheads with country's conservative evolving cultural zeitgeist. But why fan the flames of controversy by leveraging Park City to make your point? How about, as a pivot away from wrangling with the state, the city put its muscle behind something less controversial...let's say... umm... skiing? World class mega ski is coming with the Deer Valley expansion and the 2034 Olympics. Park City can turn lemons into lemonade by directing its attention to promotions more consistent with its raison d'etre ...a world class skiing experience.

And have a heart for Sundance festival goers in Boulder. The abundance of pot in Boulder (illegal in Park City) will be a significant upgrade in amenities for the festival attending people in black (PIBs) and their moviegoing pals.

I'm not worried about negative economic impact coming from the festival's decision to move to Boulder. Increased skier visits will supplant the $60 million Sundance economic "loss."

Being a daily skier, I have been more or less neutral about Sundance in the twenty-five years I've lived in Park City. The empty slopes at Sundance time were always too good to pass up. But I saw a half dozen films using free tickets provided by friends. Two films that I really liked were "Pussy Riot," and "Napoleon Dynamite."

There is a time and place for everything. Now is the time for preparing to become a world class ski destination and the 2034 Winter Olympics. Forty years for Sundance was a great run.