After more than four decades synonymous with the snowy streets of Park City, the Sundance Film Festival is getting a new home.
Beginning in 2027, the world’s most famous independent film festival will swap Utah for Boulder, Colorado, bringing premieres, filmmakers, celebrities and thousands of movie fans to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
The move marks one of the biggest changes in Sundance history. Park City hosted its final edition in January 2026, while the first Sundance Film Festival Boulder will take place from January 21 to 31, 2027.
But why is Sundance leaving Utah? Why was Boulder chosen? And what will actually change for movie lovers hoping to attend?
Here’s everything to know about Sundance’s new Colorado era.
When Is the Sundance Film Festival Moving to Boulder?
The Sundance Film Festival will officially make its Boulder debut from January 21–31, 2027.
Sundance Institute confirmed Boulder as the festival’s new home in March 2025 following a lengthy search for its next host city.
The move means the January 2026 festival was Sundance’s final edition based in Park City, closing a chapter that helped transform the Utah mountain town into one of the most recognisable destinations on the international film calendar.
Boulder isn’t being treated as a temporary stop. Sundance has described the Colorado city as the festival’s home “beginning in 2027 and beyond.”
Why Is Sundance Leaving Park City?
Sundance’s departure from Park City followed a wider search for a location capable of supporting the festival’s future.
The Sundance Institute began considering potential new host cities ahead of the expiration of its existing Utah agreement, eventually narrowing the competition to three finalists: Boulder, Cincinnati and a joint Salt Lake City/Park City bid.
When announcing Boulder as the winner in March 2025, Sundance said the city offered a combination of small-town character, an engaged community, natural beauty and an established arts scene, while also providing room for the festival to grow.
Festival director Eugene Hernandez said the relocation offered Sundance an opportunity to continue its four-decade journey while creating a gathering place where filmmakers, audiences and the wider industry could discover new independent storytelling.
The move therefore isn’t simply about abandoning Park City. Sundance has framed it as an opportunity to rethink how the festival works for its next era.
Why Did Sundance Choose Boulder?
On paper, Boulder shares some obvious similarities with the Sundance experience audiences already know.
It’s a relatively compact city surrounded by dramatic mountain scenery, sitting directly beneath Colorado’s famous Flatirons.
But Boulder also offers something Park City doesn’t: a major university campus.
The University of Colorado Boulder will become an important part of the festival, with several university theatres and auditoriums included among Sundance’s official 2027 venues.
Sundance also highlighted Boulder’s combination of arts, technology, music, food, entrepreneurship and education when announcing the move.
Its downtown provides another major advantage.
Rather than having the festival dispersed across a sprawling metropolitan area, Sundance plans to centre much of the experience around downtown Boulder and Pearl Street, the city’s pedestrianised shopping and dining district.
Visit Boulder has also highlighted the city’s walkable downtown and mountain setting as part of the experience awaiting festivalgoers.
Where Will Sundance Screenings Take Place in Boulder?
Sundance has now revealed the official venues for its first Colorado festival — and screenings will take place throughout Boulder rather than inside one central complex.
The Boulder Theater, with its distinctive Art Deco marquee in downtown Boulder, will become one of the festival’s most recognisable new homes.
Sundance has already begun highlighting the historic venue ahead of 2027. Opened in 1936, the Boulder Theater has hosted generations of performers and will now welcome Sundance movie premieres and screenings.
Other official cinemas and screening venues include:
Boedecker Theater at Dairy Arts Center
Boulder High School Auditorium
Casey Middle School Auditorium
Chautauqua Auditorium
Cinemark Century Boulder
eTown Hall
Gordon Gamm Theater at Dairy Arts Center
Macky Auditorium Concert Hall at the University of Colorado Boulder
Muenzinger Auditorium at the University of Colorado Boulder
Roe Green Theatre at the University of Colorado Boulder
Additional talks and festival programming will take place at the Boulder Public Library’s Canyon Theater, Dairy Arts Center, eTown Hall and Old Main at CU Boulder.
That spread means visitors will experience several different parts of Boulder throughout the festival, from its historic downtown to the university campus and the foothills.
Will Pearl Street Become the New Main Street?
Potentially – although it won’t be an exact replica of Park City.
For decades, Main Street in Park City was effectively Sundance’s unofficial living room. Restaurants, hotels, pop-up brand spaces, parties and industry events transformed the historic street every January.
In Boulder, Pearl Street Mall looks likely to inherit at least some of that role.
When Sundance announced the move, the Institute specifically said it envisioned the heart of the festival being centred around downtown Boulder and incorporating spaces surrounding Pearl Street Mall.
The four-block pedestrian district is lined with restaurants, bars and shops, making it a natural gathering point between screenings.
However, the inclusion of venues across CU Boulder and other parts of the city means Sundance 2027 is likely to feel more distributed than simply transplanting everything from one famous street to another.
Where Is Boulder?
Boulder sits at the base of the Rocky Mountains in northern Colorado.
According to Visit Boulder, the city is around 40 miles northwest of Denver International Airport and has a population of approximately 105,000.
The city sits at an elevation of around 5,430 feet, considerably lower than some of Colorado’s high-altitude ski resorts.
Its location also means Sundance will retain one of the most recognisable ingredients of its identity: a dramatic mountain backdrop.
Instead of Park City’s ski slopes, festivalgoers will look towards Boulder’s Flatirons, the distinctive rock formations rising immediately behind the city.
Is Boulder Easier to Reach Than Park City?
For international visitors in particular, Boulder has an interesting advantage.
The city is around 40 miles from Denver International Airport, one of the largest airports in the United States.
Visitors will still need to travel from the airport to Boulder, but Denver’s extensive domestic and international connections make Colorado relatively accessible from major U.S. cities and overseas.
Once in Boulder, Sundance is designing much of the festival around established neighbourhoods, downtown and the CU campus.
Exactly how transportation between festival venues will operate should become clearer as Sundance releases its full visitor information ahead of January.
Where Should You Stay for Sundance Boulder?
For visitors who want to be immersed in the festival atmosphere, downtown Boulder is likely to be one of the most convenient areas.
Staying around Pearl Street would put visitors close to restaurants, shops and the downtown festival environment, including Boulder Theater.
Other accommodation options are available around the university and elsewhere in Boulder.
Visit Boulder has already launched dedicated 2027 Sundance accommodation information, including Boulder hotels, short-term rentals and regional accommodation.
With the festival bringing thousands of additional visitors to a relatively small city, booking accommodation early is likely to be particularly important during its inaugural year.
Will Sundance Still Be a Mountain Film Festival?
Geographically, yes – just a different kind.
Park City sits high in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains and skiing became deeply intertwined with the festival’s image. Boulder isn’t a ski resort.
Instead, it’s a university and outdoors city sitting where the plains meet the Rocky Mountains, with the Flatirons towering over its western edge.
Visit Boulder says the city has around 160 miles of hiking trails, meaning festivalgoers will still have plenty of opportunities to escape into the outdoors between screenings.
The result could give Sundance a slightly different travel identity: less ski-town exclusivity and more of a walkable mountain-city atmosphere.
Does the Sundance Institute Still Have Ties to Utah?
Yes – and this is an important distinction.
The Sundance Film Festival is moving. The Sundance Institute itself isn’t leaving Utah altogether.
Visit Boulder specifically notes that while the annual festival will relocate to Colorado, the Sundance Institute will remain connected to Utah.
The organisation’s year-round work supporting independent filmmakers extends far beyond the 10-day festival, including artist labs, fellowships, grants and development programmes.
So while Boulder becomes the place movie fans associate with Sundance every January, the organisation’s history and ongoing relationship with Utah won’t simply disappear.
When Is Sundance Film Festival Boulder 2027?
The first Sundance Film Festival Boulder will run from Thursday, January 21 through Sunday, January 31, 2027.
Sundance says world premieres will take place during the opening portion of the festival, with additional screenings continuing throughout the 11-day event.
It will mark the beginning of an entirely new chapter for a festival that helped launch films including Reservoir Dogs, Little Miss Sunshine, Get Out, CODA, Past Lives, Whiplash and Call Me by Your Name.
Park City may forever be intertwined with Sundance history, but from January 2027, independent cinema has a new mountain home – and for movie-loving travellers, Boulder is about to become one of the most important film destinations in America.
Will you be attending Sundance Film Festival Boulder? Let us know!