BOULDER, Colo. — Boulder has officially lured the iconic Sundance Film Festival away from Park City, Utah and its four decades of history there.
The announcement Thursday came just under a year after the Sundance Institute began a process to consider other host locations – and just over a half-century after the University of Colorado ghosted actor and institute founder Robert Redford on the idea of a film festival there.
Redford attended CU Boulder for one year in the 1950s and got his start at the Historic Elitch Theater in Denver. And while his time in Colorado was brief, he developed a fondness for the area.
Redford wanted to launch a film festival and, according to an article in the Denver Post archives, in 1974 pitched the idea of hosting it at CU Boulder. Then-Gov. Dick Lamm, a CU professor and others heard his pitch.
"I had this idea (for a festival) that had been stewing around," he told the paper back in 2000. "I thought I'd throw this feeler out and see if the university was interested. And that would be my gift to the university, even though I didn't get much out of it and they were not too impressed with me when I was there."
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Already a star from movies like “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “Jeremiah Johnson,”Redford planned to put some of his own money down to start the endeavor, according to the Post article – but no one from the university got back to him, he told the paper.
Redford, of course, would start the Sundance Institute in 1981 and ultimately the festival in Park City in 1985.
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Forty years later, the festival – and its massive economic impact – is now destined for the base of the Colorado foothills.
“Words cannot express the sincere gratitude I have for Park City, the state of Utah, and all those in the Utah community that have helped to build the organization. What we've created is remarkably special and defining,” Redford said in a press release announcing the move to Boulder starting in 2027. “As change is inevitable, we must always evolve and grow, which has been at the core of our survival. This move will ensure that the Festival continues its work of risk taking, supporting innovative storytellers, fostering independence, and entertaining and enlightening audiences.”
“I am grateful to the Boulder community for its support, and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for the Festival there.”
- SWEETENING THE POT: A bill that would create a tax credit for film festivals moved one step forward in the Colorado Senate Thursday
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