The Sundance Film Festival has become one of the most prestigious independent film festivals in the world. What started in the mountains of Utah over 40 years ago has grown into a marquee annual event that draws the biggest names in the entertainment industry and launches fresh new talent every year. Though Sundance today hosts stars like Jennifer Lawrence, Quentin Tarantino, and Daniel Radcliffe, its beginnings were far more humble.
Origins of the Utah/US Film Festival
Back in the early 1960s, Utah was not considered any sort of hub for filmmaking or the arts. There were few opportunities for filmmakers to screen independent and avant-garde cinema outside of makeshift screenings in basement theaters or on college campuses. Sterling Van Wagenen, a young filmmaker and co-founder of the Utah Film Commission, sought to change that by organizing an annual statewide festival to celebrate film as an art form.
Van Wagenen enlisted the help of friends like John Earle and Cirina Hampton Catania to form a committee to get government sponsorship for hosting a competitive film festival in Salt Lake City in the late summer of 1969. They named it the “Utah Cinematic Arts Festival” with categories for documentary films and dramatic features. Though the first year saw setbacks due to delays in finalizing judging procedures, this small group of volunteers succeeded in screening 26 non-commercial films at the festival's first home of Salt Lake City's LDS Memorial Theatre in August 1969. An eclectic mix of experimental shorts, animated films, and dramatic features were shown that year, but due to the last-minute disorganization, no actual jury prizes were awarded.
About 2,200 people attended the four days of screenings spread over six different theatrical and college venues. Highlights included "Motorcyclette," "The Nurse," and "Old Zabriskie." Though it had its hiccups, the inaugural Utah festival accomplished Van Wagenen’s goal of celebrating film art through exhibitions that would be inaccessible to rural audiences if not for this showcase. The seeds were planted for it to become an annual August tradition highlighting independent films.
Expansion Under Redford
Due in part to clashes between the organizational committee and government officials expecting more say over operations, the Utah Cinematic Arts Festival ran up deficits of up to $18,000 in its first few years as the small team struggled to fund operations themselves. The 1970s saw leadership changes amidst growing skepticism that the festival could be more than a local attraction.
In 1979, moves were underway to dissolve the festival when new support arrived from an unlikely source - Hollywood star Robert Redford. A Utah resident and independent film devotee himself, Redford rode in offering to take stewardship and use his industry clout to elevate the small festival's profile.
Accepting Van Wagenen’s proposal, the actor had conditions like enhancing the focus to exclusively celebrate independent features and shorts. After consulting with colleagues about renaming the event, Redford settled on adopting the moniker “U.S. Film Festival” starting in 1980.
With Redford's clout, big name guests and studios agreed to cooperate instead of viewing Sundance as a distraction. More competitive divisions like International Films were added and attendance nearly doubled by 1982. Further rising prestige and Hollywood interest led Redford and his National Endowment for the Arts advisors to push for Park City, UT as a more ideal setting vs Salt Lake City venues.
1986 saw the first Park City hosting of the now Robert Redford’s U.S. Film Festival at locations like the Egyptian Theatre on Main Street. Though still trailing other U.S. festivals in prominence, Redford upgraded exhibition and judge accommodations to entice more submissions. Acceptance as an elite festival grew after 1988 when Steven Soderbergh’s sex, lies, and videotape claimed the Audience Award. The film’s commercial and critical success, combined with new sponsorships, set the stage for rapid ascent.
The Era of Sundance
By 1990, the vision for what the festival could be began matching the reality. More movies were getting distribution deals as Hollywood power brokers realized Park City in January was a potential goldmine for discovering new talent and screening edgy independent films without pressure from studios. As the festival’s reputation swelled, Redford and his Director of Programming Geoffrey Gilmore launched the name change to Sundance Film Festival. The iconic Sundance Film Festival name debuted in 1991.
Though the origins stem from actor Robert Redford's involvement, he and organizers wanted their image to shift from merely being Redford's vanity project to Sundance becoming synonymous worldwide with celebrating indie film. The early 90s saw attendance rising past 15,000 as Sundance further differentiated itself from other festivals via its industry office that facilitated distribution negotiations. Winning the annual Sundance Grand Jury Prize or Audience Award now held real sway for catapulting small films to commercial success.
Soderbergh’s follow-up sex lies in 1993 only strengthened Sundance’s industry weight. By mid-decade, nearly every big name in Hollywood was making the trek to Park City chasing that year’s sensation like Reservoir Dogs, Before Sunrise, Shine, and In the Company of Men. Kevin Smith’s ultra low-budget Clerks in 1994 fit perfectly with the festival’s mission of uplifting new voices. Meanwhile, major stars increasingly had pet indie passion projects that only Sundance offered the ideal launchpad for without big studio pressures.
Continued Growth Into Today
As Sundance raced towards the 21st century, its place as the top U.S. festival and fertile arena for launching iconic directors’ careers and Oscar hopefuls became cemented. Filmmakers often cite screening at Sundance as the pinnacle achievement that provides the ideal springboard to the top. Veterans and newcomers alike make the year’s first major festival a pivotal platform for their most beloved creations.
From lean beginnings with one part-time staffer in 1985 Sundance evolved into 150 year-round employees putting together over 200 annual screenings by 2010. Ticket demand so outpaced the Park City locales that satellite screenings emerged in Salt Lake City and Ogden. Sundance also became a cultural staple that attracted not just film industry luminaries but musicians, major brands, and tens of thousands of fans basking yearly in the glow of this indie haven.
The Glitz and Bidding Wars
Today, the 10 day Sundance Film Festival every January may as well be a glossy celebrity showcase and bidding war bonanza as much as a champion of low budget unknowns. Yet a walk along the snowy streets still conjures that energetic, frontier spirit that Sundance first sparked. The 2020 edition hosted over 120,000 attendees filtering through Park City and Sundance Resort venues to catch 118 feature films culled from 15,000 hopeful submissions. Grand Jury winners like Minari and Never Rarely Sometimes Always capture headlines while sparking distributor fights over rights.
Much has transformed over 30 years. But Sundance remains that magical setting where both no name directors and the biggest stars come to unveil their boldest artistic statements. All chasing the dream that their film might become the next Reservoir Dogs, Little Miss Sunshine, Whiplash, or Get Out that leapfrogs from the snowy streets of Utah to the red carpet in Hollywood.
What Sundance Represents
What Sundance represents - creative risk-taking, championing new voices, artistic passion projects, and yes, even million-dollar distribution deals, endures even amidst the glitz. That special Sundance spark igniting game-changing cinema and talent burns bright as the festival heads toward its 50th Anniversary.
The Legacy
The legacy left behind after over 40 years is staggering when one considers the little film showcase Robert Redford inherited back in the early 80s. credit, Sundance played an enormous role in shaping the modern indie film industry by proving small, provocative films had serious mainstream commercial potential. Stars and studios no longer view indie passion projects as irrelevant or distracting thanks to Sundance opening their eyes.
Beyond the screens, the festival birthed various institutes and workshops to cultivate filmmaker voices year-round. Entire Oscar campaigns have been built off Sundance buzz for talents like Soderbergh, Tarantino, and Damien Chazelle. Simply securing a slot for your film at Sundance means for many the dream of actually making it in Hollywood now feels tantalizingly close thanks to the Shot in the arm the festival provides.
For fans, Sundance carries that allure of catching tomorrow’s iconic classics like Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Reservoir Dogs, or Whiplash before the rest of the world. There is no comparable atmosphere of buzzing energy and expectation where starry premieres happen alongside intimate panel discussions on cinematic trends - all with snowy Rockies majesty engulfing it.
What Sterling Van Wagenen helped birth by screening a handful of abstract 1970s films to scarcely 2,000 Utah locals has blossomed into the eminent festival future generations of directors aspire to premiere their creations. Attendance may swell above 120,000 now, but that spark Van Wagenen set alight - celebrating film's power to uplift new voices and change how we see the world, continues burning bright every January in the Sundance mountains. Thanks for listening to Quiet Please remember to like and share wherever you get your podcasts.

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