Utahns got an early chance Tuesday to buy a ticket package for the 2025 Sundance Film Festival — six months before the festival starts — but that opportunity came and went fast.
The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced Tuesday afternoon that the festival’s early bird ticket sale sold out, just hours after the sale started.
“We are grateful for the overwhelming response to this sale, but understand that many of you were not able to make their desired purchases, and for that, we are truly sorry,” Jyn Van Putten, the institute’s associate director of development, said in a statement.
A locals-only ticket package for next year’s festival — set for Jan. 23-Feb. 2 — was one of three ticket options available.
The Locals Ticket Package: In Person costs $650, and features 10 in-person tickets to screenings for the entire festival run at Park City and Salt Lake City venues — and allows early access to ticket selection next January. This package is only for Utah residents with valid ID.
Also on sale starting Tuesday: A Festival Package for $850, which also offers 10 in-person tickets for screenings during the festival’s run; and the Salt Lake City Pass, for $550, which permits unlimited screenings at Salt Lake City venues.
Eugene Hernandez, director of the Sundance Film Festival and public programming for the Sundance Institute, announced some logistical updates in a letter to festival patrons Monday:
• Films will start premiering at the festival at noon on Thursday, January 23, and will continue through Tuesday, January 28, in Park City, and screenings will start Friday, January 24, in Salt Lake City venues.
• As the festival did last year, films in the competition categories (including Next) will be available online during the festival’s final four days, Thursday-Sunday, Jan. 30-Feb. 2. Films in other sections will be invited to take part in the online program.
• The program will include more than 90 feature-length films and more than 50 short films — similar to what the 2024 festival screened.
• The venues for Park City will be: The Eccles Theater, Holiday Village Cinemas, Library Center Theatre, Megaplex Theaters Park City at Redstone, and The Ray. The company that used to run the Holiday Village and the Redstone went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy; the Utah-based Megaplex took over the Redstone.
Notably missing from the list is the festival’s iconic location, the Egyptian Theatre on Main Street, whose marquee is synonymous with Sundance. KPCW reported Monday that negotiations between the Sundance Institute and the theater are ongoing.
• The two Salt Lake City venues listed are the Broadway Centre Cinemas and the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center. One venue used last year that’s not on the list is the Megaplex Theatres at The Gateway.
• Other events, like conversations and panels, are scheduled for the Filmmakers Lodge on Park City’s Main Street, and The Box at The Ray. The “Beyond Film” talks program will run in person through Friday, Jan. 31. The festival’s awards ceremony also will take place Jan. 31.
• The DoubleTree by Hilton Park City — known to old-timers as The Yarrow — will be set up as a hub for artists, industry and press. The DoubleTree last year was headquarters for the companion Slamdance Film Festival, which announced earlier this year that it would relocating to the Los Angeles area.