COVID-19 has greatly affected the film festival world in 2020. Many events have been canceled, some went online, and for the fall fests, we don’t really know what’s going to happen yet. So, it would be foolish to already look ahead to 2021 and what could be happening to those film festivals that are still more than half a year away. But Sundance isn’t willing to sit around and wait. The Utah film event is coming in January and the festival is already revealing a bold new direction it will take in 2021, largely driven by current events but also the addition of a new festival director, Tabitha Jackson.
Jackson recently penned a blog post on the official Sundance site about the future of the festival. And though there are no set plans, the Sundance Film Festival and its new director do have a blueprint for what the future of the festival might look like. A future that is partially a response to economics and the global pandemic, but also one that apparently is the way the festival would have been heading anyway.
Jackson described the new blueprint:
“An edition respectful of the public health situation, responsive to the moment, and reimagined in and for extraordinary times; An edition doubling down on our values of access, equity, inclusivity, and independence; An expanded Festival in which we preserve the possibility of in-person gathering while providing access to those unable or unwilling to travel; A unique celebration of independent cinema and community; A single festival expressed locally, globally, in-person, and online.”
So, what does this type of festival look like? Well, Jackson and the rest of the Sundance organizers are figuring out the 2021 event based on a few assumptions—there isn’t going to be a COVID-19 vaccine available at the time, travel will be greatly limited, and the number of Utah theaters that will be available will be limited, as well. And because of that, Sundance 2021 is branching out.
“The 2021 Sundance Film Festival will be a grand partnership of communities,” wrote Jackson. “It will take place live in Utah and in at least 20 independent and community cinemas across the U.S. and beyond.”
She added, “While the full program plays out in Utah, each of our partners will host a bespoke slate from the official selection alongside complementary programming of their own. Their communities acting as vibrant hubs of creativity, maker culture, and adventurous audiences.”
And another major aspect of the new Sundance format will be an online hub for audience members to view content such as films, as well as Q&As and more.
“At the center of all our planning, the 2021 Sundance Film Festival will have an online home, making the festival accessible in a way it never has been before,” she said. “Audiences will have the opportunity to view the curated program and take part in discussions and special live events online via a brand-new platform.”
Of course, there are no official, concrete announcements to be made. Considering we are seven months from the event, and the world is changing on a daily basis, Jackson and the Sundance crew are just beginning the discussion about what might happen. In a perfect world, the COVID-19 pandemic will be gone by January and Sundance can continue without any issues. But that’s not reality and it appears that the Utah event isn’t going to wait until the last minute to figure out an alternative.
So, we’ll just have to wait and see what final form Sundance 2021 takes. But as of now, it appears that next year’s event will look very different from previous editions and that it could signal the future of the film festival.