15 Tips for Navigating the Sundance Film Festival 2018 This upcoming January will mark my 9th year of incredible moving watching at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. My husband and his best friend started going while they were still in university. Once I arrived on the scene I was welcomed to the annual pilgrimage as a fellow film lover. They were pros by then and knew the cheap and sneaky ways to navigate the festival. Many years later we're now a much larger group of friends and family who come together every chilly January to celebrate the joy of movies.
Over the years we've seen star-studded blockbusters and watched new filmmakers cry after their first movie screening, we've seen documentaries on topics from immigration and gun control to video game creation and Vogue magazine, and what might be enough experimental animated shorts to fill a lifetime.
If you're making the trip this January 18th-28th, here are my 15 tips for making the most of the Sundance Film Festival.
1. Don't buy tickets online in advance First off, the process sucks. Secondly, by booking yourself early you'll end up missing some incredible gems that might not have had as much press.
We like to head to the ticket office super early in the morning of our first day and read the brochure while we're in line. When it's our turn to buy, we pick movies based on ticket availability and our schedule. We end up with an eclectic mix which is absolutely the point!
2. Plan for travel time Our goal is to see 3-4 movies per day while we're there. (Usually 3 full movie watching days.) That schedule means we need to get up early and go to bed late. We leave plenty of time between movies to get to and from each theater location and try to factor in some meals while we're at it.
3. Embrace the wait lines Yes, you will be standing in line! There are no designated seats. You might not sit next to your friends. You might not get in. Get to screenings early and be prepared to stand in line.
4. Don't focus on the big name blockbusters Between the actual studios and Netflix etc., most of them get bought these days anyway so you'll get to watch them later. You'll spend a ton of time waiting in line and really all you get is bragging rights that you saw it first.
5. Use the buses Park City has been hosting the Sundance Film Festival for a long time now and they know what they're doing. They have a few movie theater dedicated bus loops that are FREE and run quickly and on schedule.
6. Try not to mob the celebrities Just, try.
7. Mix it up It's easy to stick with the US or World Dramatic categories, but it's way more fun to see films from every category. After Dark midnight movie showings are always weird and fabulous. Shorts Collections have never let me down. Make sure you see anything with subtitles in the middle of the day after some coffee. And support the NEXT category of up and coming filmmakers.
8. Book early and start saving early Yes, going to the Sundance Film Festival is expensive. This is not new news. It has only gotten more expensive over the years. The movie tickets themselves were $8 when my husband started going in 2006, $12 when I did, and now they're up to $20. Plus flights, food etc.. But, for us, the experience is still worth it.
9. Enjoy everything else Park City has to offer For my group, this means food and booze! I recommend the Jalapeno Cream Ale and apple pie at Wasatch Brew Pub, the whiskey and mac and cheese at High West Distillery, the huevos rancheros breakfast at Main St Pizza, the birria and tacos at Lorenzo's Mexican restaurant, and the salad bar and meatloaf or prime rib at Grub Steak. You're welcome!
10. Watch out for Salt Lake City listings There are a couple of theaters that show Sundance Film Festival movies in Salt Lake City - which is a couple of hours away from Park City. So beware of accidentally purchasing tickets to those theaters.
11. Blindly but confidently pick award winners! If you go for the second weekend you'll see most of Sunday's listings are yet to be named Award Winners. The awards ceremony is held on the final Saturday night of the festival and most all of Sunday's showings are films that win those categories. Just buy tickets for them. You are guaranteed to see something amazing. Hands down some of the best movies I've seen at Sundance have been winners of the best editing category.
12. Plan for extreme weather Park City is a ski town - there's lots of snow! Sometimes a cozy sweater will do and at other times you'll want jackets and scarves and hats and boots. Maybe there will be flurries or maybe you'll be navigating your route in a blizzard. We've twice had to stay an extra day because the airports have closed. It's part of the experience. Bring extra socks! Don't give up!
13. Use the waitlist system carefully The Sundance powers that be only sell out a set percentage of each showing so there are a certain number of seats available on the day. First dibs go to fancy Festival pass folks and then the festival workers. After them there's the waitlist. It's an automated system on the Sundance Film Festival free app. Two hours before each showing the waitlist opens up and you log in to get a waitlist number.
As of last year you were able to log in two people at a time. Your whole party will need to have profiles on the app to do this. You'll hit the button right at the 2-hour mark and get a high number probably in the 100s. But don't despair! Most people don't show up so if it's a film you really want to see, set aside the time and head to the theater. You'll need to be in the waitlist line at least a half hour early.
14. Get to know your theaters The biggest theater holds over 1000 and the smallest
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15 Tips for Navigating the Sundance Film Festival 2018 This upcoming January will mark my 9th year of incredible moving watching at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. My husband and his best friend started going while they were still in university. Once I arrived on the scene I was welcomed to the annual pilgrimage as a fellow film lover. They were pros by then and knew the cheap and sneaky ways to navigate the festival. Many years later we're now a much larger group of friends and family who come together every chilly January to celebrate the joy of movies.
