Sundance Film Festival updated it COVID-19 health safety protocols as result of increasing concerns surrounding the omicron variant which is now confirmed in all 50 states roughly three weeks after it was first detected in the U.S. The festival is now requiring boosters for all in-person attendees and theaters will operate at reduced capacity with no eating or drinking permitted in theaters

Read the festival’s announcement:

The health safety of our community is paramount. The 2022 Sundance Film Festival has been designed as a hybrid event that has flexibility for attendees to participate in-person and/or online. Early on, the Festival put in place strict in-person health safety measures requiring all participants to be fully vaccinated and to wear masks in all venues and lines. Testing requirements were added, requiring community members (employees, volunteers, artists, press and industry) to show a negative test completed within 48 hours prior to arriving at the Festival, with additional testing requirements for those attending private gatherings of artists taking part in Q&A’s or press activities.

We have been closely monitoring the daily developments of Omicron and continue to follow expert advice and national and local guidance. We are continuing to evaluate enhanced safety measures for onsite elements around capacity, non-film events, and food and beverages. In addition to our existing health safety measures of requiring vaccinations, mask wearing, and testing to maximize safety, today we are announcing the following policy updates for the in person Festival and sharing details on vaccine verification procedures and onsite vaccination verification and testing hub locations.

COVID-19 Vaccination

• Boosters are now required for all in-person attendees (employees, volunteers, contractors, general public, artists, partners, press, and industry) who are eligible and for who the CDC recommends, currently everyone ages 16 and older. We urge all who are eligible to receive the booster now.
• Updated vaccination requirements. All participants are required to be fully vaccinated at least two weeks prior to attending the Festival and if eligible have received a booster prior to attending the Festival in person. Currently, fully vaccinated is defined as two weeks after the second dose of a two-dose series (Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19, Moderna), a single dose of Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine, or following the protocol for other WHO-approved vaccines.
• Vaccination and booster verification, for those eligible, need to be shown on site at a Vaccine Verification and Testing Hub and once shown, each participant will be provided a wristband that will need to be worn at all times. Further details below.

Masks

• In addition to mask wearing being required in all Festival-operated venues, we strongly recommend individuals continue wearing masks indoors when in public places or private shared spaces to help protect themselves from the spread of COVID-19.
  • We encourage each person to keep their mask on, especially at any gathering when not actively eating/drinking, and when doing that, place the mask back on between sips and bites; mask-wearing is essential for health safety.

Theater/Venue Capacity For Festival Run Screenings and Events

• Theaters will operate at reduced capacity with no eating or drinking permitted in theaters. Festival-operated non-theater venues will have reduced capacity for public programming at The Craft, The Filmmaker Lodge, The Box and The Shop and food and beverages will not be permitted in these spaces during public programming. (As a reminder everyone must be fully vaccinated and masked in all venues.)
• Capacity will be reduced for most of the Festival operated private events. These events will require the same prior testing protocols we have in place – proof of a negative test taken within 48 hours prior to the event.

Vaccine Verification Procedures

Sundance Institute has partnered with PandemSafe and will offer free vaccine verification to all employees, volunteers, artists, filmmakers, press and industry, contractors, and general attendees. Individuals will upload their vaccination card into the PandemSafe portal, via a link sent to their email. This email will be generated when an individual purchases a ticket, or it will be available on our website under the How to Fest section beginning January 6, 2022. The PandemSafe team will verify the uploaded card within 1-2 days from upload prior to the Festival and 2-4 hours during the Festival and in return, the individual will be sent a QR code. This code will allow users to get a verification wristband when they come to the Festival.

Verification will take place at Vaccine Verification and Testing Hubs located throughout the Festival. The wristband will be placed around the wrist of the individual. It is a nonremovable, nontransferable wristband. If the wristband is removed, the individual is required to get a new wristband at one of the verification and testing hubs before individuals are allowed to enter any Sundance space.

Alternatively, individuals may show a paper vaccination card at a Vaccine Vaccination and Testing Hub in order to receive a wristband.

Testing

Updated information: Sundance Institute will offer free testing to all participants and community members at specific Vaccine Verification and Testing Hubs located around the Festival. We also encourage all participants and audience members to get tested prior to arrival at the Festival for community safety.

Those required to show proof of negative test results upon arrival to the Festival include:
Employees/Volunteers/Onsite Contractors:

• Required to be tested at check-in and mid-way through the Festival. Encouraged to be testing every 48 hours throughout the Festival

Artists/Press & Industry:

• Required to be tested within 48 hours prior to arrival or upon arrival. Additional testing required for private events participation. Artists are required additional testing when participating in Q&A’s, programming, and press lines.

Additional testing is required for private events where proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours prior is needed for entry.

Both PCR and rapid antigen tests will be offered and accepted as proof of a COVID-19 test. Additionally, any FDA-approved COVID-19 test that displays a valid date and time of test taken and valid lab result will be accepted.

For Festival operated testing hubs the test results will be emailed to the individual either through the PandemSafe portal, if the individual has created an account, or through our 3rd party testing partners. The portal will take less than an hour to verify the test result. For tests taken outside of the Festival testing hub, testing results will take up to 4 hours to receive. Once uploaded, the test result will be valid for 48-hours, starting from the time of testing.

Vaccine Verification and Testing Hub Locations

Vaccine Verification and Testing hubs offer both vaccine verification and free COVID-19 testing located around Park City. Wristbands required to enter any official Festival venue will be issued at these hub locations. Additional information in connection with our Salt Lake City Hubs will be disclosed soon. Please note all times are subject to change.

Kearns Bonanza Corner (Old Maverick Station) – 1635 Bonanza Dr, Park City, UT 84068

• January 17 – January 30 from 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM MST

Miners Hospital – 1354 Park Ave, Park City, UT 84060

• January 20 – January 25 from 2:00 PM – 11:00 PM MST
• January 26 – January 30 from 6:00 PM – 11:00 PM MST

Galleria Parking Lot off of Main Street in Park City

• January 17 – January 30 from 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM MST

We ask everyone to be vigilant about hand sanitizing, test often, and when outside of Festival-operated spaces to social distance when unmasked.

We will continue to monitor the general levels of community transmission and local COVID-19 vaccination coverage in our in-person communities, working to maximize their health safety and adjust any plans as needed for the safety of our community. Any further policy updates will be shared in early January.