Sundance Film Festival Volunteer Catalog 2027. (Photo courtesy of Sundance Film Festival)
The Sundance Film Festival premieres in Boulder from January 21 to 31, offering University of Colorado Boulder students opportunities to shape the future of a world-renowned cultural event.
More than 2,000 volunteers will work alongside independent filmmakers, industry professionals, press teams and organizers. With a minimum of 18 hours of service, student volunteers can fit shifts around their classes while gaining firsthand professional experience in the film industry.
Hundreds of student volunteers will be central players in carrying out the festival’s mission. They are the first advocates for independent filmmakers’ authentic voices. Their work will ensure that creators and storytellers have the chance to build a community and connect with Boulder audiences.
Brian Marquez, senior manager of talent at the Sundance Institute, stated that volunteering for an organization like the Sundance Film Festival means supporting storytellers in bringing original perspectives to the world.
“Volunteers truly make the Sundance Film Festival happen,” Marquez said. “We couldn’t do it without them. Volunteers are at the heart and soul of this historic festival.”
Boulder Theater. (Photo courtesy of Miles Fujimoto)
Volunteering built around students’ interests and schedules
The Sundance Film Festival volunteer application allows students to specify their availability and areas of interest. Volunteer roles are diverse and include marketing and content, venue and theater operations, press office and production responsibilities. It is a chance to build connections in the film industry and add civic involvement to a resume.
Benefits will include free access to films, exclusive screenings, Grub Stub meal vouchers, an official Festival gear pack and celebrity sightings.
“The wide range of roles means that volunteering isn’t a one-size-fits-all experience. Rather, volunteers can apply to positions that most align with their personal schedule, interests and skills,” Marquez said.
The central hurdle for CU organizers was ensuring that students could balance a full course load with the logistical demands of volunteering. Megan Medina, director of Service Learning and Impact in Community Engagement at CU Boulder, said that a sense of purpose and engagement might have come with a trade-off. However, this challenge was addressed by working directly with festival planners to build a volunteer program that accommodated students’ workloads.
Her primary role has been to make volunteering meaningful and accessible. Traditionally, student volunteer minimum was 24 hours, and now it’s 18 hours. She said volunteering with the festival differs from abstract classroom learning because students can actively participate in festival roles. To make this possible, she worked closely with Sundance to develop student-specific accommodations.
Building on a shared benefit, Assistant Director of Advising and Professional Development at the College of Communication, Media, Design and Information Nathan Paul Jones sees real value in volunteering for the festival to build relationships and discover unexpected career opportunities.
“That’s what excites me about all this, about these opportunities for students to volunteer,” he said. “I think there are vast benefits for sure.”
Jones pointed out that volunteering aligns with Career Services’ core philosophy of getting students in the room with professionals. He added that Sundance has started posting internship opportunities on Handshake, a university recruitment portal.
That philosophy plays out in practice for students like Cadence Tucker, a senior in Cinema Studies who has started the application process.
“I would definitely recommend volunteering, especially if you’re a first-year or second-year student,” Tucker said. “I would volunteer. I think being there is really important to take advantage of the networking side.”
The Hotel Boulderado outdoor corner bar. (Photo courtesy of Tim Romano|The Boulderado)
Flexibility also applies to navigating from one venue to another. All roles will unfold within the compact festival footprint. For students, it begins at Roe Theater on campus and leads 20 minutes north to the festival’s Boulder headquarters, Hotel Boulderado, on 13th and Spruce Street.
To facilitate easy access to 15 theaters screening roughly 150 films, they are within a 2-mile radius of campus and close enough that student volunteers can walk, cycle or scooter to venues.
Why Boulder and why students
Sundance chose Boulder because it offers both professional expertise and a large pool of energetic, curious students, which aligns with the institute’s mission to inspire independent thinkers. In a press release, Sundance said Boulder, with its small-town charm and engaged community, is a place where the festival can flourish.
“There is a sense of exploration and interest and curiosity that the students are going to offer Sundance,” Jones said.
Row Green Theatre, University Theatre Building. (Melodie Miller/CU Independent)
The City of Boulder said the economic impact could be significant. Governor Jared Polis’s office anticipates the festival could bring in up to $2 billion to Colorado over 10 years. This projection may be based on the 2025 Sundance Film Festival Attendance Recap and Economic Impact Report, which reported the festival generated an estimated 2,697 jobs and contributed $103.3 million in wages that year.
Beyond economic projections, the festival gives the community and students access to independent visual narratives and the chance to meet the artists behind the films. Access extends to meaningful engagement with the festival. Marquez said Sundance wants students to have time to see films, attend events and take in everything the festival provides.
“The festival offers an opportunity to explore the industry and gain firsthand experience of what it takes to put on an event like Sundance,” he said. “It will give students an understanding of how many people and resources it takes to bring a mission-driven organization’s work to life.”
Contact CU Independent Writer Melodie Miller at Melodie.Miller@colorado.edu.
