The Sundance Film Festival is an American film festival that takes place annually in Utah. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new work from American and international independent filmmakers. The festival comprises competitive sections for American and international dramatic and documentary films, both feature-length films and short films, and a group of out-of-competition sections, including NEXT, New Frontier, Spotlight, and Park City At Midnight.

Sundance began in Salt Lake City in August 1978, as the Utah/US Film Festival in an effort to attract more filmmakers to Utah. It was founded by Sterling Van Wagenen (then head of Wildwood, Robert Redford's company), John Earle, and Cirina Hampton Catania (both serving on the Utah Film Commission at the time). The 1978 festival featured films such as Deliverance, A Streetcar Named Desire, Midnight Cowboy, Mean Streets, and The Sweet Smell of Success. With Chairperson Robert Redford, and the help of Governor Scott M. Matheson of Utah, the goal of the festival was to showcase strictly American-made films, highlight the potential of independent film, and to increase visibility for filmmaking in Utah. At the time, the main focus of the event was to conduct a competition for independent American films, present a series of retrospective films and filmmaker panel discussions, and to celebrate the Frank Capra Award. The festival also highlighted the work of regional filmmakers who worked outside the Hollywood system.

Sundance Resort is a ski resort located 13 miles (21 km) northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944. Actor Robert Redford acquired the area in 1969, and established a year-round resort which would later spawn the independent Sundance Film Festival and the non-profit Sundance Institute.

Sundance Resort is heavily oriented towards advanced skiing; only three of the resort's 41 trails are marked "Easiest". Nearly 80% of the resort by area is designated "More Difficult" or "Most Difficult". The resort terrain climbs 2,150 vertical feet (655 m) up the northeast slope of Mount Timpanogos, reaching the crest of the ridge at Bearclaw Cabin. This restaurant at the resort's apex of 8,250 feet (2,515 m) provides spectacular 360° views of the surrounding landscape, and of Mount Timpanogos as it rises to a height just short of 12,000 ft (3,658 m). The mountain is serviced by three chairlifts and a handle tow for beginners at the mountain's base.

A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. Increasingly film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings. The films may be of recent date and, depending upon the focus of the individual festival, can include international releases as well as films produced by the organisers' domestic film industry. Sometimes there is a focus on a specific film-maker or genre (e.g., film noir) or subject matter (e.g., horror film festivals). A number of film festivals specialise in short films, each with its defined maximum length. Film festivals are typically annual events.

The first major film festival was held in Venice in 1932; the other major and oldest film festivals of the world are: Cannes Film Festival (1939), Festival del film Locarno (1946), Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (1946), Edinburgh International Film Festival (1947), Melbourne International Film Festival (1951), Berlin International Film Festival (1951) and Toronto International Film Festival (1976).