31-03-2025
Bill creating tax incentives for film tourism passes following Sundance announcement
DENVER (KDVR) — On Thursday, the Sundance Film Festival announced it would be hosted in Boulder beginning in 2027.
On Friday, the Colorado Senate passed a bill that is aimed at attracting film tourism to the state. HB25-1005, 'Tax Incentive for Film Festivals,' is now headed for the governor's desk where it could be signed into law.
Boulder wins bid to host the Sundance Film Festival starting in 2027
'This bill has paved the way for yesterday's historic announcement by demonstrating our state's commitment to ensuring the success of the Sundance Film Festival in Colorado. Sundance is more than just an economic driver – it will cement Colorado's place as a global hub for the arts, creating opportunities for filmmakers and audiences alike,' said Sen. Judy Amabile, a Democrat who represents Boulder, in a release. 'Our communities will benefit year-round from Sundance's investments in expanded access to the arts, support for aspiring storytellers, and a platform for powerful narratives that have the potential to move, inspire, and change all of us.'
According to proponents of the measure, the bill would create two tax credits: one to offer a financial incentive to the Sundance Film Festival or a festival that has a verifiable track record of attracting 100,000 attendees or more that is relocated to Colorado by Jan. 1, 2026, and one supporting existing or small film festivals in Colorado.
Smaller festivals could qualify for a pool of $5 million that would be paid out over 10 years. The measure would set aside $34 million for the next 10 years for the larger, established film festivals, such as Sundance.
'We were pretty confident that we were going to come out on top for the main reason of the film industry's diversity and love of telling stories about people who are being criticized and persecuted right now,' said Rep. Brianna Titone, a Democrat who represents parts of Jefferson County, on Thursday in an interview with FOX31.
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She said that bringing the Sundance Film Festival to Colorado would be a large economic boost for the state, so the tax incentives make sense.
'They're going to be renting cars and having hotel rooms and eating meals and buying merchandise and doing all the things that people do when they go visit a new place,' Titone said. 'So these are real dollars that they're going to leave here, so when we're giving some incentives to the film festival to come, the people who come to the festival are going to be leaving a lot of that money behind.'
The measure passed the Colorado Senate with a vote of 28-5. It now heads to the Colorado Governor's desk to potentially be signed into law.
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