Gov. Polis and state legislators had been working since last year to shore up incentives for the event, gathering $35 million to dangle in front of festival leaders.

After an open bidding call, the independent film festival has chosen the mountain town over finalist cities Cincinnati and Salt Lake City

Just before noon Thursday, Sundance Institute representatives confirmed what had been whispered about for months: beginning in 2027, the world’s most iconic independent film festival will make its new home in this mountain-framed, art-loving, Patagonia-puff-filled town.