Event production guide

Sundance Boulder venues and the spaces around them — a guide for event producers

The Sundance Film Festival comes to Boulder, Colorado on January 21–31, 2027, with headquarters at the Hotel Boulderado and screening venues spread across downtown, the CU Boulder campus, Chautauqua, and Twenty Ninth Street — about 2 miles end to end. This guide, by Earth Coast Productions, covers every official venue, the hotels, restaurants, galleries, and halls a brand or publicist is likely to book around them, and the production questions to settle before signing.

Updated August 25, 2026. Capacity, outside-AV policy, and production notes come from our Colorado venue directory; distances are straight-line from Earth Coast Studios in Broomfield, rounded, with typical off-peak drive times. Always confirm current policy with the venue.

Official festival venues

Where the festival happens

Venue roles as announced by sundance.org. A screening venue is programmed by the festival — private use during the week is at the venue's discretion, so ask early.

Downtown & Pearl Street about 25 min from our studio

Hotel Boulderado

≈ 12 mi

Festival headquarters

Capacity
5–200 guests
Outside AV
Outside AV allowed — Earth Coast produced a client symposium here.
Production
1909 building. We know the power and rigging quirks from producing in the space.
Directory entry →

Boulder Theater

≈ 12 mi

Screening venue

Capacity
100–600 guests
Outside AV
A production venue — outside AV is normal here.
Production
Stage, rigging, and house PA in a historic art deco room.
Directory entry →

eTown Hall

≈ 12 mi

Screening venue

Capacity
75–220 guests
Outside AV
A production venue by design — a state-of-the-art multimedia facility. Confirm outside-production terms.
Production
Broadcast-grade infrastructure with recording and livestream native to the building. The strongest AV-forward venue in Boulder.
Directory entry →

Dairy Arts Center

≈ 11 mi

Screening venue

Capacity
50–250 guests
Outside AV
An arts venue — production-friendly.
Production
Real theaters with house technical staff.
Directory entry →

Boulder High School Auditorium

≈ 12 mi

Screening venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

Casey Middle School Auditorium

≈ 13 mi

Screening venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

CU Boulder campus about 25 min from our studio

Screening venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

Screening venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

Festival venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

Chautauqua about 30 min from our studio

Screening venue

Capacity
30–150 guests
Outside AV
Historic auditorium — - n-house AV available; outside AV accepted on a case-by-case basis - No insurance, load-in, or labor requirements for outside production companies
Production
A National Historic Landmark with ADA facilities and lodging on the campus.
Directory entry →

Twenty Ninth Street about 20 min from our studio

Press & industry screening venue

Not yet in our directory — confirm capacity, outside-AV policy, and load-in with the venue.

Surrounding spaces

Hotels, restaurants, galleries, and halls near the festival footprint

20 Boulder venues from our directory that are not official festival venues — the rooms brands, publicists, and networks book for lounges, dinners, junkets, and receptions.

Avalon Ballroom

East Boulder

Capacity
up to 300 guests
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
Community events and fundraisers on a real budget.
Directory entry →

Bookcliff Vineyards

Boulder

Capacity
Capacity: ask the venue
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
Small offsites that want a working winery instead of a conference room.
Directory entry →

Boulder Marriott

Canyon Blvd

Capacity
Capacity: ask the venue
Outside AV
❓ Confirm with venue
Best for
A Boulder hotel backup with predictable meeting space.
Directory entry →

Bounce Empire

1380 S. Public Rd.

Capacity
Capacity: ask the venue
Outside AV
❓ Confirm with venue
Best for
Straightforward events in a purpose-built room.
Directory entry →

Greenbriar Inn

US-36 foothills, north of town

Capacity
20–200 guests
Outside AV
❓ Confirm with venue
Best for
Executive dinners and the good meal inside a longer retreat.
Directory entry →

Limelight Boulder

University Hill / CU

Capacity
10–1200 guests
Outside AV
❓ Confirm with venue
Best for
Nonprofits, thanks to the subsidy angle, and any client whose sustainability story needs to match the room.
Directory entry →

Moxy Boulder

Downtown Boulder

Capacity
Capacity: ask the venue
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
Casual Boulder networking and small team events downtown.
Directory entry →

Rayback Collective

North Boulder

Capacity
50–300 guests
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
Casual networking and community events that shouldn't feel corporate.
Directory entry →

Rembrandt Yard

Downtown

Capacity
20–200 guests
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
The gallery alternative to a Boulder hotel ballroom.
Directory entry →

St Julien Hotel & Spa

Pearl Street / 900 Walnut

Capacity
10–400 guests
Outside AV
🤝 Outside AV works here
Best for
The most polished room in Boulder, and the strongest answer when a client loves the Boulderado but not its F&B minimum.
Directory entry →

The Riverside

Downtown / 1724 Broadway on Boulder Creek

Capacity
10–150 guests
Outside AV
✅ Outside AV welcome
Best for
An exact fit for the vendor-friendly 50–150 ask, and the only Boulder venue directly on the creek.
Directory entry →

Know a Boulder room that belongs here? Listings are free and unpaid — tell us about it.

Before you sign

Seven questions to settle with any Boulder venue for festival week

  1. 1.Is the room actually available during festival week?

    Several official venues are programmed by the festival from January 21 through January 31; others host screenings only on certain days. Ask the venue for the specific dates and hours it can release to a private event, and get it in writing before you plan around it.

  2. 2.Does the venue allow an outside production company?

    Boulder policies range from fully open to exclusive in-house AV. The directory entries below record what each venue told us; confirm the policy for your dates, and ask whether an outside team may bring its own audio, lighting, and streaming equipment or must rent the house system.

  3. 3.Where is the dock, and what are the load-in windows?

    Pearl Street rooms often load through an alley or a front door on a schedule the city controls. Ask for the dock location, elevator dimensions, permitted load-in and strike hours, and whether a street or alley permit is required for a truck.

  4. 4.What power and internet are really in the room?

    Ask for the circuit inventory near the stage and the measured upload speed on a wired drop. A livestream needs a dedicated wired connection with a known upload rate; hotel Wi-Fi and shared building networks are not a streaming plan, so budget for backup connectivity.

  5. 5.What are the house rules on rigging, haze, and sound levels?

    Historic rooms may prohibit rigging from the ceiling, haze near smoke detection, or sound above a curfew level. Ask early — these decide whether you light from the floor, how you place speakers, and when the room has to be quiet.

  6. 6.Who is on the venue's side during the event?

    Confirm whether a house technician, engineer, or manager is required and billed, and how the outside crew coordinates with them. A single named contact from the venue for show days removes most load-in friction.

  7. 7.Certificate of insurance and vendor paperwork?

    Most Boulder venues require a certificate of insurance naming the venue, and some require it from every outside company on site. Earth Coast Productions carries general liability and equipment coverage and provides a certificate on request.

FAQ

Venue questions we get about festival week

Which Boulder venues allow an outside production company during festival week?

Policies vary by room, and festival programming may change what a venue can host during January 21–31, 2027. Earth Coast Productions maintains a free Colorado venue directory that records each venue's outside-AV policy, capacity, and production notes, including Boulder rooms such as the Boulder Theater, eTown Hall, the Dairy Arts Center, Hotel Boulderado, and the St Julien. Confirm directly with the venue and with Earth Coast Productions before signing a space for festival week.

How far is Earth Coast Productions from the Sundance festival venues in Boulder?

Earth Coast Productions is based at Earth Coast Studios in Broomfield, Colorado, roughly 12 miles and about a 25-minute drive via US-36 from downtown Boulder, where the festival's Hotel Boulderado headquarters, Boulder Theater, eTown Hall, and the Dairy Arts Center sit within a few blocks of each other. The CU Boulder venues, Chautauqua Auditorium, and Cinemark Century Boulder are all within a similar drive. Crew, gear, and edit capacity stay local for the whole festival, with no travel or shipping costs.

Are you insured?

Fully insured, with general liability and equipment coverage. We're happy to provide a Certificate of Insurance for your venue or organization on request — most venues require one, and we have it ready.

Need a room walked before you sign it?

We produce in Boulder venues year-round. Send us the space and the dates and we'll tell you what it will take to produce there during festival week.

Ask about a Boulder venue

Personal reply within 1 business day.

See all festival-week production services in Boulder.

Earth Coast Productions is an independent production company and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Sundance Institute or the Sundance Film Festival. “Sundance” is a trademark of Sundance Institute; it is used here descriptively to identify when and where our services are offered.