Festival Coordinator, Fundraising Event Guest Relations

Sundance Institute; Boulder (CO); Hybrid; USD 25,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid sick leave and Institute holidays

Employee assistance program

Employee Wellness Initiatives

Festival passes and benefits

Job summary

Sundance Institute is seeking a Festival Coordinator, Fundraising Event Guest Relations in Boulder, CO to support the Sundance Film Festival gala and other events. You will coordinate guest communications, seating, dietary needs, and on-site guest experience, working closely with the Festival Manager, Logistics Fundraising Event.

The role requires 2 years of event planning experience, excellent communication, and strong organizational skills.

Qualifications

• 2 years experience planning and executing events.
• Experience with fundraising events and galas preferred.
• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to maintain confidential information.
• Working knowledge of Gmail, Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Calendar.
• Experience in managing large budgets and accounting is preferred.
• Legal authorization to work in the United States.

Responsibilities

• Support the planning and execution of Sundance Institute's annual fundraising gala and assigned Festival events.
• Coordinate guest communications, registration materials, seating information, dietary needs, and overall guest experience.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for guest inquiries via phone and email.
• Maintain guest records, track attendance, and support registration and check-in processes.
• Assist with project management by tracking timelines, meeting notes, and action items.
• Coordinate logistics with venue, production agency, caterer, and vendors.
• Prepare guest-facing materials, event collateral, and volunteer communications.
• Collaborate across Advancement, Event Operations, Production, and internal teams.
• Provide onsite operational support during load-in, execution, and strike; assist with post-event wrap-up.

Skills

Event planning

Guest relations

Communication

Organization

Budget tracking

Tools

Gmail

Google Drive

Google Docs

Google Sheets

Google Calendar

Job description

Career Opportunities with Sundance Institute

A great place to work.

Careers At Sundance Institute

Current job opportunities are posted here as they become available.

Our employees are distributed across four main hubs: Los Angeles, California, Boulder, Colorado, New York, New York, & Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Festival Coordinator, Fundraising Event Guest Relations is charged with supporting the planning and execution of Sundance Institute’s premier fundraising gala during the Sundance Film Festival, as well as other key events.

Working closely under the direction of the Festival Manager, Logistics Fundraising Event this role serves as a key operational partner throughout the planning process and onsite execution. The position is responsible for coordinating guest communications and experience, supporting event logistics, maintaining project timelines, and serving as a liaison between internal stakeholders, the event venue, production agency, vendors, and volunteers to help ensure a seamless event from planning through execution.

This temporary position works full-time (40 hours per week) from Wednesday, October 14, 2026 to Tuesday, February 2, 2027 and will be required to work extended hours, including some evenings, weekends, and holidays to meet key deadlines and respond to on-call needs as assigned. This position is based out of our Boulder, CO office in order to work onsite in a hybrid capacity throughout its employment.

Top priorities include but are not limited to…

• Supporting the Festival Manager in the planning and execution of Sundance Institute's annual fundraising gala and assigned Festival events.
• Coordinating guest communications, registration materials, seating information, dietary needs, and overall guest experience before and during the event.
• Serving as a primary point of contact for guest inquiries, responding promptly and professionally via phone and email.
• Maintaining guest records, tracking attendance, and supporting registration and check-in processes.
• Assisting with project management by tracking timelines, deliverables, meeting notes, and action items to help keep planning on schedule.
• Coordinating logistics with the event venue, production agency, caterer, and other vendors to support successful event execution.
• Preparing guest-facing materials, event collateral, volunteer communications, presentations, and other planning documents as assigned.
• Collaborating across Advancement, Event Operations, Production, and other internal teams to ensure accurate information sharing and a seamless guest experience.
• Providing onsite operational support during event load-in, execution, guest arrival, and strike, while helping resolve issues as they arise.Assisting with post-event wrap-up, including guest follow-up, reporting, and documentation.
• Assisting the Festival Events team with support at other festival events once the Fundraising event is complete.

You have the following direct or transferable skill sets:

• 2 years experience planning and executing events. Experience with fundraising events and galas preferred.
• Outstanding verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills to work with a variety of people. Experience working with board members is preferred.
• Excellent organizational skills and with the ability to prioritize.
• Ability to maintain confidential information.
• Working knowledge of Gmail, Google Drive (including Google Docs and Google Sheets and Google Calendar).
• Working knowledge of databases is preferred.
• Experience in managing large budgets and accounting is preferred.
• Legal authorization to work in the United States.

You will be successful in this role if you...

• Jump in quickly to support your colleagues and the team.
• Adapt to changing and developing circumstances and processes.
• Collaborate with the Events, Development, and Partnerships teams as well as with other departments.

In addition to an hourly pay of $22.25, this position* is eligible for benefits & perks, highlights include:

• Paid sick leave and Institute holidays
• Employee assistance program
• Employee Wellness Initiatives
• Sundance Film Festival passes and benefits (varies each year)

*Applications open 09/14/2026 and will be accepted for at least one week