Festival Manager, Community House

Sundance Institute; Boulder (CO); Hybrid; USD 45,000 - 56,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid sick leave

Employee assistance program

Employee Wellness Initiatives

Sundance Film Festival passes

Job summary

The Sundance Institute seeks a Manager, Festival Community House to lead project management and on-site supervision of the Community House during the 2027 Sundance Film Festival in Boulder, CO. You will curate programming, coordinate venue logistics, and ensure compliance with grant deliverables while partnering with the Festival, Programming, Operations, and Institutional Giving teams.

This full-time temporary role requires flexible hours, weekend work, and on-site presence in Boulder, with

Qualifications

• 3 years planning and executing events or managing venues, including vendor and contractor management.
• Direct experience curating, producing, or advising public programming such as panels, convenings, performances, or community events.
• Experience working with community-based organizations, cultural nonprofits, or grassroots groups, with the judgment to support their voice rather than flatten it.
• Working comfort with budgets, contracts, invoicing, and vendor scopes.
• Outstanding verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills across a wide range of people, from station managers to program officers to volunteers.
• Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to prioritize under compressed timelines.
• Ability to maintain confidential information.
• Working knowledge of Gmail, Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Calendar.
• Legal authorization to work in the United States.

Responsibilities

• Manage intake, review, and selection of programming in the space.
• Coordinate on-site venue operations and logistics during the Festival.
• Liaise with vendors, contractors, and Institute departments.
• Track venue spending against approved grant budgets.
• Prepare post-Festival wrap report and data submissions.
• Coordinate with Marketing and Partnerships on signage and visibility.

Skills

Event planning

Venue management

Budgeting

Vendor management

Communication

Google Workspace

Colorado nonprofit

Stakeholder coordination

Tools

Gmail

Google Drive

Google Docs

Google Sheets

Google Calendar

Job description

Manager, Festival Community House is charged with the project management, coordination, and on-site supervision of the Community House, an official venue of the 2027 Sundance Film Festival. Additionally, this position curates and supports the programming brought into the space by participating organizations and parties.

Reporting to the Associate Director, Institutional Giving, this role will work closely with Institutional Giving on ensuring grant deliverables are met, as well as collaborate with the Programming, Operations and Festival transition teams on venue logistics, permitting, safety and accessibility, asset requests and requisitions, and any commitment that draws on shared Festival resources.
This temporary position works full time (40 hours per week) from Monday, November 16, 2026 to Friday, February 19, 2027 and requires extended hours, including evenings and weekends 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…

Programming curation and partner support

Managing intake, review, and selection of organizations seeking to program in the space, updating panel and event language.

Supporting the project management of planning, on-site logistics, and reporting related to Community House programming.

Updating the Community House calendar in coordination with the venue collaborator and Festival programming: daily slotting, room turnover, session length, and capacity.

Establishing and managing registration for all programs in the space, including Institute-led, collaborator-led, and venue partner programming.

Coordinating with the Festival programming team and marketing so the House reads as part of the Festival rather than an adjacent activation.

Venue operations

Serving as primary liaison with the venue, vendors, contractors, and Institute departments, including pre-Festival on-site meetings and walkthroughs.

Working with internal departments to execute on Community House programming including Tech Services department for network connectivity, Tech Exhibition for AV needs, Marketing for signage, Venue Operations for rentals, and Safety and Security for any security needs.

Working with teams to plan Community House space, including the look and feel of the venue, layout, electrical needs, AV and technical needs, rentals, signage, and evacuation planning for all activated areas.

Ordering equipment and setting the timeline for move-in, set-up, and tear-down.

Briefing and overseeing the contracted event producer, holding them to agreed guardrails while keeping execution on their side of the line.

Documenting event details including banquet event orders, evaluation sheets, alcohol requests, attendance numbers, and correspondence, and consulting with the internal Events Department regarding liquor licensing.

Overseeing onsite operations during the Festival, including any seasonal staff and volunteers assigned to the venue.

Completing the post-Festival walkthrough with the venue collaborator and submitting a Festival wrap report.

Institute navigation and grant integrity

Tracking venue and programming spending against the approved grant budget, including indirect cost and line-item variance thresholds, in coordination with Finance and Institutional Giving.

Coordinating check requests through Accounts Payable and complete all Festival-related requests two weeks prior to the start of the Festival.

Moving contracts, permits, insurance certificates, and vendor paperwork through Legal, Finance, and Festival Operations on Festival timelines.

Preparing the Festival wrap report and supplying the attendance, registration, programming, and spend data for Institutional Giving needs.

Participating in standing weekly working sessions across event production, the venue collaborator, Institutional Giving, and Festival programming.

Coordinating with Marketing and Partnerships on exterior signage and any shared visibility questions.

You have the following direct or transferable qualifications and skills:

3 years planning and executing events or managing venues, including vendor and contractor management.

Direct experience curating, producing, or advising public programming such as panels, convenings, performances, or community events.

Experience working with community-based organizations, cultural nonprofits, or grassroots groups, with the judgment to support their voice rather than flatten it.

Working comfort with budgets, contracts, invoicing, and vendor scopes.

Outstanding verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills across a wide range of people, from station managers to program officers to volunteers.

Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to prioritize under compressed timelines.

Ability to maintain confidential information.

Working knowledge of Gmail, Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Calendar.

Legal authorization to work in the United States.

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

Can hold a programming standard and an operational constraint at the same time, and know when each one wins.

Navigate a matrixed organization comfortably, building the internal relationships that get a permit signed or a contract routed without waiting to be told who to ask.

Adapt quickly. This is year one of a pilot in a new city, and several answers will be built rather than inherited.

Protect the capacity of programming, operations, and Festival leadership by absorbing coordination rather than escalating it.

Communicate clearly with organizations who are new to the Festival and may be reading closely for whether the invitation is real.

Working knowledge of Colorado/Boulder arts/nonprofit organizations.

In addition to a weekly pay of $1,111.23*, 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 11/09/2026 and will be accepted for at least one week