PARK CITY — As the final Sundance Film Festival takes place in Utah this week, the memory and impact of its founder, Robert Redford, stand prominently. The festival includes a tribute and celebration commemorating Redford, who passed away in September, highlighting his enduring connection to Utah.
Robert Redford’s daughter, Amy Redford, reflected on her father’s passion for storytelling and his commitment to giving voices to diverse creators.
He was a lover of stories and he walked the earth as somebody who always wanted to hear people’s stories, no matter who they were,
Amy Redford said about her father’s Utah legacy.
The Vision Behind Sundance: A Platform for Independent Voices
Amy Redford recalled her father’s motivation for founding both the Sundance Institute and the Sundance Film Festival, emphasizing his desire to create opportunities for underrepresented artists.
The festival was an avenue to make sure that there was an opportunity for people to get their stories out there and be considered legitimate as the people that had been given the Golden Keys to Hollywood,
she explained.
While Redford had a celebrated career as a filmmaker, actor, and director, Amy highlighted his visionary mindset and tireless dedication to the festival’s mission.
He’s absolutely a visionary … when people said, ‘well, that can’t be done,’ I think he said, ‘Oh, well, fantastic! It just hasn’t been done yet, so let’s get on with the show … in so many ways, in so many areas, he saw something that was possible,
Amy said.
Hands-On Leadership and Commitment to Community
Amy Redford noted her father’s direct involvement and his willingness to place the festival’s goals above his own professional gains. He did not see himself as a distant benefactor but as an integral part of a larger creative community.
He didn’t consider himself above. He didn’t consider himself somebody that was just sort of sprinkling fairy dust from on high. He considered himself very much one of the community … it was him answering to building the world he wanted to live in. He had a deep sense of gratitude to the state, to the people that were supporters, early adopters of his vision … the Eccles Foundation, people like Zion’s Bank, you know Scott Anderson and people that really stepped in and said,’ we believe in this.’
Amy Redford’s Own Storytelling Efforts in Utah
Following in her father’s footsteps, Amy Redford is actively engaged in filmmaking and recently launched her own company, Red Sky Stories, focused on Utah narratives.
We are very dedicated to telling Utah stories, by and for Utah people, using storytelling to broker understanding. We are about to shoot a movie called ‘Salt and Honey’ in Helper, Utah, using a lot of people from Helper and using the town as a real character of the story.
She credits her father’s deep affection for Utah and its people as an influence on her work.
He felt embraced wholly by the people here, the people that work the land, the people that respected the land.
The Sacred Land and Stewardship of Sundance Resort
Robert Redford’s connection to Utah extended beyond filmmaking into environmental stewardship. The land he acquired in the 1960s in Provo Canyon evolved into the Sundance Resort, which he regarded as sacred.
He felt that that land was incredibly sacred. And I think we have, throughout by family and each one of my family members, a deep sense of stewardship of that land and why we feel like it’s a very important asset to the state.
In 2020, Redford sold the Sundance Resort and ensured permanent protection for 300 acres near Mount Timpanogos, preserving that land for future generations.
Carrying Forward an Inclusive Legacy
Amy hopes her father’s vision of inclusivity continues to inspire Utah communities and beyond.
It’s an invitation to all Utahns to feel like everybody’s invited to the table, as long as everybody treats each other with respect and dignity.
Looking Ahead: Sundance Festival’s Move and Enduring Presence in Utah
Though the Sundance Film Festival itself will relocate to Boulder, Colorado, after more than four decades in Utah, the Sundance Institute will maintain its headquarters and training programs in the state. Each year, emerging independent filmmakers are invited to develop their craft through workshops and labs held in Utah, many eventually joining the festival line-up.
Additionally, the Sundance Nature Alliance, focused on environmental conservation, and the Redford Center, co-founded by Robert Redford and his son Jamie, will continue their work in Utah.
Amy Redford will participate in the tribute evening for her father during this year’s festival, aiming for the event to be a celebration of his life as much as a memorial.
She summarized her father’s enduring bond with Utah:
“He loved this state to the very end … I think if he was sitting here today, he would say, ‘ thank you, thank you, Utah!’”
