2024 Sundance Film Festival: Pro-Palestinian protest shuts down Main Street

About 150 to 200 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in this mountainside ski village on Sunday, shutting down the normally bustling Main Street during the fourth day of the Sundance Film Festival, the indie film world’s marquee event of the year.

Talent from films premiering at this year’s festival were among those who participated, including former “Pose” star Indya Moore, here with the film “Ponyboi”; “Scream’s” Melissa Barrera, here with “Your Monster”; and Simone Kirby and Jessica Reynolds, cast members of the film “Kneecap” about the Irish-speaking rap trio.

“We are not protesting Sundance,” the action’s first speaker said, speaking into a bullhorn amplified by a microphone. “We are protesting the complicity of mainstream media and their ability to not cover this genocide.” The speaker also asked filmmakers and artists present at the festival, “Why are you silent?”

Holding signs reading “Ceasefire Now” and “Hospitals Are Not Targets” and chanting “Free, Free Palestine. Occupation is a crime,” demonstrators assembled behind metal barricades near the festival’s Filmmaker Lodge, attempting to draw the entertainment industry’s attention to the plight of civilians in Gaza as the Israel-Hamas war that began with the terror attacks of Oct. 7 wears on, now in its 107th day. The Palestinian death toll since the start of the war has surpassed 25,000, the Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said Sunday. The Oct. 7 raids killed an estimated 1,200 Israelis, and an estimated 130 of 250 hostages taken during the attacks remain in Gaza, Israel has said.

A handful of counter-protesters responded, including a man with an Israeli flag and a microphone who read the names of the hostages aloud and others who chanted “Bring them home.”

Both Sundance Institute, which organizes the annual festival, and the Park City Police Department, had advance warning of the action, which began around noon local time. Utah Highway patrol officers were also present on the scene.

“The goal of the Park City Police Department is to provide health, safety, and welfare and to protect the First Amendment rights of all individuals,” according to an email sent to Sundance Film Festival partners on Saturday, which warned of disruptions to deliveries and other delays. (The Los Angeles Times is a media sponsor of the festival.) “Law enforcement, as a contingency, is prepared to temporarily close portions of Main Street as dictated by the course of events to ensure public safety.”

Later, protesters moved up and down Main Street beyond the barricades, continuing to chant messages of support for Palestinians and criticism of figures in U.S. media and politics, including the line “This November, we will remember.”