Spielberg and Capshaw's foundation gives Sundance $3 million to bring its Directors Lab back to Utah

The Hearthland Foundation, the philanthropy of Kate Capshaw and Steven Spielberg, has given Sundance Institute $3 million that will bring its Directors Lab back to Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah, the institute announced on October 22. The institute calls it one of the largest contributions in its history.

Sundance Institute is the nonprofit founded by Robert Redford that runs the Sundance Film Festival and year-round programs for independent filmmakers. The Directors Lab, which the institute calls its signature lab, is a summer workshop that the Hearthland Foundation says has served generations of filmmakers. The Hearthland Foundation says it invests in artists, storytellers, journalists, organizers and community leaders.

What does the gift pay for?

The gift is a multiyear commitment with three purposes, according to the institute. It will strengthen the Feature Film Program, return the Directors Lab to Sundance Mountain Resort in Provo Canyon, and increase fellowships and direct, unrestricted grants to independent artists. An unrestricted grant is money the recipient can spend on whatever it needs most, rather than on a purpose the funder chooses.

The announcement does not say how many years the commitment covers or how the $3 million is divided among the three purposes. We have not seen the gift agreement.

Why was the lab away from Utah?

The lab spent recent summers at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, under a three-year commitment that ended in June, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. In a July 31 letter on the 2026 season, the institute said this year's lab ran June 9 to 24 at the Stanley with eight fellows, before a move back "next year to our legendary home, the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah."

The festival is going the other way. After four decades in Utah, it had its final run in Park City and Salt Lake City, and the institute announced in 2025 that it will move to Boulder, Colorado, starting in 2027, the Tribune reported. The timeline below is our own compilation from the institute's announcements and the Tribune's reporting.

By our reading, the two programs have swapped states: for three summers the lab was in Colorado while the festival stayed in Utah, and from 2027 the festival will be in Colorado while the lab returns to Utah. The 2024 start date is our inference from a three-year commitment that ended in June 2026.

What did the institute and the foundation say?

"This gift is a profound vote of confidence in independent artists and in the future of Sundance Institute," said David Linde, the institute's CEO, in the announcement. Rachel Levin, president of philanthropy at the Hearthland Foundation, said in the same release, "Artists help us see what is, imagine what could be, and understand one another more fully."

Michelle Satter, founding senior director of the institute's artist programs, said, "When you give artists time, trust, and a community that believes in their voice, transformation happens." The Tribune reported that the donors hope the gift will encourage others to support Sundance's mission.

What other nonprofits can take from it

In our view, the useful detail is the mix. The gift pairs money tied to a place and a program with unrestricted grants that pass straight through to artists. Restricted money carries obligations that last as long as the gift does, as we explained in a restricted gift is a promise, so the split between the two is worth putting in writing.

Arts groups announcing multiyear gifts can also say how long a commitment runs and what each part buys. The Cohens' $10.5 million gift to the Philadelphia Orchestra was announced with its purposes, touring and new music, spelled out.