Amid all the talk of films, fires and the state of the Oscar race, one question has dominated Sundance 2025: Where will the festival move?

Last April, the nonprofit behind Sundance, the pre-eminent festival for independent film held for the past 40 years in Park City, Utah, announced that it was exploring where else to hold the event in 2027 and beyond. The organizers then narrowed their choices to three spots: Salt Lake City, just 45 minutes away, along with a smaller presence in Park City; Boulder, Colo.; and Cincinnati. The final choice is expected to be announced in late March or early April.

That has left festival goers, industry insiders and locals imagining what the change would mean for the city and the festival itself.

The organizers have said, essentially, that the event has gotten too big for Park City. When Sundance arrives every January, it balloons the ski town of 8,200 full-time residents into a snowy circus, with over 20,000 people streaming in from around the globe. Hotel prices skyrocket, the streets become clogged with black S.U.V.s, and what should be a simple five-minute ride down Main Street can turn into a 30-minute crawl, especially when it snows, as it has at this year’s festival.

The organizers have said they are looking for a new home that can house the growing festival while maintaining its roots.