Over 200 businesses have expressed interest in partnering with sponsors of the Sundance Film Festival through an online “Partner Hub,” according to the Boulder Chamber.

The hub allows businesses to submit their information, connecting them with sponsors looking for space and services. Businesses, brands and agencies can also seek sponsored space during the festival.

For now, much of the matchmaking is focused “on the footprint of the festival in the city of Boulder,” said Matt Wiggins, the Boulder Chamber’s associate vice president of economic vitality, in an email to the Daily Camera.

But the hub is a resource made available to any business interested in partnering with the festival or the Sundance Institute, Wiggins added.

The We Love Erie Business Collective has encouraged its members to participate, and in its business newsletter last week the city of Louisville included a link to the online hub, calling it a “great opportunity to welcome visitors.”

Wiggins said the space “activations” that the hub facilitates can be considered “highly immersive, custom-built brand spaces that take over existing storefronts, restaurants, art galleries, and other properties.”

“They are much more involved than a typical booth or tent at a local event or festival,” he added.

Any vendor, sponsor, or business can share details on the hub, and will be contacted directly if their services or space matches the needs of a sponsor.

There are a number of sponsors that support the Sundance Film Festival, Wiggins said, though the complete list is “not shared publicly for various reasons.”

All activation agreements are negotiated between local businesses and sponsors.

“(Neither) the Sundance Film Festival, nor the Sundance Institute, are involved with those transactions or negotiations. In many scenarios, businesses and sponsors can enlist the help of brokers or other facilitators to assist in the agreement,” Wiggins said.

Businesses can separately apply to a program called the “Official Friends of the Sundance Film Festival,” which offers benefits including window cling for storefront windows, marketing toolkits and tickets to select screenings.

The Partner Hub does share information about the “Official Friends of the Sundance Film Festival,” but it does not collect information from business that apply for the program, Wiggins said.