Sundance Film Festival goes fully virtual amid fresh COVID-19 wave

The prestigious Sundance film festival - which was set to begin January 20 in Park City, Utah - announced it was shifting all of its premieres and events online, a move it deemed necessary amid a fresh wave of the Omicron-variant of COVID-19.

The wave that began in December has cases running at nearly 500,000 a day in the United States, according to the latest CDC figures, with new hospitalizations also rising - though numbers of new deaths have remained largely flat, likely due in part to vaccine availability.

The Omicron variant is also milder than previous variants, raising hopes the virus could be evolving into a relatively benign seasonal illness.

Still, the World Health Organization in Europe has sounded an ominous note of caution on Tuesday, warning the soaring infection rates could have the opposite effect.

In the same vein, Sundance organizers said, "While it is a deep loss to not have the in-person experience in Utah, we do not believe it is safe nor feasible to gather thousands of artists, audiences, employees, volunteers, and partners from around the world, for an eleven-day festival while overwhelmed communities are already struggling to provide essential services."

Earlier, the Recording Academy also announced the postponement of the upcoming Grammy Awards ceremony. - AFP