Telluride Mountainfilm: No Pass? No Problem?

23 May Telluride Mountainfilm: No Pass? No Problem?

Mountainfilm has plenty of free programs on tap.

Mountainfilm offers free films beneath the stars at Base Camp Theatre in Telluride Town Park. [Photo courtesy of Mountainfilm]

The 38^th annual Telluride Mountainfilm festival will fill the box canyon with events of all shapes and sizes — from world-premiere film screenings to photography hikes, theater presentations, an all-day symposium, and the closing picnic — this Memorial Day Weekend, May 27-30.

And you don’t need a pass to enjoy all the festivities. Mountainfilm offers a range of free, open-to-the-public events throughout the weekend, including films, talks, a virtual reality studio, gallery walk and a book fair. 

“There’s a remarkable array of high-quality and completely free programming available to the people of Telluride and visitors all weekend long,” Festival Director David Holbrooke said. “Come to town, go for a bike ride, enjoy a meal and see a movie for free in the park. You’ll have a perfect day.”

Mountainfilm’s free events kick off Wednesday night with the annual Mountainfilm edition of Twenty(by)Telluride — a collaboration with Telluride Arts that brings five artists to stage to tell their stories, 20 slides at a time (with just 20 seconds per slide).  The event, which takes place Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the New Sheridan Bar, features photographers, filmmakers and storytellers. Featuring: Gabe Lifton-Zoline; Crystal Merrill; Brendan Leonard; Krystle Wright; and Ace Kvale. (And to hear Clint Viebrock’s interview with Ace, go here.)

From there, it’s on to Base Camp Outdoor Theater in Telluride Town Park for the first of five nights of free films under the stars. Mountainfilm’s soft opening film screening includes two ski shorts followed by the 2008 snowboarding feature That’s It, That’s All, which stars Travis Rice, a 2016 special festival guest. 

“Travis Rice is one of our headliners this year, so to be able to show his classic film in the park seems perfect,” Holbrooke said. “Bring a chair and something warm to wear.”

From then on, audiences have plenty of free events to choose from, including Town Talks, Ice Cream Social and Farmer’s Market, Sunday’s Reading Frenzy and, new this year, Mountainfilm’s Virtual Reality Studio.

The VR Studio, located at Gallery 81435, will feature a number of headsets loaded with VR documentaries along with volunteers and staff from RYOT Films. The studio is Mountainfilm’s way of dipping its toes into a new and exciting storytelling platform.

And finally, Mountainfilm 2016 has several Free-Range Programs on tap. These free events get people out of theaters and into the rivers, lakes and trails around town. They include everything from National Geographic Your Shot photo walks to shinrin-yoku, which is Japanese for forest bathing.

Here’s a rundown of the festival’s free films and public events (find a complete schedule at www.mountainfilm.org):

BASE CAMP SCREENINGS

Town Park

8:45 p.m. nightly, Wednesday-Sunday

VIRTUAL REALITY STUDIO 

Gallery 81435

9:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Friday through Sunday

9:30 a.m.-noon, Monday

GALLERY WALK 

Galleries and venues in downtown Telluride

3:30-6:30 p.m., Friday

ICE CREAM SOCIAL & MOUNTAINFILM FARMER’S MARKET

Main Street in front of the San Miguel County Courthouse

Saturday
Farmer’s Market | 1-5 p.m.
Ice Cream Social | 2-3:30 p.m.

COFFEE & CONVERSATION

Various venues in Telluride and Mountain Village

Saturday through Monday, 8-9 a.m.

BOOZE & BANTER

Oak, Smuggler’s and Black Iron at Madeline Hotel

Saturday and Sunday
5:30-6:30 p.m.

FREE RANGE PROGRAMS

Saturday through Monday
Various Locations

READING FRENZY

Sunday
2-4 p.m. | Hotel Madeline

KIDZ KINO 

Monday, May 30
11 a.m.-1 p.m. | Palm Theatre
* Children are free, adults $10

About Mountainfilm: Established in 1979, Mountainfilm uses the power of film, art and ideas to inspire audiences to create a better world. Working at the nexus of filmmaking and action, its flagship program is the legendary Telluride Mountainfilm festival, a one-of-a-kind combination of films, conversations and inspiration. Mountainfilm also reaches audiences year-round through its worldwide tour and Mountainfilm for Students, an educational outreach initiative for youth. Mountainfilm has the power to change lives. To learn more, visit  HYPERLINK “http://www.mountainfilm.org” www.mountainfilm.org. To join the conversation, please read  HYPERLINK “http://www.mountainfilm.org/news” \h Mountainfilm’s news and follow Mountainfilm on  HYPERLINK “https://twitter.com/Mountainfilm” \h Twitter,  HYPERLINK “https://www.facebook.com/mountainfilmtelluride” \h Facebook,  HYPERLINK “http://instagram.com/mountainfilm/” \h Instagram and  HYPERLINK “https://plus.google.com/+MountainfilmInTelluride/” \h Google+.

Telluride Mountainfilm | POB 1088 Telluride, CO 81435 |  HYPERLINK “mailto:contact@mountainfilm.org” contact@mountainfilm.org  mountainfilm.org