Mountainfilm Festival 2014

Mountainfilm Festival 2014 has been a huge success. As Buddhist prayer wheels and brightly colored red, blue, yellow and green prayer flags adorned the main street on Colorado Avenue, one could actually feel the consciousness rising.

This year’s Mountainfilm Festival continued to celebrate “the indomitable spirit,” and has since 1979. And, it might have taken courage of spirit for some to even stand in line in the que for movies this year, or the gondola line, as snow, hail, rain, thunder, lightning and freezing temperatures also made their appearance in Telluride for the annual event. Just making the traverse from lodging to “basecamp” was not for the faint of heart this Memorial Day weekend.

In fact so cold were temps this Mountainfilm that the outdoor showing of Adrenaline was relocated to the Palm Theater and given a late-night time slot, though crowds still showed in anticipation and didn’t seem to mind the change.

With the array of films that won hearts this year, as well as changed minds and inspired positive and creative change, there was won important highlight.

Telluride local Ben Knight received a big, warm homecoming, along with his film DamNation.

DamNation, a Patagonia-sponsored film, has been on a multi-stop tour in the U.S. for several weeks and has quickly become one of the most important films in social and environmental consciousness. Awarded the People’s Choice Award at South by Southwest in Austin, TX, the Official Selection at both the Environmental Film Festival at the nation’s capitol and the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, DamNation has now struck the hearts of those in Telluride, and in the perfect time and place, for Mountainfilm.

Telluriders wished Knight well in his upcoming adventures as he now makes a move to Salida, Colorado, and said they will always consider him a Telluride local.

For more information on DamNation, to watch the trailer or to take action, see http://damnationfilm.com.

Friday’s showing of the film at the Palm Theater was standing room only, and Elk’s Park was overflowing Sunday night for the outdoor showing.

Other Mountainfilm features included Alive Inside, An Honest Liar, The Last Season, Born to Fly, Queens and Cowboys, Marmato and many incredible others in various venues in town and Mountain Village.

The short films and other traditions continued, and despite the less than ideal conditions, the show went on. And, upon exiting theaters and returning to fresh air, festivalgoers were given glimpses of scenery that were the stuff of photographic or film quality: Ajax Peak spent most of the weekend bathed in an ethereal mist of cloudy snow, offset by the budding green aspens waving from below. Many a passholder stopped in the middle of the main street to capture the classic tourist snapshot of the backdrop.

Current and past films of Mountainfilm are on tour year-round. Single-event and multi-day shows are presented by non-profits and other organizations around the U.S. and other parts of the globe.

For more information on Mountainfim in Telluride and to see the 2014 schedule, visit http://www.mountainfilm.org.