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MountainSummit: Mountainfilm in Aspen announces line-up for 2016 film festival beginning August 24

Aspen, CO (July 6, 2016): MountainSummit: Mountainfilm in Aspen organizers announced today the line-up of films for its eighth annual festival, taking place Wednesday, August 24 through Sunday, August 28, 2016 in downtown Aspen, CO.  This year’s theme is Winning Spirit: Real People. Unreal Stories and will feature over 40 gripping documentaries—shorts and features. Festival passes will go on sale on Monday, July 11 at the Wheeler Opera House Box Office (970-920-5770/ www.aspenshowtix.com), with single tickets (based on availability) to follow at the end of July. The festival is produced by the Wheeler Opera House, in partnership with Telluride Mountainfilm. The full film line-up for MountainSummit: Mountainfilm in Aspen 2016 can be found at www.wheeleroperahouse.com.

“Last year was my first time to curate this festival and I got addicted to documentaries quickly,” commented Wheeler Opera House Executive Director Gena Buhler. “We set a record last year with attendance so the pressure is on to top that and I’m confident we’ll do that with the awesome festival we have planned.  On top of the amazing list of films, I’m really excited about all of the free community events that we’ll soon announce that will allow everyone to fully immerse themselves in the topics and stars of these documentary films.”

The 2016 festival kicks off on Wednesday, August 24 at 7:00 p.m., with an Evening of Adventure (shorts program) and includes a special guest appearance by high-end fashion model/free-skiing world tour competitor Sierra Quitiquit to talk about her eponymous documentary short. The evening will also feature as adventure based shorts “The Adventure Dispatch,” “Equal Footing” “Wasfia”, “The Accord”, “Heavens 11” and “When We Were Knights.”

Thursday, August 25’s evening of Water Adventure Shorts (7:00 p.m.) includes a special program led by award-winning photographer and documentarian Pete McBride and Grand Canyon river guide Kevin Fedarko. Their project, “Leave It As It Is” is on a mission to save the natural wonder that is the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon from developers and industrialists. McBride’s film “Holy (Un)holy River” documents a traditional expedition at the source of the Ganges high in the Himalaya but that quickly becomes something else.  Thursday’s program with Kevin and Pete will be followed by a special dessert reception in the new Wheeler Bar.

Friday night, August 26, features two programs about different types of journeys. At 5:00 p.m., the amazing story of Tom Voss and Anthony Anderson, two Iraqi veterans embarking on a life-changing and incredible journey in “Almost Sunrise.”  Special guests from the film will also be on site for a Q&A following the screening.

At 8:30 p.m., journey all over the world with the “Meet the People” shorts programs, which includes films about a wrestling cholita from Bolivia, a man who has run the Los Angeles Marathon every year since it started in 1986 and an activist and author appropriately named “Kickass Katie Lee.” Audience members will also be able to meet several of the subjects of the films during the program, including Johnnie Jameson (“Mile 19”), Coffin Nachtmayr (“Throw”), and others soon to be confirmed. 

Saturday, August 27’s film schedule includes “Life, Animated,” (5:00 p.m.) a heartwarming documentary following the astonishing journey of an autistic boy who finds healing and happiness with the help of Disney films. Ron and Cornelia Suskind, the boy’s parents will be at the screening and will join in a Q&A following the film. Producer Ben Nabors will also be at the festival for a Q & A following the screening of his latest project, “The Happy Film,” (8:00 p.m.) which is all about the illusive mystery that is happiness. Closing out Saturday’s program is a live music concert by Fort Collins-based four-sister group SHEL (10:30 p.m.). The quartet will perform at other points in the festival, but Saturday night marks their full concert on the Wheeler Opera House Stage.

 The closing day of the festival, Sunday, August 30 features the family friendly program Kidz Kino, beginning at noon. Kidz Kino aims to expand the reach of the festival to youth audiences – bringing the passion, creativity and vision of filmmaking to the next generation.  The program will include hands on educational activities, as well as a two-hour afternoon program of family-friendly short films, including “Papa,” “Sweet Cocoon,” “Pickle” and “Edges.”

 Sunday evening, the festival will close out with the highly-lauded film “Million Dollar Duck,” which focuses on the strange and wonderful world of the Federal Duck Stamp Contest, the only juried, art competition run by the U.S. government. This film explores the eccentric nature of the contestants who enter each year for a chance at wildlife art stardom, while also reflecting upon the history and challenges facing the continued existence of this successful conservation program.

 “It's such a pleasure to work with the amazing Wheeler Opera House team again on this festival,” says Telluride Mountainfilm Festival Director David Holbrooke. “I think our line-up is as stellar as it has ever been and I look forward to seeing so many friends in Aspen the last week of August.”

In addition to a festival full of films at the historic Wheeler Opera House, a full line-up of free community events will be announced in a few weeks.  This includes lunch discussions with filmmakers and film subjects, morning outdoor activities, educational outreach activities and much more.

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ABOUT MOUNTAINSUMMIT: MOUNTAINFILM IN ASPEN

MountainSummit: Mountainfilm in Aspen is a documentary film festival - in partnership with Telluride Mountainfilm showcasing nonfiction stories about environmental, cultural, climbing, political and social justice issues that matter. Along with exceptional documentaries, the festival goes beyond the film medium by bringing together world-class athletes, speakers, change makers and visionary artists for a multi-dimensional celebration of the indomitable spirit. 

ABOUT TELLURIDE MOUNTAINFILM:

Started in 1979, Telluride Mountainfilm is one of America’s longest-running film festivals. Mountainfilm is dedicated to educating, inspiring and motivating audiences about issues that matter, cultures worth exploring, environments worth preserving, adventures worth pursuing and conversations worth sustaining. To learn more, visit www.mountainfilm.org. 

ABOUT WHEELER OPERA HOUSE: 

Since 1889, the Wheeler Opera House has been Aspen’s community performance venue and has become the Roaring Fork Valley’s premiere site for concerts, movies, festivals, lectures, community events, opera, and more. In recent years, the Wheeler has been a leader in producing exceptional festivals in Aspen, celebrating the comedy arts, global issues, and the craft of songwriting.