That’s a Wrap

Every year, I find myself feeling a mixture of sadness and relief when I see the Mountainfilm banner taken down after the festival weekend is over. Our guests left town with sails full from the rousing reception they received and our filmmakers have headed to other festivals (and hopefully new projects that they’ll bring back to Telluride), but I wonder about our audience. I want to know what sort of impact the weekend had on them and how it will affect their lives.

This year was particularly compelling in regard to potential impact as we kicked off the festival with the Moving Mountains Symposium on climate solutions, the great challenge of future generations. Our speakers examined the problem, described some solutions and exhorted the audience to action, but the true test of whether it worked is what happens next. What will you, our audience, do as a result?

While this year’s festival looked forward, it also looked back. We celebrated the great Americans who first climbed Everest 50 years ago, and we also heard from the visionaries who started Mountainfilm 35 years ago. The festival’s founders and early directors believed that Telluride, Colorado, would be an ideal host for films about climbing. They were right, but my esteemed predecessors didn't anticipate that the festival would grow as big as it has, encompassing the variety of subjects as it covers today. They tell me they’re thrilled with its growth and range.

It seems the audience, which gets bigger every year, feels the same. To that note, we will look closely at how to make sure that both our longtime loyalists and new festival goers can enjoy Mountainfilm without waiting in lines that are too long. It’s also important to us that the intimacy that encourages gondola and sidewalk conversations with world-changers continue. We know that a lot of the magic happens outside the theaters.

We hope it was a magical weekend for you and that you keep abreast of what we do throughout the year through our http://www.mountainfilm.org, Facebook, Twitter and Mountainfilm on Tour (see if it’s coming to a town near you). Lastly, please help us by providing feedback on 2013 by taking our online survey.

Thanks for being a part of it, and we look forward to seeing you next year.

—David Holbrooke, Mountainfilm in Telluride Festival Director