I'm Counting Down...

...to Telluride. Duh. What else?

As evidenced by my mildly obsessive visits to the Telluride Film Festival Student Symposium website, counting down to the day of the festival is just about the only thing I can think about. It is not as if by scouring the internet I will uncover newly revealed or leaked information on the festival's schedule, so even as I continue to do it, a voice in the back of mind keeps asking, "Why? Why are you doing this? This is pointless." In fact, the voice sounds a lot like someone I know, a peer of mine who might have the initials of GG. Here's to you, good sir.

But, in this case, the congenial and playful nagging is out of place. Despite the odds, searching throughout the internet has turned up a couple of intriguing nuggets, both from past festivals and about the upcoming 35th.

First, coming from a Telluride Film Festival Flickr pool, a collection of photos from a number of past TFFs. It turns out to be quite a treasure trove, as the saying goes, depicting both the natural beauty of the secluded mountainside and the joyous pandemonium that is the festival proper. I'll post here a couple of the photos that I find the most enjoyable, but feel free to peruse the collection for yourself -- it is not to be missed. (Images are, of course, copyright of their original owners.)

Festival guests with Werner Herzog!
Hey! Look! It's an attendee with Michel Gondry!

And, then, slightly more exciting than the images is a little jewel of information that I found earlier today while perusing various weblogs and news websites. It's an article based on source material taken from Variety and posted on TO411Daily.com. The article is almost wholly regarding the Toronto International Film Festival. But, right at the end (in the third to last paragraph) the author mentions what seems to be a potential spoiler for this year's Telluride Film Festival, though I have no way to officially confirm whether it is true.

From TO411Daily.com:

"While Toronto has announced Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” for the fest, the recently shuttered Warner Independent Pictures is shopping the film to other distribs. The Telluride Film Festival has also invited the film."

Readers will likely remember Boyle as the director of Trainspotting, Boyle's 1996 hipster drug-culture movie starring Ewan McGregor and a host of other actors who lend towards an unforgettable ensemble cast.

But, the question is will Danny Boyle's picture premiere at Telluride instead of at Toronto? There's no way to know for certain, but I would certainly welcome this as somewhat of a distinct possibility. And, even if not, will the surprises that Telluride holds overwhelm its attendees regardless? Unquestionably. But, speculation on the festival's line-up is just one of many pre-festival activities to enjoy, as much a part of the experience as being there in person.

"Top Secret" / Dreams

It was only days ago, upon returning to the United States from abroad, that I received my official acceptance packet to the 35th Telluride Film Festival Student Symposium. Holding it in my hands, I sensed that it was thick with secrets of what was in store for the Symposium. It was only later, while perusing the material included, that I remembered a longtime Telluride tradition. I had forgotten that Telluride's secrets were beyond "top secret."

Ever since the 3rd Telluride Film Festival, the organizers of the festival have made the decision to keep the program line-up a closely guarded secret. Nobody is in the know (besides the festival organizers) as to who or what films will be in Telluride for the six-day experience. Even for those involved in the Student Symposium, we're left almost entirely clueless. Now, this time-honored tradition is part of what makes this particular festival experience so endearing -- not only does Telluride promise an unequivocal experience for the viewer and student, but the details are entirely a mystery.

Even with my "top secret" packet of information and travel documents, the festival's organizers continue to keep both the students and the thousands of attendees in unimaginable anticipation. In fact, the process reminds me a bit of Christmas gifts. I could ask, and I might get an answer, but do I really want to spoil the surprise? The answer is no.

It is remarkable, though, that every year the festival sells out all of its passes based purely on its reputation. Festival-goers bank on their past experience or knowledge communicated through alternative channels about how mind-blowing the festival line-up traditionally is. Attendees have not even a remote inclination about what to expect beforehand -- but, on arrival, the schedule is presented to them and the proverbial man behind the curtain revealed.

As I rather literally lie in wait for the festival to begin here in my Evanston apartment bedroom, a dream enters my mind that for the festival, echoes again and again to me as a distinct possibility. It is my dream and (perhaps naive) hope that American filmmaker Spike Lee will be present at the festival. Here's another theory for you, as an explanation of why this is not exactly impossible. Spike Lee has a film set to be released in theatres as of September 26th, 2008, Miracle at St. Anna. As of yet, no information (that I am aware of) has been made public about its debut at another film festival during the summer. This, to me, signals that Telluride for Lee could actually be happening.

If Lee is at Telluride when I arrive, I will undoubtedly combust based upon the stimulus. To be safe, I plan to bring a copy of the academic paper I wrote on Lee's A Huey P. Newton Story with me to Telluride. This is the paper that I wrote for Jacqueline Stewart's class on Spike Lee and that I presented at the University of Notre Dame's 2nd Annual Midwest Undergraduate Film Conference. The paper is also currently being considered for the 2008 Frank Capra Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Film Criticism. Fingers crossed on all accounts, I'd say.

More information/exposition later, but in the meantime, please feel free to check out Chris Gore's (of Film Threat) coverage of the 33rd Telluride Film Festival here (in three parts). Enjoy.