Vail’s Growing Cinematic Tradition
Photos by Toni Axelrod
The Vail Film Festival is a highlight of the spring season. The 2009 edition of the Vail Film Festival will be held April 2-5.
If the 2008 Vail Film Festival’s opening gala was any indication, the independent movie scene has definitely “arrived” in this mountain community.
Drum beats and fire hoops welcomed guests at Vail’s Donovan Pavilion. Sushi and an open bar fed them. A wall projection of traditional Japanese dancers accompanied by techno music created the backdrop, and scarf dancers entertained. The food and drink were delicious.
Founders and filmmaker brothers Scott and Sean Cross have created a popular event for Vail, showing 80 independent films this year to movie enthusiasts.
And they accommodate their audiences by scheduling afternoon- and evening-only screenings. Filmgoers and actors can ski the powder before show time, an enticing perk.
The Vail festival has found dynamic partners such as RED (whose Africa-inspired involvement helps those with AIDS) and Best Life magazine. The VIP Lodge hosted a music café with Hotel Café performers.
There were lunches, Stella Artois and wine, juices and bottled water. The sound was good in the new high-ceilinged tent structure. Photo ops were had by all.
Finding venues in 2008 was a challenge with Vail renewal projects closing theaters across town. The Vail Mountain School (VMS) Theater was an excellent choice for screenings and the awards ceremony. After a red carpet opportunity for the press, actors and producers received Vail Film Festival awards on the final evening of the four-day festival.
The Cascade Theater opened specifically for the event, and the new Arrabelle at Vail Square in Liosnhead opened its elegant doors and large screening rooms.
On receiving the 2008 Excellence in Acting Award, producer/actor Tim Daly looked around the VMS theater and said, “I wish I had gone to this high school.” Known for his television series Almost Grown and Wings, Daly has also received an Emmy for performances in HBO’s The Sopranos.
Commenting on what he likes about his work, Daly said, “Actors are the custodians of their character. Making films and TV is the most collaborative work there is. It’s like a team of savants.”
Clearly a hot commodity at the festival, star of HBO’s Entourage and actor in Ari Gold’s film submission, Adventures of Power, was Adrian Grenier. He received the Blue Sky Award for environmental activism. Grenier shared his thoughts on filmmaking, “Acting in indy films is about the quality of your own life. It’s spiritual. Independent film gives us diversity.”
Gold’s film centered on an air drumming competition and and incisively explored how humans try to communicate. Gold says, “It’s a metaphor of not having something you want that you think you need; when you get it you realize you don’t need it.” In real life, Grenier and Gold are friends and play real instruments in the band, The Honey Brothers.
Producer Amy Redford brought The Guitar, an original script about a woman confronted with her own mortality. When asked why she came to the Vail festival, Redford (whose father started the Sundance Festival in Utah) said, “It’s important to support beginning film festivals. The Vail festival gives people access to diverse points of view.”
Festival competitions include the already popular Screenplay competition. 2009 will see the first Acting Competition. There are Best awards for Feature, Student Films, Action Sports, Documentary, and an Audience award. 2008 saw the first Reel Quick 48-Hour Competition. The Rising Star award taps someone making inroads in film. The Renegade award recognizes courageous filmmaking.
Since the beginning, there have been messages and lessons in the fine independent films chosen for this festival, where filmmaking is celebrated alongside the sport of skiing. Audiences return each year in large numbers for more of each.
The sixth annual Vail Film Festival, April 2-5, 2009, promises to delight enthusiasts of the big screen and leave a little time for snowsports.
For a schedule of events and to purchase passes and individual tickets, visit www.vailfilmfestival.org or call 970-333-9689.
On assignment for Rocky Mountain Media at the Vail Film Festival, Rosalie Hill Isom discovered she could write in the dark. Isom volunteered at the first Vail Film Festival and the 2003 Cannes Film Festival, interpreting French for a directors’ panel aired on HBO.
