Telluride Film Festival, presented by the National Film Preserve, today announced its official program selections for the 44th edition of the Telluride Film Festival. TFF’s annual celebration of artistic excellence brings together cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and artists to discover the best in world cinema in the beautiful mountain town of Telluride, Colorado. TFF will screen over sixty feature films, short films and revival programs representing twenty-six countries, along with special artist Tributes, Conversations, Panels, Student Programs and Festivities. Telluride Film Festival takes place Friday, September 1 - Monday, September 4, 2017.

44th Telluride Film Festival is proud to present the following new feature films to play in its main program:

·       ARTHUR MILLER: WRITER (d. Rebecca Miller, U.S., 2017)

·       BATTLE OF THE SEXES (d. Valerie Faris, Jonathan Dayton, U.S., 2017)

·       DARKEST HOUR (d. Joe Wright, U.K., 2017)

·       DOWNSIZING (d. Alexander Payne, U.S., 2017)

·       EATING ANIMALS (d. Christopher Quinn, U.S., 2017)

·       FACES PLACES (d. Agnes Varda, JR, France, 2017)

·       A FANTASTIC WOMAN (d. Sebastián Lelio, Chile-U.S.-Germany-Spain, 2017)

·       FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL (d. Paul McGuigan, U.K., 2017)

·       FIRST REFORMED (d. Paul Schrader, U.S., 2017)

·       FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER (d. Angelina Jolie, U.S.-Cambodia, 2017)

·       FOXTROT (d. Samuel Maoz, Israel, 2017)

·       HOSTAGES (d. Rezo Gigineishvili, Georgia-Russia-Poland, 2017)

·       HOSTILES (d. Scott Cooper, U.S., 2017)

·       HUMAN FLOW (d. Ai Weiwei, U.S.-Germany, 2017)

·       THE INSULT (d. Ziad Doueiri, France-Lebanon, 2017)

·       LADY BIRD (d. Greta Gerwig, U.S., 2017)

·       LAND OF THE FREE (d. Camilla Magid, Denmark-Finland, 2017)

·       LEAN ON PETE (d. Andrew Haigh, U.K.-U.S., 2017)

·       LOVELESS (d. Andrey Zvyagintsev, Russia-France-Belgium-Germany, 2017)

·       LOVE, CECIL (d. Lisa Immordino Vreeland, U.S., 2017)

·       LOVING VINCENT (d. Dorota Kobiela, Hugh Welchman, U.K.-Poland, 2017)

·       A MAN OF INTEGRITY (d. Mohammad Rasoulof, Iran, 2017)

·       THE OTHER SIDE OF HOPE (d. Aki Kaurismäki, Finland, 2017)

·       THE RIDER (d. Chloé Zhao, U.S., 2017)

·       THE SHAPE OF WATER (d. Guillermo del Toro, U.S., 2017)

·       TESNOTA (d. Kantemir Balagov, Russia, 2017)

·       THE VENERABLE W. (d. Barbet Schroeder, France-Switzerland, 2017)

·       THE VIETNAM WAR (d. Ken Burns, Lynn Novick, U.S., 2017)

·       WORMWOOD (d. Errol Morris, U.S., 2017)

·       WONDERSTRUCK (d. Todd Haynes, U.S., 2017)

Two documentary shorts, HEROIN(E) (d. Elaine McMillion Sheldon, U.S., 2017) and LONG SHOT (d. Jacob LaMendola, U.S., 2017) will also play together in the main program.

The 2017 Silver Medallion Awards, given to recognize an artist’s significant contribution to the world of cinema, will be presented to Academy Award winning actor Christian Bale (TFF selection HOSTILES), and Oscar nominated cinematographer Ed Lachman (TFF selection WONDERSTRUCK). Tribute programs include a selection of clips followed by the presentation of the Silver Medallion, an onstage interview and a screening of the aforementioned films.

Guest Director Joshua Oppenheimer, who serves as a key collaborator in the Festival’s program, presents the following revival programs:

·       EVEN DWARFS STARTED SMALL (d. Werner Herzog, West Germany, 1970)

·       HOTEL OF THE STARS (d. Jon Bang Carlsen, Denmark, 1981)

·       THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER (d. Charles Laughton, U.S., 1955)

·       SALAM CINEMA (d. Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Iran, 1995)

·       TITICUT FOLLIES (d. Frederick Wiseman, U.S., 1967)

·       THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG (d. Jacques Demy, France, 1964)

Additional film revival programs, all newly restored, include THE BAKER’S WIFE (d. Marcel Pagnol, France, 1938); THE COTTON CLUB ENCORE (d. Francis Ford Coppola, U.S., 1984/2017); KEAN, OR DISORDER AND GENIUS (d. Aleksandr Volkoff, France, 1924), with the Mont Alto Orchestra; and

SUCH IS LIFE (d. Carl Junghan, Czechoslovakia, 1929).

Telluride Film Festival annually celebrates a hero of cinema who preserves, honors and presents great movies. This year’s Special Medallion award goes to Katriel Schory, director of the Israeli Film Fund.

Backlot, Telluride’s intimate screening room featuring behind-the-scenes movies and portraits of artists, musicians and filmmakers, will screen the following programs:

·       CINEMA THROUGH THE EYE OF MAGNUM (d. Sophie Bassaler, France, 2017)

·       FILMWORKER (d. Tony Zierra, U.S., 2017)

·       HITLER’S HOLLYWOOD (d. Rüdiger Suchsland, Germany, 2017)

·       JAMAICA MAN (d. Michael Weatherly, U.S., 2017)

·       PORTRAIT OF VALESKA GERT (d. Volker Schlöndorff, Germany, 1977) + EDGE OF ALCHEMY (d. Stacey Steers, U.S., 2017)

·       SLIM GAILLARD’S CIVILISATION (d. Anthony Wall, U.K., 1989)

·       THAT SUMMER (d. Göran Hugo Olsson, Sweden-U.S.-Denmark, 2017)

“Telluride Film Festival has long been a platform for films from many different cultures and backgrounds that celebrate diversity,” said Telluride Film Festival executive director Julie Huntsinger. “We feel it’s more important than ever to promote the unique and beautiful differences that exist in the world. From a wide range of new American and foreign cinema to eye-opening documentaries and gorgeous restorations, we are proud to present this 44^th program and honor those artists who have made it possible.”

Telluride Film Festival’s shorts program, Filmmakers of Tomorrow, includes three sections: Student Prints, Great Expectations, and Calling Cards from sixteen emerging filmmakers from around the globe.

Telluride Film Festival’s Student Programs present students the opportunity to experience film as an art and expand participants’ worldview through film screenings and filmmaker discussions. The Student Symposium provides 50 graduate and undergraduate college students with a weekend-long immersion in cinema. The City Lights Project brings 15 high school students and five teachers from three schools the opportunity to participate in a concentrated program of screenings and discussions. FilmLAB offers a master-class program for UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television graduate filmmaking students. The FilmSCHOLAR program gives young film scholars and aspiring critics the opportunity to immerse themselves in a weekend of cinema and learn from some of the best in the field. Created in conjunction with the University of Wisconsin. University Seminars offer university professors and students special festival programming throughout the weekend.

Telluride Film Festival’s Talking Heads programs allow attendees to go behind the scenes with the Festival’s special guests. Six Conversations take place between Festival guests and the audience about cinema and culture, and three outdoor Noon Seminars feature a panel of Festival guests discussing a wide range of film topics. These programs are free and open to the public.

Additional Festivities will take place throughout the Festival including a Poster Signing with 2017 poster artist Lance Rutter; Book Signings with Loung Ung (First They Killed My Father), Peter Turner (Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool), Alice Waters (Coming to My Senses: The Making of a Counterculture Cook), and Willie Vlautin (Lean on Pete); and a special outdoor screening of AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER (d. Bonni Cohen, Jon Shenk, U.S., 2017) with Al Gore.

Corporate and institutional support at Telluride Film Festival plays a dynamic role in the life of the Festival and underscores the Festival’s commitment to quality, adventure and distinction in the art of cinema. TFF is privileged to collaborate with some of the world’s most renowned consumer and entertainment brands. Julie Huntsinger said, “The festival is honored to collaborate with incredible partners whose unique contributions enhance our mutual values and add radiance to our festival experience. We are exceptionally grateful to our long-term relationships with Turner Classic Movies, EY, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Meyer Sound, Dolby Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, UCLA TFT, to deepening our relationships with Amazon Studios, Delta Air Lines, Participant Media, and excited to welcome significant new sponsors ARRI and FilmStruck to the mix. We also welcome back the sleek, fast, all-electric Tesla to town. A fleet will be on display and available to test drive during the festival.”

We are extremely proud of our committed relationships, each of which are aligned with a unique feature of the festival and contribute to enhancing the festival experience, including Signature Sponsors: Turner Classic Movies, EY and Meyer Sound; Major Sponsors: Amazon Studios, FilmStruck, ARRI, Participant Media, Universal Studios, Delta Airlines, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television; Festival Sponsors: Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, Criterion Collection, Dolby, DELL, Boston Light and Sound; General Sponsors: Telluride Ski & Golf Resort, Telluride Mountain Village Owners Associated, National Endowment for the Arts, Colorado Office of Film, Television & Media; our wonderful Hospitality Partners: Telluride Alpine Lodging, The London West Hollywood, New Sheridan Hotel, The Chatwal New York; and Festival Auto Partner: Tesla; plus Colorado Creative Industries, Fotokem, Spectrum, and the Town of Telluride, among others.

About Telluride Film Festival

The prestigious Telluride Film Festival ranks among the world’s best film festivals and is an annual gathering for film industry insiders, cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and critics. TFF is considered a major launching ground for the fall season’s most talked-about films. Founded in 1974, Telluride Film Festival, presented in the beautiful mountain town of Telluride, Colorado, is a four-day international educational event celebrating the art of film. Telluride Film Festival’s long-standing commitment is to join filmmakers and film connoisseurs together to experience great cinema. The exciting schedule, kept secret until just before Opening Day, consists of over three dozen filmmakers presenting their newest works, special Guest Director programs, major Tributes to guest artists, special events and remarkable treasures from the past. Telluride Film Festival is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit educational program. Festival headquarters are in Berkeley, CA.