The Telluride Film Festival, presented by the National Film Preserve, Ltd. with Apple, is proud to announce its new festival venue and film showcase, Backlot, will be unveiled at the 34th Telluride Film Festival, August 31 through September 3, 2007.

Backlot, an intimate screening room built for the Festival at Telluride’s Wilkinson Library, was created by Festival co-directors Tom Luddy and Gary Meyer to further enhance the Festival’s standing tribute to the art of film and give festival goers a special behind the scenes look to the past, present and future of cinema where they will discover new stories about both famous and unknown film personalities. Ten films were carefully selected to screen over the four-day Festival and kick-off a new annual tradition at Telluride. Films screening as part of the Backlot program will be announced, along with the rest of the program, on the opening day of the Festival.

“We saw so many wonderful new works exploring the world of film that it seemed perfect to create a festival within the Festival that compliments the passion for cinema that our filmmakers and audiences bring to Telluride,” said co-director Tom Luddy.

Backlot will also be home to a special exhibition on loan from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences entitled, “Erich von Stroheim: A Life Discovered,” which illustrates von Stroheim’s life through family photographs, handwritten documents and correspondence. Included are extensive still photographs from all of his films as a director, including several that are lost or were never completed. Video clips from von Stroheim's films round out the installation. The exhibit will also be on display at the Festival’s Hospitality center, Brigadoon.

Gary Meyer, the Festival’s new co-director explained, “The Festival has a long and valued relationship with the Academy. A recent discussion with executive director Bruce Davis included ideas about ways our international audiences could experience some of the fascinating materials in their archives. When Bruce told us about the von Stroheim exhibit, there was no hesitation on our part…..this looks like the expansion of a beautiful relationship.”