running through Sunday, Oct. 4, Aspen Film’s Filmfest will be in full swing for its 47th year.
In addition to the plethora of full-length feature films showing at the Isis Theatre, on Oct. 4, audiences can also anticipate Carbondale’s Crystal Theatre to screen two Filmfest selections, both of which highlight deeply human stories, according to Regna Jones, head of Education and Institutional Giving at Filmfest.
“The American Dream,” a comedy by French director Anthony Marciano, tells the story of a video store clerk and an airport cleaner finding one another over their shared love of basketball, and striving to make it as NBA agents. “Time Warp,” directed by Allison Berg, tells the story of Kenny Starling and his community of shadow performers in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” and how that project led to a fight for queer visibility in a small community.
Jones said these films should resonate with audiences because of recent programming around sports with “The American Dream” and the strong presence of performance art in Carbondale.
“We wanted to have a little variety of drama and comedy narrative films along with a documentary, and so considering that there’s a strong theater presence down here with the Thunder River Theatre Company and SoL Theatre Company, we thought that this would be appealing to the Carbondale audiences,” Jones said.
“The primary focus [in ‘Time Warp’] isn’t strictly on LGBTQ-plus people, but it is bringing up those themes of inclusivity and communities opening their arms to diversity,” she added, “and we feel like Carbondale is one of those communities that’s aligned with those values.”
In discussing the collaboration with the Crystal Theatre, Jones said Filmfest is excited to bring the collaborative elements of the two organizations back together after the development of the Crystal Theatre Alliance, reaching audiences further downvalley. She expressed adoration for the community programming that the Crystal Theatre Alliance has implemented since its launch.
“We’re excited to be back downvalley, and excited about the new Crystal Theatre Alliance and all of the cool community programming they’re doing,” Jones said. “We’re also enthusiastic about being able to bring the festival back into Carbondale and to our downvalley audiences. It’s like a soft reopening or relaunching the screenings we once did with them, and we’re excited about what they’re doing and happy to be a part of their community programming and offering Filmfest to wider audiences.”
These sentiments were shared by Crystal Theatre Alliance Executive Director Kate Schwerin, who said she hopes these screenings will give audiences a brighter outlook on the future and serve as a boost of positivity while also opening them up to new perspectives.
“I’m hoping that these will be the types of films that will make us believe in our own country a little bit again,” Schwerin said. “I think we could use that kind of positivity — I hope they sell out because the subject matter will resonate with different groups in our town. We’re a lot more varied — I hope it makes people think a little bit more introspectively. That’s the beauty of film, in a lot of ways. It’s a very accessible way to make people think.”
In addition to these showings, which will first premiere to Roaring Fork audiences at the Isis Theatre, the Crystal Theatre is collaborating with “Time Warp” Director Allison Berg for a pre-screening happy hour event at Carbondale Beer Works, where filmgoers will have a chance to mingle with one another. Berg will also participate in a Q&A at the Crystal Theatre after the film.
In a nutshell:
- What: Crystal Theatre partnership with Aspen Film’s Filmfest; showing of “The American Dream” and “Time Warp”
- Where: Crystal Theatre
- When: Sunday, Oct. 4
- Tickets: crystaltheatrecarbondale.com