With so many film options it’s been a busy time for the Aspen Shortsfest programming team, led by Shortsfest Programming Director Jason Anderson. They will serve the succulent film-fare to hungry audiences from April 5 through 10.
Under the auspices of Aspen Film, a year-round cinematic arts and education organization, Aspen Shortsfest is in its 31st year. It is one of four Oscar-qualifying festivals in the United States that is strictly dedicated to short films.
This year, people are invited to in-person events and screenings at the historic Wheeler Opera House in Aspen as well as the Crystal Theatre in Carbondale.
Susan Wrubel, executive and artistic director of Aspen Film, said, “Jason had just come on board in 2020, so this will be his first in-person festival in Aspen. He’s done an incredible job for the organization. We love his, and his team’s, work.”
Wrubel shared that the team did a quick pivot in 2020 when the pandemic hit and endured two years of online festivals. “We’re thrilled to be back!” She declared.
People can select from a tempting menu of 77 films and 11 programs that will surely please any filmgoer’s palate. Of the 77 titles, 53% are directed or co-directed by women.
Last July, when film submissions opened, Anderson and his programming team (Anita Tavakol, Ivonne Cotorruelo and Liane Cunje) “started the long process of watching material. Some things you love from very early on, and then other things kind of show up to fill in the spaces,” Anderson explained.
A team of 41 volunteer pre-screeners viewed nearly 3,000 submissions. Anderson described it as, “a fascinating process that takes a lot of collective brainpower.”
Sixty filmmakers from around the world will come to Aspen. “This may be the highest number of filmmakers we’ve had in a very long time. It’s a real communal experience for them. They all kind of pal around together and go to each others’ films. You’ll see them wandering around town in packs,” Wrubel said with a laugh.
A new element to the Shortsfest is the showcasing of Young Emerging Voices in Film, presented as part of Aspen Film’s FilmEducates program. These screenings will be held at Aspen’s Isis Theatre on April 10 at 2 p.m. The free community event requires no tickets or festival passes.
This inaugural showcase features two films crafted by youth filmmaking teams from the Roaring Fork Valley. “Faces of the Future,” by Aspen High School students Micah Sanders-Silva and Moritz Johnson, examines teen bullying. The other is a 5Point Voices Youth Film Project which brought Bridges High School’s class of 2020 together with professional teaching artists to create a short film during the pandemic. (Ultram)
With four programs of film screenings at the Crystal Theatre, Anderson said, “We wanted to give viewers this kind of smörgåsbord — a wide and varied menu.”
Anderson thinks Carbondalians will enjoy “Nuisance Bear” by a Canadian team that traveled to Churchill, Manitoba. The town is world-famous for its large polar bear population, where tourists arrive to take pictures of them. As the bears search for food in dumpsters, Anderson said, “there’s a permeable boundary between this animal world and the human world.”
Also showing, as a world premiere, is “Skyward,” about two teen birdwatchers living in the United Kingdom. “The film, concerning their experience as teenagers, has them reckoning with climate change and the world that’s emerging for them. I’m hoping teens see it and, as a result, think about their relationships with the natural world.”
Anderson explained his take on the appeal of shorts for filmmakers. “I think it’s often fewer cooks in the kitchen,” he began. “The film can be a pure expression of what they want to do. Each filmmaker has their own input or their own thumbprint on things.”
Aspen Film announced a one-day flash sale on March 31, where three tickets for $31 can be purchased at www.aspenshowtix.com using code: SHORTSFEST31
The Wheeler Opera House and the Crystal Theatre require proof of vaccination and a photo ID upon entering. The Crystal Theatre is limited to 65 seats. Face masks are encouraged but not required in both venues.
For more Shortsfest information or to purchase festival passes, go to www.aspenfilm.org
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