Festival Date: September 20 – 23, 2018
The 38th annual Breckenridge Film Festival has come and gone. As the first film festival I have ever attended, I can say that is it is a whirlwind. There are so many films, forums, Q&A’s, and other miscellaneous events that it makes it difficult to pick and choose what you want to do with your time.
Thankfully the weather was nice over the weekend and any down time, or time to stretch your legs, was welcomed with crisp mountain air and sunshine. Breckenridge is an excellent location for a film festival. The remote nature of Breckenridge combined with the year round tourist attractions creates a good mixture of “quiet mountain town” with full service restaurants and other amenities that stay open late. This made grabbing a drink or some food after the movies both accessible and not over crowded.
The overall vibe of the films selected seemed to center around serious topics. Many of the films were either documentaries or dramas and each block tended to touch on either sentimental or provocative subject matter. Some of the documentaries included, Fiddlin’, Andy Irons: Kissed by God, Afghan Cycles, Live the Stream: The Story of Joe Humphrey, Shake Sister Shake. Notable dramas included, Game, 6ate7, The Pact, Junior, and Pagg. There were also some major films that will reach a wider audience, like, Funny Story, What They Had, and the world premier of Waterlily Jaguar.
I did not attend any of the forums, however, I did stay for some of the Q&A’s that took place throughout the fest. The ability to talk, or listen, to an actor or filmmaker discuss their thoughts, experience, techniques, involved in the film making process is fascinating. Getting the inside scoop of how an actor’s role deviates from their personal life or how a filmmaker overcame an obstacle to produce film adds tremendous depth to the film and to the art of film making in general.
Michael Shannon took some time after the film What They Had to receive a Career Achievement Award and to field some questions from the audience. It was cool to see such a great actor talk about his process and get to know him a little. He always brings a seriousness and intensity to his roles. Some times this takes form as the villain in films like, The Shape of Water and The Iceman. Shannon does not always play the villain, however, he always brings his stern temperament and steadfast acting to his roles. This can be seen in films like, Nocturnal Animals, Elvis & Nixon, Midnight Special, Take Shelter, to name a few. This consistency has a way of making him the backbone of films and bringing them to a new level.
If I had to pick out my favorite films from the festival I would have to say: Funny Story (Comedy Feature), A Drawing (Animated Short), Sledgehammer (Animated Short), Pagg (Drama Short), Afghan Cycles (Documentary), Andy Irons: Kissed by God (Documentary), and Junior (Drama Short). Each one was engaging, had a powerful message, and was well executed. There were other great films as well and many that I was unable to see. This would be my go to list for recommendations coming out of the fest, based off of what I a saw.
There are still many films that I want to see. One of these films is Daniel Sprick: Pursuit of Truth & Beauty. His incredible art (below) was displayed inside of the Breckenridge Theater. We were unable to make it to his film, but I will be making an effort to check this one out.
I am thankful for my wife sending us on our first film festival and I am excited to visit more in the future and hope that they have as many great films to offer that we experienced over the weekend in Breckenridge.
Schedule
THU
Love Gilda (DOC)
FRI
Forever Under Siege (DOC)
The Interpreters (DOC)
Schoolyard Blues (Short Drama)
The Chocolate Soldier (Short Drama)
Fathers Day Breakfast (Short Drama)
Prodigy (Short Drama)
Game (Short Drama)
Captain Black (Drama)
Rogue Elements (Adventure)
A Friend (Spiritual)
Claire McKenna (Spiritual)
Hula Girl (DOC)
Ol’ Max Evans: The First Thousand Years (DOC)
Pour 585 (Animated Short)
Seen Again (Animated Short)
Sledgehammer (Animated Short)
Spark (Animated Short)
The Extraordinary Story of Oliver Wyght (Animated Short)
A Drawing (Animated Short)
Bamboo (Animated Short)
Bullies (Short Comedy)
Time Trap (Drama)
Fiddlin’ (DOC)
Adventure Reel: Andy Irons: Kissed by God (DOC)
Antiquities (Comedy)
Cells (Drama)
Rust Creek (Short Drama)
6ate7 (Short Drama)
The Pact (Short Drama)
Funny Story (Comedy)
SAT
A Sniper’s War (DOC)
Bamboo (Animated Short)
A Drawing (Animated Short)
The Extraordinary Story of Oliver Wyght (Animated Short)
Treemaker (Animated Short)
Spark (Animated Short)
Afghan Cycles (DOC)
High School Film Finalists (Special Programming)
Last Dance at Johnson’s Barn (DOC)
Farmer of the Year (DOC)
Junior (Short Drama)
In the Field (Short Drama)
JieJie (Short Drama)
Pagg (Short Drama)
Tin Can (Short Drama)
A River’s Reckoning (DOC)
Live the Stream: The Story of Joe Humphrey (DOC)
Shake Sister Shake (DOC)
I Got You Babe (Short Drama)
Do No Harm (Short Drama)
The Zim (Short Drama)
The Girl and the Picture (DOC/Short Drama)
Octav (Drama)
What They Had (Drama)
The School of Honk (Spiritual)
Brothers (Spiritual)
Walk by Faith (Spiritual)
The Frenchy (Adventure)
Ho to Run 100 Miles (Adventure)
Fish out of Water (Adventure)
Enough White Teacups (DOC)
Daniel Sprick: Pursuit of Truth and Beauty (DOC)
View (Short Drama)
Buckout Road (Drama)
Waterlily Jaguar (Drama)
Music Videos
Son to Son (Short Drama)
Locating Silver Lake (Drama)
The Addiction (Comedy)
Moving Violation (Comedy)
Gloria Talks Funny (Comedy)
Holiday Hostage (Comedy)
My Little Life (Comedy)
The Inconsiderate Houseguest (Comedy)
SUN
Best of Fest – Fiddlin’ (DOC)
The Waiting Game (DOC)
Reel Rock12 Above the Sea (DOC)
Devoted Limits (DOC)
When the Smoke Clears (DOC)
Girl on wave (DOC)
Best of Fest – Live the Stream: The Story of Joe Humphreys (Adventure)
Best of Fest – The Elephant in the Room (Adventure)
Best of Fest Shorts – Bullies, A Drawing, Walk by Faith, Game, I Got You Babe, Imagination
Saving Snow (DOC)
North of Nightfall (DOC)
Best of Fest – Rust Creek (Drama)
Best of Fest – Funny Story (Comedy)
