Telluride Film Fest, Part 1

For those of you who haven't taken me up on my Telluride invites... you're nuts. Or perhaps you just really hate great vacations, they make you feel unworthy. Or maybe you are that one person in the universe that just can't stand movies, they are so played out.

Telluride is always a bit of a challenge to organize, and then I get there. This year our condo was SO nice, and I was knocked out by the location - a block away from the town park, and a block from the gondola. The weather was perfect, as has always been my experience with Labor Day weekend there. The crowds were mild to non-existent, the pace was easy, everyone was happy and chatty. We couldn't have done better.

The line up was terrific too. There were three movies that seemed headed for theaters, so we skipped them in spite of our interest. We ended up seeing three documentaries, one fiction movie that's a tribute to silent film, two outstanding shorts, and the first Tribute that I've attended since going to the festival. I had to go, it was George Clooney, and I heard that so many people were expecting it to be swamped that there were actually empty seats! So I got to see a 45 minute interview with Clooney in person.

But by far the highlight for me - of the entire weekend - was a documentary called The Island President. It's about the president of The Maldives, a chain of 2,000 islands in the Indian Ocean, that is primarily known as a home to unbelievable beach resorts. The elevation of this country is 1.5 meters, and it is the first country that is entirely at risk of extinction as a result of global warming. Mohamed Nasheed is a hero, and a very smart man fighting a losing battle to persuade other countries to cut their carbon emissions and save the culture of his people. It was brilliant, heart breaking, emotionally affecting.

We also saw Martin Scorcese's 3 1/2 hour documentary about George Harrison, called Living In The Material World. It's apparently planned for release on HBO or Showtime, so watch for it, it's completely fascinating.

More pictures to come, and probably a couple afterthoughts. If you have any interest in joining me next time, let me know. It's a cheap, easy, fun vacation and I would love to share it.