Telluride Mountainfilm: “Shorts in Winter,” 12/26

20 Dec Telluride Mountainfilm: “Shorts in Winter,” 12/26

Telluride Mountainfilm’s “Shorts in Winter” features skiing films at the annual holiday event. Program includes two screenings, 5 & 7 p.m., at the Sheridan Opera House. Tickets are $20 for adults; $15 for children in advance; $25 for adults/$20 for children at the door. Buy tickets online on Mountainfilm’s events page. Scroll down to watch the trailer of “Monumental.”

From “Monumental: Skiing Our National Parks.” The 40+-minute film plays at Mountainfilm’s winter movie event on Dec. 26 at the Sheridan Opera House.

Telluride Mountainfilm has a gift for the community this holiday week: skiing, snowstorms, and winter stories on the big screen.

The program features four new ski shorts released after the 2016 festival, as well as a special encore screening of “Senior: 82 Winters in Telluride,” a film by Ben Knight and Travis Rummel that celebrates the life of Telluride ski pioneer Senior Mahoney.

“When we started putting together the December 26 program, we realized there are a bunch of exciting new ski films out there,” festival director David Holbrooke said. “We thought, why not? Telluride’s a ski town, let’s just jump into ski films.”

Along with high adventure, the power of storytelling is also central to Mountainfilm. In that spirit, the “Shorts in Winter” films are more than just action and beauty.  Stories range from a skier’s journey into the cultural and geographical unknowns of Iran to a group of adventurers who embark into the nation’s national parks to find both history lessons and great turns.

“We’re always looking for a great story,” Holbrooke said. “And these ski films, while they do focus on skiing, show how far storytelling has come in the genre.”

Holbrooke added that Mountainfilm is thrilled to share “Monumental,” which at 42 minutes is anchor film of the program.

“We’re particularly excited to show ‘ onumental’ because it looks into Mountainfilm’s 2016 theme of national parks, but in a whole new way,” he said.

Program line-up as follows:

• “Genesis,” 6 min. This short film from DPS Skis melds existential ideas on the origins of life with ethereal shots of skiers ascending and skiing the graceful spines of Alaska’s Chugach Range.

• “Budludza,” 5 min. Skiers Ole Pavel and Lukas Jones explore the ruins of a communist monument in this stylish dystopian short from Ben Sturgulewski, which is a segment from his 2016 MSP feature, Ruin and Rose.

• “Iran: A Skier’s Journey,” 13 min. This poetic film from Jordan Manley is a meditation on a complex country that can be both welcoming and impenetrable, as seen through the eyes of skiers.

• “Monumental: Skiing Our National Parks,” 42 min. Monumental celebrates the centennial of America’s National Park Service through ski adventures in Yellowstone, Glacier and Yosemite. Along with finding amazing ski lines, this group of modern adventurers digs into the history and importance of our parks.

• “Senior: 82 Winters in Telluride,” 5 min. This short portrait by Felt Soul Media offers a look into a bygone era in Telluride — when streets were unpaved and homes were cheap — and pays homage to a seminal skier and straight-talking man whose influence on the town is beyond compare.

About Mountainfilm:

Established in 1979, Mountainfilm is dedicated to using film, art and ideas to inspire audiences to create a better world. Working at the nexus of filmmaking and action, its flagship program is the legendary Telluride Mountainfilm festival, a one-of-a-kind combination of films, conversations and inspiration. Mountainfilm also reaches audiences year-round through its worldwide tour and Mountainfilm for Students, an educational outreach initiative for youth. Mountainfilm has the power to change lives. To learn more, go here.