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Boulder and the Big Screen
"[Boulder] is such a perfect place for this kind of event for so many reasons," says local documentary filmmaker Kathy Beeck, who co-founded the festival with her sister Robin. "It's got a wonderful university and film school, proximity to an international airport and a beautiful mountain setting." The very first Boulder International Film Festival kicks off with a Hollywood-style "red carpet" premiere at the Boulder Theater on Feb. 17. Over the course of a single, cinema-packed weekend, films from all over the world will be shown, educational seminars will be held and several parties (always a key festival ingredient) will be thrown. "It's definitely going to be the event of the year in Boulder," says Robin Beeck. Still, does the world need yet another film festival? According to a recent New York Times article, some 2,500 festivals are held annually all over the globe. Colorado alone hosts several well-established festivals in Telluride, Aspen and Vail, just to name a few. Our state may not be thought of as a film-industry hub, but clearly we're holding our own. What will another of these events bring to Boulder? A whole lot of money, for one thing. If you want to get right down to financial brass tacks, there's the potential for a rather large economic windfall for the city as a result of the festival. The Sundance Film Festival, held annually in Park City, Utah, brings in an estimated $44 million to local businesses. The Boulder International Film Festival has a lot of growing to do before it reaches such gargantuan proportions, but the Beeck sisters, best known for their Nederland Frozen Dead Guy doc, Grandpa's in the Tuff Shed, think it's a definite possibility. "We don't actually know what the economic impact will be, but a film festival like this can bring in a lot of revenue if it grows into what we think it's going to grow into," says Kathy. "I think we can have [what Sundance has] in Boulder. I can't see any reason why we can't." Beyond such financial considerations, the founders see the festival as a great cultural asset. "Ninety percent of the films showing this year have never been seen in Boulder," says Robin. "And most of them haven't been seen in Colorado. It will show people the diversity of the world of film and will expose them to different cultures and viewpoints." The festival will also serve as the flagship event of the newly formed Colorado Film Society. "We started the society, which is putting on the festival, in order to bring together all the different groups involved with film here in Boulder, to try to create a cohesive film community," says Kathy. "We're hoping that the festival and the society will really put Boulder on the map as far filmmaking goes." In keeping with the founders' vision, the festival's lineup is an eclectic bunch—nearly 60 films that range from hard-hitting documentaries to whimsical comedies. "We got 650 entries," says Robin. "What was difficult was paring that down. It was a lot longer process than we had planned because we got so many more films than we thought we were going to get." According to the Beeck sisters, the films that made the final cut all had one thing in common. "Great storytelling is sort of the theme for this year," says Robin. "I know that's kind of a general statement. But we have found that in every film that's going to be shown this year, whether it's a comedy or drama, fiction or nonfiction." The documentaries being screened this weekend look particularly strong, with films chronicling both the political and the personal. Alone Across Australia tracks extreme adventurer John Muir's grueling trek across the Australian outback. The Future of Food, by Jerry Garcia's widow Deborah Koons Garcia, is a harrowing exposé of the food industry. Sean McAllister's The Liberace of Baghdad, which will close the festival on Sunday night, captures the life of Iraq's most famous concert pianist in the chaotic period following the toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003. The film's subject, Samir Peter, will perform following the screening, in what promises to be one of the festival's most emotionally charged moments. "The curtain will open up, and he'll be there with his piano," says Robin. "I think just having him there will be wonderful for the festival." One of the most high-profile events this weekend is the pre-release screening of Trainspotting director Danny Boyle's Millions, a tale of juvenile delinquency in the United Kingdom. "[That print] is coming under lock and key from Fox Searchlight just two hours before the show," says Kathy. "That makes us and our projectionist nervous!" Such a relatively big-budget film will be rubbing elbows with much more homespun projects. "I've seen films at other film festivals that look really slick, but I wasn't at all interested in the story," says Kathy. "One of our films this year, The Real Old Testament (a spoof of both MTV's The Real World and the Bible), doesn't have particularly high production values. But that doesn't matter, because we watched it and laughed and laughed and laughed." As Boulder-based filmmakers, the Beeck sisters wanted to devote a sizable chunk of screening time to Colorado filmmakers. Twenty percent of the films shown this weekend are homegrown. One such film that is bound to cause a stir is the documentary Seoul Train, by the Vail-based team of Jim Butterworth, Aaron Lubarsky and Lisa Sleeth. The film features gripping footage of lower-caste North Koreans risking life and limb to defect to China. "It is such an electrifying film—it just makes you shiver when you see it," says Robin. "It's that good. And they're Colorado filmmakers, which is a bonus. We love Colorado filmmakers, and it's great that they've got such an amazing film." When the festival wraps on Sunday night, the Beeck sisters, the Colorado Film Society and the dozens of festival volunteers will pause to catch their collective breath. But it will be a brief pause. After all, there's next year's festival to start planning. "I see [the festival] as an institution," says Robin. "When we get busy and frustrated with everything, I just think about how, in 25 years, this festival will have a great reputation." The Boulder International Film Festival starts at 7 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 17, and runs through Sunday, Feb. 20. In addition to the numerous film programs, workshops will be held at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd., Boulder, and opening and closing night galas will be held at the Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St., Boulder. For tickets, contact the Boulder Theater box office at 303-786-7030. For more information about the festival and a detailed schedule of events and films, visit www. biff1.com. Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com |
For the founders of the Boulder International Film Festival,
the question wasn't, "Why have a film festival in Boulder?" Instead it was,
"Why hasn't this been done before?"
