In addition to the previously announced Closing Night selection, Bill Condon's highly anticipated Wikileaks dramatic thriller The Fifth Estate with Benedict Cumberbatch as Julian Assange (DreamWorks Pictures and Reliance Entertainment in association with Participant Media), other high-profile presentations include John Wells's star-filled August: Osage County (The Weinstein Company) starring Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts; Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (The Weinstein Company) with Idris Elba of The Wire; Alexander Payne's Nebraska starring Bruce Dern and Will Forte (Paramount Pictures); and the inspirational against-all-odds story of everyman British Tenor Paul Potts' meteoric rise to fame in One Chance (The Weinstein Company).
Once again an eclectic line-up of new and critically acclaimed documentaries will be on tap. American music is celebrated in two stirring docs, Greg "Freddy" Camalier's award-winning Muscle Shoals (Magnolia Pictures), the story of the hit-making music studio in a tiny Alabama town and This Ain't No Mouse Music!, Chris Simon and Maureen Gosling's joyous portrait of Chris Strachwitz, founder of Arhoolie Records. From Canada comes Spring & Arnaud,a beautifully crafted and tenderhearted portrait of two artistsby Katherine Knight and Marcia Connolly. New Zealand photographer and filmmaker Anthony Powell's Antarctica: A Year on Ice captures spectacular vistas and the human activity that hums on the icy continent through the four seasons. Physician-director Ryan McGarry's award-winning Code Black offers a potent close-up on healthcare lensed through the E.R unit at Los Angeles County Hospital. Director Nicholas Wrathall offers an insightful and entertaining portrait of one most fearless critics of our time in Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia. The compelling back-story of NBA basketball phenomenon Jeremy Lin is revealed in Evan Jackson Leong's Linsanity. The world premier of Thomas Keating: A Rising Tide of Silence is photographer and author Peter C. Jones' reflective portrait of one of the most influential living spiritual leaders who calls St. Benedict's Monastery in Old Snowmass, Colo., home.
Aspen Filmfest also opens a door to other cinematic voices from around the world. A favorite on the festival circuit, Key of Life (Film Movement) is a droll and delightful yarn from Japanese comedy director Kenji Uchica. Also from Japan comes Hirokazu Kore-Eda's Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize winner, the family drama Like Father, Like Son (Sundance Selects). Latvian director Janis Nords emerges as a confident directorial talent with his prize-winning Mother, I Love You, an emotionally suspenseful coming-of-age drama. Veteran Brazilian director Bruno Baretto brings Reaching for the Moon, a beautifully drawn love story about two remarkable artists. The Rocket (Kino Lorber), Australian filmmaker Kim Mordaunt's multi-award-wining narrative feature debut is a humanistic fable-like tale of resilience and hope set and filmed in Laos.
In addition to The Rocket and Mother, I Love You, as part of its New Voices strand for first and second narrative features, Aspen Film will showcase two independently produced American debuts by Aspen Shortsfest alumni. Director Rob Meyer (Aquarium) and co-writer Luke Matheny (Oscar® winner God of Love) return with A Birder's Guide to Everything, a story of friendship, family and a place in bird watching's history books starring Ben Kingsley and James LeGros in supporting roles. Based on his eponymous short, Destin Daniel Cretton's critically touted Short Term 12 (Cinedigm), starring Brie Larson in a breakout performance as a counselor in a teen group home, will also play.
"To celebrate our 35th edition, we've assembled a program that is select while reflecting range and depth. From previews of high-profile releases that will be part of the awards season conversation to independent and global voices to documentaries, this year's Filmfest line-up embraces the human experience. These films are filled with thought, heart, humor and a few surprises," noted George Eldred, Program Director.
