The Denver Film Festival is held in November, primarily at the Denver Film Center/Colfax, in
Denver, Colorado
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, now the Anna and John J. Sie FilmCenter (Sie FilmCenter). Premiere events are held in the Buell Theatre and Ellie Caulkins Opera House at the
Denver Performing Arts Complex
The Denver Performing Arts Complex (also referred to as the "Arts Complex") is located in Denver, Colorado and is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. The DCPA is a four-block, site containing ten performance sp ...
. Before 2012, It was held in the
Tivoli Union
The Tivoli Brewery (now the Tivoli Student Union) is a historic building originally home to the Tivoli Brewing Company. It was designed by prominent Denver architect Frederick C. Eberley. The building is located in the Auraria Neighborhood of Den ...
on the
Auraria Campus
Auraria Campus is an educational facility located near downtown Denver, Colorado in the United States. The campus houses facilities of three separate universities and colleges: the University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), Community College o ...
.
Information
The festival features a diverse selection of films, ranging from independent to commercial from all over the world and is well attended by filmmakers. The festival is currently managed by the Denver Film Society and sponsored by
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz cons ...
.
History
The first festival was held on May 4, 1978, and featured such films as ''
Annie Hall
''Annie Hall'' is a 1977 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay written by him and Marshall Brickman, and produced by Allen's manager, Charles H. Joffe. The film stars Allen as Alvy Singer, w ...
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' is a 1977 American science fiction film written and directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, Cary Guffey, and François Truffaut. It tells the story ...
'', ''
The Hills Have Eyes
''The Hills Have Eyes'' is an American horror franchise that consists of four horror films, as well as a graphic novel and merchandise. The first film was released in 1977, '' The Hills Have Eyes''; the series was rebooted in a 2006 remake. T ...
'' and ''
Pretty Baby Pretty Baby may refer to:
* ''Pretty Baby'' (1950 film), a comedy film featuring Dennis Morgan and Betsy Drake
* ''Pretty Baby'' (1978 film), a drama film featuring Brooke Shields
** ''Pretty Baby'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the film ...
''. The festival kicked off with a 90-minute clip compilation from Warner Bros. titled ‘The Movies That Made Us.’ The festival was originally conceived and founded by Peter Warren, Ph.D., then a professor of mathematics at the University of Denver and by Irene Clurman, then the art critic for the Rocky Mountain News. The first artistic director was Ron Hecht, the manager of the Vogue theatre.
In the early years, Ron Henderson served as marketing director and subsequently as artistic director. Henderson recalls "There were no red carpets and no television cameras out front. We did a ribbon cutting with Dick Lamm (then governor). When we got inside it was a full house at the Old Centre theater, which was demolished before the next year's festival. (The Centre sat 1,200.).
"Most notably, the weather was ominous - cloudy and cool. The opening-night party was at a private house and it was an invitational affair. When we got there, a cold rain was falling. We woke up the next morning, and there was a foot of wet snow on the ground, but it was springtime and by the end of the day, it was beautiful.
"The first festival obviously was very successful, so we decided to take it to a second year. It was really three years before we finally said, 'OK, this is a real thing, let's hire staff and incorporate as a nonprofit.' "
28th Denver Film Festival
The 28th Starz Denver Film Festival was held November 10–20, 2005.
Special tributes were given to
Claude Lelouch
Claude Barruck Joseph Lelouch (; born 30 October 1937) is a French film director, writer, cinematographer, actor and producer. Lelouch grew up in an Algerian Jewish Family. He emerged as a prominent director in the 1960s. Lelouch gained critica ...
and Ryuichi Hiroki. The festival also included a focus on Japanese Cinema.
29th Denver Film Festival
The 29th Starz Denver Film Festival was held November 9–19, 2006 and featured 194 titles from 29 countries. 15 films were premiered. The festival was attended by 38,881 film goers and more than 180 filmmakers. The opening night film was 'Breaking and Entering' and the closing night film was ''
Rescue Dawn
''Rescue Dawn'' is a 2006 American epic war drama film written and directed by Werner Herzog, based on an adapted screenplay written from his 1997 documentary film '' Little Dieter Needs to Fly''. The film stars Christian Bale and is based on th ...
''.
Special tributes were given to
Vilmos Zsigmond
Vilmos Zsigmond ASC (; June 16, 1930 – January 1, 2016) was a Hungarian-American cinematographer. His work in cinematography helped shape the look of American movies in the 1970s, making him one of the leading figures in the American New Wav ...
Allan King
Allan Winton King, (February 6, 1930 – June 15, 2009), was a Canadian film director.
Life
Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, during the Great Depression, King attended Henry Hudson Elementary School, in Kitsilano.The Brothers Bloom'', ''
Slumdog Millionaire
''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Pa ...
'' and ''
Last Chance Harvey
''Last Chance Harvey'' is a 2008 American romantic drama film written and directed by Joel Hopkins. The screenplay focuses on two lonely people who tentatively forge a relationship during two days. Dustin Hoffman plays the title character, Harvey ...
''.
32nd Denver Film Festival
The 32nd Denver Film Festival was held November 12–22, 2009. The featured Red Carpet films included '' Precious'', '' The Last Station'' and ''
The Young Victoria
''The Young Victoria'' is a 2009 British period drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Produce ...
''.
33rd Denver Film Festival
Festival was held November 3–14, 2010. It screened over 200 films and included a Focus on
Iranian Cinema
The Cinema of Iran (Persian: سینمای ایران), also known as the Cinema of Persia, refers to the cinema and film industries in Iran which produce a variety of commercial films annually. Iranian art films have garnered international fame a ...
. Red Carpet Events including a screening of ''Morning'', '' Rabbit Hole'', ''
Casino Jack
''Casino Jack'' (known in certain territories as ''Bagman'') is a 2010 comedy-drama thriller film directed by George Hickenlooper and starring Kevin Spacey. The film focuses on the career of Washington, D.C. lobbyist and businessman Jack Abramoff ...
Black Swan
The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon ...
''. The festival was dedicated to director George Hickenlooper who died in Denver just days before his film ''
Casino Jack
''Casino Jack'' (known in certain territories as ''Bagman'') is a 2010 comedy-drama thriller film directed by George Hickenlooper and starring Kevin Spacey. The film focuses on the career of Washington, D.C. lobbyist and businessman Jack Abramoff ...
'' screened at the Festival.
34th Denver Film Festival
The 2011 Festival was held November 2–13, with 247 Films programmed, including a Focus on South Korean Cinema. Red Carpet screenings included ''
Like Crazy
''Like Crazy'' is a 2011 American romantic drama film directed by Drake Doremus and starring Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones, and Jennifer Lawrence. Written by Doremus and Ben York Jones, the film tells the story of Anna (Felicity Jones), a Brit ...
'', ''
The Descendants
''The Descendants'' is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Alexander Payne. The screenplay by Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash is based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Kaui Hart Hemmings. The film stars George Clooney in the mai ...
'', and ''The Artist''. This was the last year the festival held screenings at the
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz cons ...
Film Center on the Auraria Campus. The 2011 Award Winners are listed below.
35th Denver Film Festival
The 2012 festival was held November 1–11. It included a Focus on the
Cinema of Argentina
Cinema of Argentina refers to the film industry based in Argentina. The Argentine cinema comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of Argentina or by Argentine filmmakers abroad.
The Argentine film industry has histor ...
with 13 Argentine films in the program. Red Carpet events included the opening night film ''
A Late Quartet
''A Late Quartet'' (released in Australia as ''Performance'') is a 2012 American drama film directed by Yaron Zilberman and co-written by Zilberman and Seth Grossman. The film stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Christopher Walken, Catherine Keener, Ma ...
'', Dustin Hoffman's directorial debut, ''
Quartet
In music, a quartet or quartette (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers; or a musical composition for four voices and instruments.
Classical String quartet
In classical music, one of the most common combinations o ...
'' and the closing night film, ''
Silver Linings Playbook
''Silver Linings Playbook'' is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by David O. Russell. The film was based on Matthew Quick’s 2008 novel '' The Silver Linings Playbook''. It stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Law ...
''. Special events at the festival included tributes to Dutch filmmaker Mijke de Jong, Argentine filmmaker
Daniel Burman
Daniel Burman (born 29 August 1973, in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine film director, screenplay writer, and producer.
According to film critic Joel Poblete, who writes for ''Mabuse'', a cinema magazine, Daniel Burman is one of the members of the ...
,
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Colora ...
, filmmaker Stacey Steers, and the Colorado filmmaking collective, Milkhaus. Celebrity guests who were present to receive festival awards or for special presentations included, Tippi Hedren,
George Romero
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
,
Andy Garcia
Andy may refer to:
People
*Andy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
*Horace Andy (born 1951), Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer born Horace Hinds
*Katja Andy (1907–2013), German-American pianist and piano ...
,
Vince Vaughn
Vincent Anthony Vaughn (born March 28, 1970) is an American actor.
Vaughn began acting in the late 1980s, appearing in minor television roles before attaining wider recognition with the 1996 comedy-drama film '' Swingers''. He has appeared in ...
and Jason Ritter. Additional screenings were held at the
Denver Pavilions
Denver Pavilions is a shopping mall located on the 16th Street Mall in Downtown Denver, Colorado. Originally opened in 1998, the mall has over 40 stores and restaurants.
An open-air mall, the Pavilions takes advantage of Denver's many sunny day ...
off of
16th Street Mall
The 16th Street Mall is a pedestrian and transit mall in Denver, Colorado. The mall, 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) long, runs along 16th Street in downtown Denver, from Wewatta Street (at Union Station) to the intersection of 16th Avenue and Broad ...
. The 2012 award winners are below.
36th Denver Film Festival
The 2013 festival was held November 6–17, with a focus on Dutch Cinema. Red carpet screenings included, ''
Labor Day
Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...
'', ''
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
The 2014 Starz Denver Film Festival was held November 12–23. The 2014 award winners are below.
42nd Denver Film Festival (DFF42)
The 2019 Denver Film Festival was held from October 30 to November 10, 2019. After conclusion of the Festival, the following films were recognized as the Audience Award winners for the 42nd Denver Film Festival by a tally of ballots.
Awards previously given or announced:
Maria and Tommaso Maglione Italian Filmmaker Award
THE INVISIBLE WITNESS (IL TESTIMONE INVISIBILE)
Director: Stefano Mordini
John Cassavetes Award Recipient:
RIAN JOHNSON
Stan Brakhage Vision Award Recipient:
VINCENT GRENIER
Brit Withey Artistic Director Fund Recipient:
GYÖRGY PÁLFI
See also
*
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz cons ...