Films / Programs

Spotlight on Colorado

Colorado’s filmmaking scene has never been more vibrant. In 2009, three separate Colorado films were nominated for Academy Awards: Precious, The Cove and The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner. More often than not, area filmmakers are choosing to stay and work in the state rather than move to Los Angeles or New York.

The 33rd Starz Denver Film Festival is showcasing more locally produced features than ever before—and we’re not alone; several of the following films screened earlier this year at other acclaimed festivals around the country.

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  Amongst Brothers

  USA , 2010 , 27 min. Amongst Brothers follows Colorado cattleman Gary Magness on an adventure trip to Brazil—only to find himself a key player in the very survival of one of the oldest tribes in the Amazon Basin.... more
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  Ba Naché dol Fonn Baeo

  USA , 16 min. Ultra-cool Fonn Baeo and his lover Moulousse spend a carefree day in the city. When they reunite with an old acquaintance, however, their charmed lives receive an unexpected jolt. Will their luck run out, or will love prevail?... more
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  Bag It

  USA , 2010 , 79 min. When we throw something “away,” where does it go? “Average guy” Jeb Berrier charismatically narrates this documentary by Suzan Beraza about the impact of plastic in our lives. Though it was marketed as a convenience, it’s become a pox on our environment and even our health.... more
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  Battle for the Boot

  USA , 2010 , 97 min. The offbeat lifestyle of the boozing rogues behind the Denver Kickball Coalition is chronicled in this documentary about the sports league, which grew out of hipster bars Sputnik and Hi-Dive to offer an alcohol-fueled, in-your-face, tongue-in-cheek athletic experience.... more
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  Condemned

  USA , 2010 , 8 min. Twenty-one years after the disastrous Exxon Valdez oil spill, BP’s blowout contaminates the Gulf of Mexico. Will we ever learn to protect our oceans and their wildlife—or will we continue to repeat our mistakes?... more
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  Del: 100

  USA , 2010 , 13 min. Del: 100 is a visually haunting portrait of centenarian journalist Delores Plested. As a reporter for the New York Times and The Ladies Home Journal in the 1940s and, later, as a trail blazing reporter in Colorado, she witnessed and wrote about many of the major events of the tw... more
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  Demonology

  USA , 2010 , 40 min. In a plague-stricken world, a doctor uses the trust bestowed upon him to rob the homes of the afflicted. But his scheme is waylaid when he is summoned to Castle Blackwell to treat the young Isabel—and falls in love with her sister, Marguerite.... more
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  The House in Windsor

  USA , 2010 , 8 min. The House in Windsor is a short profiling Colorado’s most vicious serial killer. During the 1960s, Henry Olsen raped and murdered 13 college students with the help of four others. Even though these crimes were horrific, they have been all but forgotten.... more
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  Leading Ladies

  USA , 2010 , 102 min. In this sweet, offbeat romantic comedy, Sheri is a former ballroom star turned overbearing stage mom to starlet Tasi and wallflower Toni. When the nutty family suddenly finds their world turns upside down, they must redefine their roles—and relationships—both on and off the dance floor.... more
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  A Letter for Colton

  USA , 2010 , 8 min. A Letter for Colton follows the story of John Colton, a vigilante holed up in a remote cabin in the woods.... more
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  The Magnetic Detective

  USA , 9 min. Lots of loot, a bottle of cheap scotch and the inevitable sexy dame—The Magnetic Detective is a true (and funny) original, which uses uses a Magnetic Poetry Kit, the refrigerator novelty toy, to spell out a classic whodunit on the rusting metal of fire escapes and manhole covers.... more
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  Mzungu (n.) White-Wanderer

  USA , 2010 , 80 min. Four young Colorado men travel to Uganda and Rwanda hoping to make a difference. They’re followed by filmmaker Shana Marie Gilbert, who documents their various projects while offering a glimpse of Africa’s teeming cities riddled with trash—juxtaposed with beautiful green countryside.... more
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  The People vs. George Lucas

  USA , 2010 , 104 min. MUST END June 30th Digital presentation - The passion the original Star Wars trilogy inspires in its fans is unparalleled; but when it comes to George Lucas himself—one of the most passionately debated filmmakers of all time—many have found their ardor has cooled into a complicated lo... more
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  The Smell of Lemons

  Italy , 2010 , 90 min. Believing his mother’s old wives’ tale of how to get a woman to say yes, a lovesick teen’s quest to find the girl of his dreams takes him under the sea and over the cliffs of Sicily. Denver native Joel Stangle directs this lush Italian romantic comedy.... more
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  We Are the Sea

  USA , 2010 , 87 min. Inspired by and featuring the haunting music of Iron & Wine, We Are the Sea follows an isolated young teacher from the brink of despair toward something like the land of the living—with the help of his daughter and the discovery of friends in unexpected places.... more
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  When the Dragon Swallowed the Sun

  USA , 2010 , 113 min. German documentarian Dirk Simon takes a close look at the complex—and controversial—issues surrounding the Tibetan freedom movement, examining the reasons for China’s continued occupation and evaluating whether Tibet’s current tactic of nonviolent resistance is effective.... more