Students Work Behind the Silver Screen at Telluride Film Festival

One of the cornerstones of cinema isn’t found near the rolling hills of Hollywood nor the cloudless beaches of Cannes — it’s tucked between the peaks of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains in a tiny town called Telluride.

Since 1974, Telluride has hosted its eponymous film festival every Labor Day weekend — save for 2020 due to pandemic restrictions. During this year’s festival, held between Aug. 30 and Sept. 2, two Loyola professors led a group of fourth-year film and digital media majors to volunteer at the festival, where they brushed shoulders with stars, directors and critics.

Miguel Silveira, an assistant professor in the School of Communication who organized the trip, said the festival offers access to some of the greatest creatives in the world.

“In our industry, you have to be very well trained, you have to be talented, you have to work really hard,” Silveria said. “But none of those things will guarantee you success if you don’t have access.”

Silveira, who said he’s been attending Telluride for 20 years, began planning student trips to the festival in 2022. Six students were selected for the 2023 trip and seven for this year’s. He said the traveling group must be small because of the festival’s exclusivity and cost.

Telluride famously doesn’t disclose its lineup of films until the day before it opens, adding to its secretive reputation, according to the New York Times. While this left attendees in the dark, among the most anticipated films expected to be shown this year were “The Apprentice,” “Saturday Night” and “Anora.”

The festival also doesn’t issue press or photo passes, so there are no media blitzes or red carpets — just filmgoers.

Film and Digital Media Program Director Ayesha Abouelazm, who also organized the trip, said the cost of airfare and transport is roughly $1,000 per person. Abouelazm said she hopes to make the student trip into a long-term program in which students intern for the festival’s organizers.

Despite the price, Ava Chandler said she plans to attend the festival after she graduates.

“If anyone is willing to pay that amount of money, I think it’s worth every penny,” Chandler said.

Tickets to individual films were $40 and passes to the full festival ranged from $390 to $4,900. Telluride Film Festival declined requests to comment on the cost of attendance.

Chandler volunteered as a cue card operator and floor usher — jobs she said were simple, but helped her understand the importance of teamwork in the industry.

“Production is at its core and collaboration is at its core,” Chandler said. “It’s just one of those unique art forms that you’re constantly learning and brainstorming as it’s happening.”

Telluride Film Festival also includes a student symposium, a discussion between students and creators.

The festival typically brings in 5,000 attendees, according to Britannica. Among this year’s guests were notable actors and filmmakers like Bill Murray, Pharrell Williams and Will Ferrell, as well as public figures like Hillary Clinton.

Silveira said sharing such an intimate space with world-renowned figures shows students examples of the pioneers they can be.

“We have to be leaders, we have to be with the leaders,” Silveira said.

In addition to the student symposium, Abouelazm said, attendees can interact with stars and directors through Q&As.

“They’re learning from people who are actually in the industry,” Abouelazm said. “They get to see them and ask questions, but they also get to say, ‘Hey, we can dream big. That can be me.’”

Justin Turner volunteered as a floor usher and saw actors like Angelina Jolie and Selena Gomez watching the very films they’d starred in. Turner said Telluride was especially interesting because it was his first experience with film festivals.

“In this era where movie theaters and going to the movies can be kind of a dying thing, it’s important to have film festivals where people who love movies want to just come to the theater,” Turner said.

Turner said he noticed a common theme of politics among the films shown, including “Emilia Pérez,” about a transgender drug cartel leader, “Nickel Boys,” about racism at a reform school and “The Piano Lesson,” an August Wilson play adaptation about a Black family’s disagreement on their legacy. Another noteworthy showing was “Piece by Piece,” a story about musician Pharrell Williams told through Lego bricks. 

“I’m big on Black representation in film and media,” Turner said. “To see Pharrell’s movie about a very successful Black music artist, and ‘The Piano Lesson’ with these deep, rich Black ancestry stories — it’s important to me.”

Volunteer opportunities at Telluride weren’t limited to theater operations. George Gustafson worked as a bartender and served brunch to festival sponsors.

“Logistically speaking, it’s a stupid place to have a film festival,” Gustafson said. “It’s in the middle of nowhere, it’s seven hours away from Denver, and so because of that, you’ve got to really want it to be there.”

But Telluride, Gustafson said, benefits from its reclusive nature because other attendees know everyone is just as equally passionate about film as they are.

“People are constantly telling stories,” Gustafson said. “It’s fun to see stories told in that professional, high-caliber level.”

That expertise is key to Telluride’s draw, Silveira said.

“The greatest examples of film are not just necessarily a piece of art,” Silveira said. “They are society movers — they are avatars that contain our thoughts, our feelings, our ideas, our desires, our change.”

Applications for next year’s trip will open around May 2025, according to Silveira.

Next year’s Telluride Film Festival will take place from Aug. 29 to Sept. 2. The festival has yet to announce when tickets will go on sale.

Editor’s Note: Arts Editor Brendan Parr was one of the fourth-years who went on the trip.