Tuesday, December 19 @ 7:30pm
Wheeler Opera House
(1 hr 59 min)

I, TONYA

Tuesday, December 19 @ 7:30pm

Wheeler Opera House

Based on the unbelievable, but true events, I, TONYA is a darkly comedic tale of American figure skater, Tonya Harding, and one of the most sensational scandals in sports history. Though Harding was the first American woman to complete a triple axel in competition, her legacy was forever defined by her association with an infamous, ill-conceived, and even more poorly executed attack on fellow Olympic competitor Nancy Kerrigan. Featuring an iconic turn by Margot Robbie as the fiery Harding, a mustachioed Sebastian Stan as her impetuous ex-husband Jeff Gillooly, a tour-de-force performance from Allison Janney as her acid-tongued mother, LaVona Golden, and an original screenplay by Steven Rogers, Craig Gillespie’s I, TONYA is an absurd, irreverent, and piercing portrayal of Harding’s life and career in all of its unchecked––and checkered––glory. One of the most anticipated films of the year, selected for the prestigious Gala program of the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

Director: Greg Gillespie

Film courtesy of Neon

For Your Consideration: Best Picture, Best Performance, Best Original Screenplay

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

 Wednesday, December 20 @ 5:00pm
Wheeler Opera House
(2 hr 20 min)

Artist, activist and director Ai Weiwei captures the global refugee crisis – the greatest human displacement since World War II – I in this breathtakingly epic film journey.

“I want the right of life,

of the leopard at the spring, of the seed splitting open —

I want the right of the first man.”

~Nazim Hikmet, Turkish Poet (1902-1963)

Winner of numerous prizes from the 2017 Venice Film Festival, including the Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award.

Director: Ai Weiwei

Film courtesy of Magnolia Pictures/Amazon Studios/Participant Media

Community Partner: Aspen Art Museum

For your consideration: Best Documentary Feature

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

 Wednesday, December 20 @ 8:00pm
Wheeler Opera House
(1 hr 33 min)

THE BEGUILED is an atmospheric thriller from acclaimed writer/director Sofia Coppola. The story unfolds during the Civil War, at a Southern girls’ boarding school. Its sheltered young women take in an injured enemy soldier. As they provide refuge and tend to his wounds, the house is taken over with sexual tension and dangerous rivalries, and taboos are broken in an unexpected turn of events. Starring Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, and Elle Fanning. Winner of the Best Director Prize (Sofia Coppola) at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival.

Director: Sofia Coppola

Film courtesy of Focus Features

For your consideration: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress – Nicole Kidman, Best Adapted Screenplay

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Thursday, December 22 @ 8pm
Paepcke Auditorium
(2 hr)

Based on the real-life courtship between Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, THE BIG SICK tells the story of Pakistan-born aspiring comedian Kumail (Nanjiani), who connects with grad student Emily (Kazan) after one of his standup sets. However, what they thought would be just a one-night stand blossoms into the real thing, which complicates the life that is expected of Kumail by his traditional Muslim parents.

When Emily is beset with a mystery illness, it forces Kumail to navigate the medical crisis with her parents, Beth and Terry (Holly Hunter and Ray Romano) whom he’s never met, while dealing with the emotional tug-of-war between his family and his heart. THE BIG SICK is directed by Michael Showalter ( Hello My Name Is Doris ), written by Emily V. Gordon & Kumail Nanjiani, and produced by Judd Apatow (Trainwreck, This Is 40) and Barry Mendel (Trainwreck, The Royal Tenenbaums).  Winner of Audience Awards from SXSW, Nantucket Film Festival and the Locarno Film Festival.

Director: Michael Showalter

Film courtesy of Amazon Studios

For your consideration: Best Original Screenplay, Best Performance, Best Director

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Saturday, December 23 @ 2pm
Paepcke Auditorium
(2 hr 16 min)

Directed by Angelina Jolie, FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER is the adaptation of Cambodian author and human rights activist Loung Ung’s gripping memoir of surviving the deadly Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 to 1978. The story is told through her eyes, from the age of five, when the Khmer Rouge came to power, to nine years old. The film depicts the indomitable spirit and devotion of Loung and her family as they struggle to stay together during the Khmer Rouge years. FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER is a Netflix film written by Angelina Jolie and Loung Ung and produced by Jolie and acclaimed Cambodian director and producer Rithy Panh, director of the Oscar-nominated The Missing Picture. Winner of the Freedom of Expression Award from National Board of Review 2017.

Director: Angelina Jolie

Film courtesy of Netflix

For your consideration: Best Foreign Language Film (Cambodia)

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Tuesday, December 26 @ 2pm
Wheeler Opera House
(1 hr 32 min)

Directed, produced, and filmed by Academy Award nominated and Emmy-winning filmmaker Matthew Heineman (Cartel Land, 2015 Sundance Film Festival Directing Award), CITY OF GHOSTS is a singularly powerful cinematic experience that is sure to shake audiences to their core as it elevates the canon of one of the most talented documentary filmmakers working today. Captivating in its immediacy, CITY OF GHOSTS follows the journey of “Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently”– a handful of anonymous activists who banded together after their homeland was taken over by ISIS in 2014. With astonishing, deeply personal access, this is the story of a brave group of citizen journalists as they face the realities of life undercover, on the run, and in exile, risking their lives to stand up against one of the greatest evils in the world today. Winner of numerous international awards for excellence in documentary filmmaking, including Grand Jury Prize from the Sheffield International Documentary Festival.

Director: Matthew Heineman

Film courtesy of Amazon Studios

For your consideration: Best Feature Documentary

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Wednesday, December 27 @ 5pm
Wheeler Opera House
(1 hr 56 min)

In director Todd Haynes’ WONDERSTRUCK, Ben and Rose are children from two different eras who secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the father he has never known, while Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his home and Rose reads an enticing headline in the newspaper, both children set out on quests that unfold with mesmerizing symmetry. Selected for prestigious 2017 Cannes Competition, and awarded Best Director by the International Cinephile Society.  

Director: Todd Haynes

Film courtesy of Amazon Studios

For your consideration: Best Performance, Best Production Design

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Thursday, December 28 @ 2pm
Paepcke Auditorium
(2 hr 20 min)

In Paris in the early 1990s, a group of activists goes to battle for those stricken with HIV/AIDS, taking on sluggish government agencies and major pharmaceutical companies in bold, invasive actions. The organization is ACT UP, and its members, many of them gay and HIV-positive, embrace their mission with a literal life-or-death urgency. Amid rallies, protests, fierce debates and ecstatic dance parties, the newcomer Nathan falls in love with Sean, the group’s radical firebrand, and their passion sparks against the shadow of mortality as the activists fight for a breakthrough. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at 2017 Cannes Film Festival.

Director: Robin Campillo

Film courtesy of The Orchard

For your consideration: Best Foreign Language Film (France)

Community Partner: AspenOut

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Thursday, December 28 @ 5pm
Paepcke Auditorium
(1 hr 34 min)
Recommended only for children ages 11 and up

From executive producers Angelina Jolie and Mimi Polk Gitlin, and the creators of the Academy Award®-nominated The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea, comes the highly-anticipated new feature based on Deborah Ellis’ best- selling novel. THE BREADWINNER tells the story of Parvana, an 11-year-old girl growing up under the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001. When her father is wrongfully arrested, Parvana disguises herself as a boy in order to support her family. With dauntless perseverance, Parvana draws strength from the stories her father told her, and ultimately risks her life to discover if he is still alive. Equal parts thrilling and enchanting, THE BREADWINNER is a timely and inspiring tale about the transcendent power of stories, and their potential to unite and heal us all.  Winner of the Audience Award at Leeds International Film Festival.

Director: Nora Twomey

Film courtesy of GKids

For your consideration: Best Animated Film

Community Partner: Anderson Ranch Arts Center

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS

Friday, December 29 @ 8:30pm
Wheeler Opera House
(1 hr 44 min)

Equal parts gripping thriller and provocative commentary, Universal Pictures’ GET OUT, from writer/director/producer Jordan Peele, tells the story of Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams), who go on a weekend getaway upstate to meet Rose’s parents, Missy (Catherine Keener) and Dean (Bradley Whitford). At first, Chris reads the family’s overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter’s interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he could have never imagined.  GET OUT is produced by Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Edward H. Hamm Jr. and Peele. Winner of numerous critics awards, including Best Directorial Debut from the 2017 National Board of Review.

Director: Jordan Peele

Film courtesy of Universal Pictures

For your consideration: Best Performance, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Picture

BECOME A MEMBER FOR A FULL PASS