PRESS RELEASE
Aspen Film celebrates the art of the short film and adds a sixth day to its normal five-day festival, bringing together audiences throughout the Roaring Fork Valley and filmmakers from around the world with its 19th annual Aspen Shortsfest, April 6-11, 2010. Recognized as one of the festival circuit's premier showcases for short films and videos – including documentary, animation, and live action – Aspen Shortsfest features an Oscar®-qualifying International Competition, with cash and prizes to be awarded by a jury of prominent filmmakers and other film professionals. Over 60 shorts, selected from more than 2,500 submissions from almost 80 countries, will screen at Aspen's historic Wheeler Opera House and the Crystal Theatre in Carbondale.
For almost two decades Aspen Shortsfest has connected film lovers with the unique qualities of short films, which encourage unparalleled innovation and creativity, by presenting works from established filmmakers and emerging artists alike. For example, Academy Award®-nominated producer and director Jason Reitman (Up in the Air) first garnered notice at Aspen Shortsfest 2000, winning the festival's best comedy and audience awards. Four of the films shown at Shortsfest 2009 were recently nominated for Academy Awards®: Nick Park's A Matter of Loaf and Death and Fabrice O. Joubert's French Roast, for Best Short Film-Animated, and Instead of Abracadabra, directed by Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellstroem, and Miracle Fish, from Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey, for Best Short Film-Live Action.
In order to better accommodate the ever-expanding roster of quality short films submitted to Shortsfest, Aspen Film has added a day of programming to this year's festival. Says George Eldred, Program Director for Aspen Film, "Despite the global economic downturn, there has been no slackening in the outpouring of creativity from short filmmakers around the world. We are thrilled to be able to offer our audiences an even larger sampling of outstanding short cinema."
The full line-up will be announced March 19 and tickets will go on sale March 22 through www.aspenshowtickets.com and at the Wheeler Opera House box office. For more information, visit www.aspenfilm.org.