A film festival that’s actually about films

As soon as executives at Sony Pictures Classics saw a rough cut of “Capote,” they decided to launch their film at a top film festival. But Sony wasn’t focused on Cannes, didn’t shoot for Sundance and hadn’t singled out Toronto, Venice or Berlin.

The company wanted the film to premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, a small Labor Day gathering that isn’t exactly at the top of the industry food chain.

“Because it’s a holiday weekend, and because it’s virtually impossible to get to -- it’s easier to get to Cannes than it is to Telluride -- the people who go to Telluride are truly die-hard movie fans,” says Michael Barker, co-president of Sony’s specialized film unit. “Everyone is there to see movies. There is no other agenda, there are no deals. It’s a place to discover movies.”

Sundance has swag, Cannes has yachts, Toronto stars. Telluride has class.

“Capote” emerged from last year’s Telluride festival with overwhelmingly positive buzz and not only went on to become a critical smash but also to win a best actor Oscar for Philip Seymour Hoffman.

In addition to “Capote,” the Colorado ski town festival has hosted world or domestic premieres of “Lost in Translation,” “Bowling for Columbine,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “Cache” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” So what next great film will Telluride launch in this year’s 33rd annual festival, running from Friday to Monday? Don’t ask festival programmers, or even the makers or stars of the movies themselves. They’re all sworn to secrecy.

Unlike virtually every other festival, Telluride keeps the names of its 20 or so new films under wraps until opening day. What some people say is a precious affectation is part of the festival’s idiosyncratic gestalt.

Big studio films are rarely invited, but “Walk the Line” was. Christopher Nolan’s remake of “Insomnia” didn’t play in Telluride. But the original 1997 Norwegian thriller did.

Where other film festivals welcome paparazzi, Telluride discourages them. At Sundance, a few thousand dollars buys you an all-access credential that allows you to cut lines as if you held a Disneyland Fast Pass. At Telluride, almost all pass holders are created equal, as top stars queue alongside lowly Rocky Mountain film geeks. And while cellphones chirp throughout screenings at other festivals, Telluride guests will be escorted out of the auditorium should their mobile phone ring.

“I’ve been to a lot of festivals over the years, and I think Telluride has its own personality,” says Bill Pence, who directs the festival with Tom Luddy. “It’s easygoing; there is a lot of intimate contact between the people who make the films and the people who see the films, and the entire town becomes the festival. I have heard so many times that some of the best talks are between people waiting in line.

“We really designed the festival from the get-go for the pass holder. The person attending the movies is the mission. Not the press. Not the chamber of commerce. Not to develop filmmakers. It’s the audience.”

That audience can become a bellwether of a film’s prospects. While Telluride audiences were among the first to embrace the Palestinian movie “Paradise Now,” they also were the earliest moviegoers to dismiss William H. Macy as “Edmond” and director Neil Jordan’s “Breakfast on Pluto.”

“The great thing about Telluride is that it draws from a national audience of film lovers,” says Albert Berger, who with partner Ron Yerxa produced “Little Miss Sunshine.” Berger and Yerxa’s “Bee Season” premiered at last year’s Telluride festival, and their new film, writer-director Todd Field’s “Little Children,” is set to be shown in this year’s Telluride festival. “It’s a great place to start a grass-roots dialogue about films and filmmakers.”

Even though area real estate is stratospherically priced (homeowners include Tom Cruise and Oprah Winfrey), the festival feels more Patagonia than Gucci.

“It feels very democratic,” says John Lesher, head of Paramount’s specialty film label, Paramount Vantage. “Everybody has to wait in line together.”

Pence says he and Luddy decided in the film’s earliest years to keep their program under wraps. The cause: a last-minute no-show by French actress Jeanne Moreau, scheduled to receive a festival tribute. “And the newspaper headline was, ‘Moreau Cancels,’ ” Pence says.

“I was really ticked,” he says. “We had sold out the festival for three years without any difficulty, so I said, ‘Let’s not give out any information to anyone, so we don’t disappoint anyone.’ It removes all the hyperbole. Everything starts out at the same level.”

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Predicting the Telluride lineup

Like any good politician, organizers of the Telluride Film Festival will neither confirm nor deny what might be in this year’s program. But here’s our best guess at a few titles:

“Little Children.” An adaptation of the Tom Perrotta novel, starring Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson. Directed by Todd Field.

“Infamous.” The second feature in as many years about Truman Capote writing “In Cold Blood.” Stars Toby Jones and Daniel Craig; directed by Douglas McGrath.

“Fur.” Nicole Kidman stars as the photojournalist Diane Arbus. Directed by Steven Shainberg.

“Babel.” Cate Blanchett and Brad Pitt top the cast in an episodic drama directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu.

“The Last King of Scotland.” Forest Whitaker plays Idi Amin in an adaptation of Giles Foden’s novel. Directed by Kevin Macdonald.

“The Life of Others.” A black comedy about spying in 1980s East Germany. Directed by Florian Henckel-Donnersmarck.

“Venus.” Peter O’Toole heads a cast in a story about two aging actors and a young interloper. Directed by Roger Michell.

“Waitress.” Keri Russell plays a sad waitress looking for love. Directed by Adrienne Shelly.

“Ghosts of Cite Soleil.” A documentary about Haitian gangs. Directed by Asger Leth and Milos Loncarevic.

“Severance.” A slasher movie directed by Britain’s Christopher Smith.

“After the Wedding.” A Danish drama directed by Susanne Bier.

“Deep Water.” A documentary about a catastrophic sailing race in 1968. Directed by Louise Osmond.