More Than Films: Your Quick Guide to Artists, Authors and More at Mountainfilm
Mountainfilm is just around the corner and it’s so much more than films. It’s a celebration of artistic inspiration, big ideas and indomitable spirit. We’ve gathered an incredible lineup of authors, artists and adventurers to spark conversation, connection and a little bit of wonder at this year’s festival. Here’s your whistle-stop tour of what’s happening beyond the screen.
ARTIST EVENTS
Twenty(by)Telluride: Wed, 7 PM, The Alibi
Twenty(by)Telluride is back! This is a fun, free event hosted in collaboration with Telluride Arts. This program brings five creatives to the stage to share their stories using 20 slides, each shown for just 20 seconds, offering a glimpse into the lives and work of artists across all mediums.
Art Walk: Fri, 4–7 PM, downtown Telluride
In partnership with Telluride Arts, the annual Art Walk showcases work by photographers, activists and artists. Artist talks begin around 6 PM at Telluride Arts HQ and Telco.
Caroline Clark - Telluride Arts
Colorado Springs-based Caroline Clark is Mountainfilm’s 2025 poster artist. Her quirky, colorful art captures the spirit of the American West. In 2024 she opened Long Lost Studio, a creative space reminiscent of gathering around a campfire with friends.
Greg Fiske - Telco + Heard Gallery
Greg Fiske is Mountainfilm’s 2025 mural artist. As lead cartographer at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, Fiske translates climate science into maps. His mural “Cartographies of Arctic Change” visualizes how a warming Arctic reshapes communities and our planet.
Dana Tiger - Telluride Arts
Dana Tiger, of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation with Seminole and Cherokee heritage, is known for watercolors and acrylics celebrating Native American women. Her work appears in institutions across the country. She co-founded Legacy Cultural Learning Community to support Native youth through art.
R. Nelson Parrish - Fringe Gallery (formerly Slate Gray)
Mountainfilm’s festival awards will be on display for the Art Walk, created by artist R. Nelson Parrish. His tactile, dynamic pieces represent a fusion of natural and synthetic, through sculpture and painting. The main body of his work implements the language of color and the tactility of space in making the memory of moments and visceral experiences tangible. Each work investigates the expansion and contraction of time, aiming to disengage the viewer from the peripheral and focus on the present moment, eliciting a calm among the chaos that is rare in today’s world.
AUTHOR EVENTS & BOOK SIGNINGS
Book signings are hosted in partnership with Between the Covers Bookstore and will take place Thursday, Saturday & Sunday at various venues.
The annual Town Read from 5:30–7 PM Thursday at the Wilkinson Public Library. This special literary event features Cassidy Randall in conversation about her book Thirty Below: The Harrowing and Heroic Story of the First All-Women's Ascent of Denali. Copies will be available at the library.
Following the Coffee Talk at Camel’s Garden on Saturday morning, Peter Hessler will sign Other Rivers: A Chinese Education and Abe Streep will sign Brothers on Three: A True Story of Family, Resistance and Hope on a Reservation in Montana.
Several authors will sign copies of their books at Hotel Telluride following the Women Writing for Change Coffee Talk. Participating authors include Cassidy Randall, author of Thirty Below; Leslie Chang, author of Egyptian Made: Women, Work, and the Promise of Liberation; Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, author of The Unfolding; and Shelby Stanger, author of Will to Wild: Adventures Great and Small to Change Your Life. Signed copies of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild will also be available.
Following the Speaker Series Beyond Boundaries: Explorations from the Himalaya to Antarctica High Camp at noon, Edmund Stump will sign Otherworldly Antarctica: Ice, Rock, and Wind at the Polar Extreme. This signing is for Speaker Series attendees.
Bonus! Join author Craig Childs for a dark sky storytelling session under the stars on Saturday night at 9 PM. Meet at Elks Park.
On Sunday, meet authors at Between the Covers for more book signings. At 9:30 AM Hampton Sides will sign copies of The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook and Craig Childs will sign The Wild Dark: Finding the Night Sky in the Age of Light. At 11:45 AM Abe Streep will sign Brothers on Three and Edmund Stump will sign Otherworldly Antarctica.
OTHER FESTIVAL HAPPENINGS
Alongside films, presentations and panels, Mountainfilm squeezes in a few surprises: a morning cold plunge in the San Miguel River, The North Face happy hour athlete chats in Elks Park, Ice Cream Social on main street (because who doesn’t like free ice cream?), late-night dance party, a big-hearted Closing Picnic and so much more!
The Base Camp Theater (Telluride Town Park) screen lights up nightly at 8:45 PM for free outdoor films. Don’t forget your camp chairs and warm layers. Screenings at Base Camp are free and open to the public. Back by popular demand, our Adrenaline program is held on Saturday. Fair warning, this event can get rowdy!
During the festival weekend, there’s so much to explore and digest. For the full list of festival events, check out Mountainfilm’s online schedule.
About Mountainfilm: Established in 1979, Mountainfilm is one of North America’s longest-running documentary film festivals, held annually over Memorial Day weekend in Telluride, Colorado. Mountainfilm is dedicated to using the power of film, art and ideas to inspire audiences to create a better world. The festival offers an immersive experience featuring a wide range of filmmakers, speakers, adventurers and activists in addition to screening cutting-edge, award-winning documentary films from around the world. Mountainfilm is an Academy Award® Qualifying Festival in the Documentary Short Film category. Mountainfilm on Tour also reaches audiences year-round through its global film program, and through Mountainfilm for Students, an educational outreach initiative for youth. Simply put, Mountainfilm has the power to change lives. To learn more, visit www.mountainfilm.org. To join the conversation, please read Mountainfilm’s news and follow @mountainfilm on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and LinkedIn.