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Annual doc series kick off at the Wheeler

Staff report

Two documentary film series at the Wheeler Opera House are up and running with movies scheduled to run through March. The Monday Docs series began Monday with the rock-climbing story “Valley Uprising,” with the Encore Docs series soon to follow.

Co-presented by the Wheeler and Aspen Film, Monday Docs presents an array of documentaries each Monday night. Encore Docs brings back popular films from Aspen Filmfest and Mountainfilm. Here’s the full lineup:



‘The Other One’

Monday, 7:30 p.m.




Director Mike Fleiss captures the life and times of Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir. This screening is presented in memory of Aspen Times arts editor and friend Stewart Oksenhorn, in tribute to one of his greatest loves on the first anniversary of his death.

‘Monk With a Camera’

Feb. 9, 7:30 p.m.

This marvelous documentary chronicles the life and spiritual quest of Nicholas (Nicky) Vreeland, who for the past 28 years has been a Tibetan Buddhist monk. The son of a U.S. ambassador, grandson of legendary Vogue editor Diana Vreeland, and a photographer by trade, Nicky left his privileged life behind to follow his true calling. ‘Vessel’

Feb. 11, 7:30 p.m.

Warship blockades and frenzied protesters often await Rebecca Gomperts and her Women On Waves team when they sail their ship to foreign ports to offer hope and services to desperate women with unwanted pregnancies (often attained through rape and incest). In many of the countries they visit — Poland, Ireland, Ecuador, Morocco, and Tanzania — abortion is illegal, and therefore deadly.

‘Citizenfour’

Feb. 16, 7:30 p.m.

Here’s a real-life thriller, unfolding by the minute, as filmmaker Laura Poitras and journalist Glenn Greenwald encounter Edward Snowden in Hong Kong, as he hands over classified documents providing evidence of mass indiscriminate and illegal invasions of privacy by the National Security Agency.

‘The Starfish Throwers’

Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m.

When faced with an issue like worldwide hunger, how do you make a difference? The remarkable subjects of Jesse Roesler’s award-winning documentary portrait each started with a simple compassionate gesture, only to ignite a movement.

‘Just Eat It’

March 2, 7:30 p.m.

Filmmakers and food lovers Jen and Grant plunge into the issue of waste from farm, through retail, all the way to the back of their own fridge. After catching a glimpse of the billions of dollars of good food that is tossed each year in North America, they pledge to quit grocery shopping cold turkey and survive only on foods that would otherwise be thrown away.

‘The Great Invisible’

March 9, 7:30 p.m.

This film, the first comprehensive overview of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and its aftermath, is the result of four years that Alabama-born director Margaret Brown spent traveling in the small towns and major cities all around the Gulf of Mexico, talking to those affected.

‘An Honest Liar’

March 11, 7:30 p.m.

James “The Amazing” Randi became a world-famous magician and escape artist by studying the art of illusion employed by Harry Houdini and other master magicians. When Randi saw these techniques used by spoon benders, faith healers and mentalists to extract money from innocent people, he was outraged and appeared regularly on television programs to debunk what he considered phonies of the lowest order.

‘Happy Valley’

March 16, 7:30 p.m.

This film about Penn State University delves into the culture of a school, town and country where football is religion; into the world of Joe Paterno, Penn State’s iconic head football coach for over four decades; and into the days, months and years leading up to November 2011, when everything came crashing down.

Tickets for all shows are $10. Purchase at the Wheeler box office or http://www.aspenshowtix.com.