Mountainfilm, Wheeler join for third annual event in Aspen

ASPEN – Aspen’s Wheeler Opera House and Mountainfilm in Telluride have announced the program for the third annual MountainSummit: Mountainfilm in Telluride. The event, focused on films with environmental, cultural and spiritual themes, is set for Aug. 25-28 at the Wheeler, with an adventure-film component at the Ute Mountaineer.

Among the films to be screened are “Magic Trip,” about the 1960s travels of writer Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters; Christopher Paine’s “Revenge of the Electric Car,” a follow-up to Paine’s 2006 documentary “Who Killed the Electric Car?”; “Happy,” a multicultural examination of the universal truths about happiness, produced by Tom Shadyac (director of last year’s MountainSummit hit, “I Am”); “If a Tree Falls,” which follows the doomed story of the Earth Liberation Front, the group responsible for setting the 1998 fire on Vail Mountain that destroyed the resort’s Two Elk guest lodge.

Also, “From the Ground Up,” about several women who lost their husbands on 9/11; “The Barber of Birmingham,” a profile of James Armstrong, an unsung hero of the civil rights struggle; and “Chasing Water,” Basalt filmmaker Peter McBride’s tracking of the Colorado River from mountains to sea.

The MountainSummit closing film is “Shakespeare High,” about a Shakespeare program in Southern California that claims Richard Dreyfuss, Sally Field and Kevin Spacey as past participants.

MountainSummit will also feature a presentation by Dr. Geoffrey Tabin, who has dedicated himself to performing cataract surgery for patients in poor countries; the return of the Granola Buffet; and appearances by numerous filmmakers.

Tickets go on sale Monday, July 25, at the Wheeler. Passes for the full festival and single days are available, as are tickets for individual events. For further information, go to wheeleroperahouse.com.