When Mountainfilm on Tour made its first Savannah appearance three years ago, the two–day, Colorado–based film festival was thick with documentaries on kayaking, snowboarding and the clean–rush thrills of extreme sports. An offshoot of the Mountainfilm at Telluride Film Festival, the touring version closely adhered to the mothership motto: “Dedicated to educating and inspiring audiences about issues that matter, cultures worth exploring, environments worth preserving and conversations worth sustaining.”
In recent years, the “issues that matter” have come to the fore, as Mountainfilm on Tour’s 2013 slate of films and events illustrates. Jan. 18 and 19 at the Trustees Theater, the two main features are concerned with important social issues.
Oh sure, there are still numerous celluloid homages to the great outdoors and the unlimited beauty of the natural world, but Bidder 70 — see a related story in this issue — is the tale of a Utah man who risked going to prison by protesting an environment–threatening land auction.
The filmmakers, Beth and George Gage, will not only attend the screening and take questions afterwards, they’ll attend an informal gathering at the Sentient Bean on the morning of Saturday, Jan. 19.
“Coffee and Conversation” invites anyone interested to chat with the Gages, and with representatives of the athlete–driven humanitarian organization Right to Play, which is the subject of the Friday–night headlining film, called (what else?) Right to Play.
Directed by famed Hollywood producer Frank Marshall, Right to Play chronicles the efforts of organization founder Johann Olav Koss, a Norwegian speed skater and Olympic gold medalist, to bring sports to children in some of the world’s worst ravaged–by–war areas.
The skater’s guiding principle, that all children have the right to play, and his legacy now extend to some 700,000 children in 23 countries.
Right to Play ambassador Kate Greenberg will be at the informal Sentient Bean event, as well as a very special guest: Joey Cheek, Olympic gold and bronze medalist speed skater (USA) and co–founder/president of Team Darfur, an international coalition of athletes committed to raising awareness about the crisis in Darfur, Sudan.
Cheek was inducted in to The World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame in 2010 for his work on behalf of the children of Darfur.
The Savannah Bicycle Campaign is sponsoring a Mountainfilm–themed community bike ride Saturday, starting at 11 a.m. out in front of the Sentient Bean.
Mountainfilm On Tour Savannah
January 18th and 19th at Trustees Theater
Tickets: $10 evening screenings ($8 students, seniors and military), $5 matinee
At savannahboxoffice.com
Schedule
Opening Night
At 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 18
Trustees Theater, 216 E. Broughton St.
The Nomad
Moonwalk
Industrial Revolutions
Blue Obsession
The Way Home
Racing the End
Right to Play (Q&A follows with Kate Greenburg, ambassador from the Right to Play organization’s New York headquarters; Joey Cheek, Olympic Gold and Bronze Medalist speed skater (USA) and co–founder/president of Team Darfur.
Coffee and Conversation
At 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 19
Sentient Bean, 13 E. Park Ave/
Panel: Kate Greenburg, Right to Play ambassador; Joey Cheek, representing Right to Play/Team Darfur;
Beth & George Gage, filmmakers of Bidder 70
Community Bike Ride
At 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 19th
Starts and ends at South end of Forsyth Park (Park Avenue @ Bull St.) Organized by the Savannah Bicycle Campaign
Family–friendly Matinee Films
At 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19
Trustees Theater, 216 E. Broughton St.
I Believe I Can Fly
Outside the Box
Living Tiny
Julio Solis
Hi! I’m Nutria
Island/Silvia
Code Red
Industrial Revolutions
All.I.Can
Final Session Films
At 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19
Trustees Theater, 216 E. Broughton St.
Eco Ninja
The Man Who Lived on His Bike
The Freedom Chair
Bidder 70 (Q&A follows with filmmakers Beth and George Gage)When
This article appears in Jan 16-23, 2013.
