The Show signs are up. Every day venues like a hockey rink, elementary school gymnasium and public library meeting room have been transformed into beautiful movie theatres. There is a buzz around town.  These are all signs that Labor Day Weekend and the Telluride Film Festival has arrived.

Now in its 44th year, the Telluride Film Festival continues to draw a loyal following of cinephiles who truly appreciate the intimacy of a festival that focuses on the art of film. While attendees will not see glammed up stars striking a pose in beautiful gowns on the red carpet, they can often find them steps away enjoying a latte at a local coffee shop or casually discussing their latest film at one of the many free panel discussions in Elks Park. The Telluride Film Festival is different than its industry counterparts like Cannes and Sundance as it is laid back and intimate.

The long standing tradition of keeping the line up a secret until the day before the Festival creates quite a buzz about which films will show and of course what stars will be in town to represent their latest work. The line-up was announced yesterday, so now it's official-- Angelina Jolie is in town for the film she directed First They Killed My Father; Christian Bale is here for Hostiles; Natalie Portman will showcase Eating Animals. Francis Ford Coppola, Gary Oldman, Emma Stone, Billie Jean King and other talented directors, actors and writers are floating around town as well. Icing on the cake-Al Gore will present An Inconvenient Sequel:Truth to Power

No doubt, there will be some amazing films in the line-up. Seven of the last eight films that won the Oscar for Best Picture at the Academy Awards had their North American premiere at the Telluride Film Festival. The list is impressive: The King’s Speech (2010), The Artist (2011), Argo (2012), 12 Years a Slave (2013), Birdman (2014), Spotlight (2015), Moonlight (2016) all debuted in our box canyon. Will a movie that premieres at this year’s festival extend this Oscar streak?