Orion Goes to MOUNTAINFILM in Telluride

Picture Editor Jason Houston and Executive Editor Hal Clifford took the Orion original production “Stone River” to the MOUNTAINFILM festival in Telluride, Colorado over Memorial Day weekend. The juried festival, now in its 32nd year, attracts about 2,000 people to the high mountain town in southwestern Colorado. Orion contributor Jon Piasecki, the subject of “Stone River,” also attended. The film was so well received at its first screening Friday night that it was screened again, in a larger theater, Monday morning.

Hal and Jason also had a chance to spend time with folks who have contributed to Orion, including photographers Chris Jordan and Joel Sartore and filmmaker and writer Helena Norberg-Hodge, along with conservation activist Katie Lee, sound recordist Gordon Hempton, and on and on. One of the great things about this festival is the extraordinary group of people who gather for it—Central Asia Institute founder Greg Mortensen, author John Valliant, Earth First! founder Dave Foreman, Louie Psihoyos, director of the Oscar-winning film “The Cove,” anti-gas activist Tim DeChristopher, photographer Aaron Huey, and so many more. The whole event is a whirlwind—it was great to be part of it, and to represent Orion there.

“Stone River” will have its East Coast premier this Friday at the Berkshire International Film Festival—and it’s already available on the small screen here: http://vimeo.com/6757763.