Venue
Telluride, San Miguel County, Colorado, United States
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Telluride Film Festival guide
A secret programme over Labor Day weekend.
In short
Serious film watchers can plan on Labor Day weekend, Friday to Monday, estimated at 3 to 6 September 2027 since the festival had not published dates. Pass holders see new features, restored classics and tributes in theatres across Telluride, with the programme revealed only at the last moment. Buy passes and lodging early.
The Telluride Film Festival turns a small Colorado mountain town into a stop the film world watches closely for one long weekend every year. New features, restored classics and tributes play to pass holders in theatres scattered across town, and the programme stays secret until the very last moment.
Its reputation rests on the taste of its programming. Directors and actors mix with the audience in the queues and at the panels, and the people who come are there to watch as many films as they can, from silent rarities to the autumn's most talked-about new releases.
Telluride also leaves room for those without a pass. Free outdoor films, talks and student programmes give locals and curious visitors a way in, and that open side is a big part of why the town embraces the festival every year.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Ends: Monday, 6 September 2027
Where: Telluride, United States
Venue: Sheridan Opera House and festival venues
Held: Every year
Type of event: Arts Festivals, Film Festivals
Currency: US dollar (USD, $)
Time zone: Mountain Time (UTC-7, UTC-6 in summer)
Language: English (Spanish widely spoken)
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Buying leftover seats at the door
A pass is not the only way in. In past editions, seats left over once passholders were inside went on sale at the door just before showtime, at $35 each in 2019. The large houses give the best odds: the Werner Herzog Theatre and the Palm each held 650 seats, the Galaxy and Chuck Jones' Cinema 500 each.
- Morning and late-night shows are the easiest to get into.
- Repeat screenings are announced daily, and many have spare seats.
- Tributes often have tickets available at showtime.
Bring cash or a card and patience; you may wait and still miss out.
Free open-air films and talks
The Abel Gance Open Air Cinema shows free films in Elks Park from sunset, and in 2019 started around 8:30 p.m. Bring your own blanket, tarp or chair and dress for a cold mountain night. Noon Seminars in the same park put festival guests on a panel on Saturday and Sunday, with questions from the audience. Conversations in the County Courthouse are free too, though passholders go in first.
The Backlot, in the Wilkinson Public Library, screens films on a first-come, first-served basis.
Queueing and meeting filmmakers
Seating is unreserved, so lines form well before each screening. Arrive early for anything with buzz, keep your place yourself, and be ready to chat: the queue is where tips about the best film of the day spread fastest.
Famous faces turn up in ordinary places, from coffee shops to the line behind you. Give them space, and save your questions for the seminars and Conversations, where they are on the programme to answer them.
Layers for warm theatres and cold evenings
At 8,750 feet, afternoon sun can feel strong while evenings turn cold quickly. Wear layers you can shed in a heated theatre and add again on the walk between venues. Comfortable shoes are essential, since getting around town is mostly on foot. Carry a water bottle and a snack, because you may spend long stretches in queues between films.
What happens on the day
- The day before opening
The programme is revealed
The film list is released only on the eve of the festival. Plan the weekend that evening with the programme guide and the festival app.
- Morning to night
Screenings rotate through the cinemas
More than 50 programmes fill the four days. Films in heavy demand get repeat slots, announced each morning at the Hospitality Center and outside the theatres.
- Midday
Noon Seminars
Talks with guests take place in Elks Park, opposite the County Courthouse.
- From sunset
Free films outdoors
Elks Park screens films in the open air after dark. Bring a warm layer.
- Monday
Labor Day Picnic
The festival closes with a picnic for pass holders.
Choosing a pass before they sell out
Telluride runs on passes, and they disappear. All 2026 passes had sold out before the festival, so anyone aiming for next year should contact the festival early and ask to join the waitlist if needed. Prices for the next edition are not yet published. As a guide, the 2026 Festival Pass cost $780 and got you into every cinema in order of arrival plus the Opening Night Feed and the Labor Day Picnic.
The cheaper options suit particular viewers. The Cinephile Pass ($390 in 2026) steers you to restorations, silent films and the Guest Director's choices, programmes that are often shown once and never again. The Acme Pass ($580 in 2026) is built around Chuck Jones' Cinema up in Mountain Village, which makes Mountain Village the logical base if you hold one.
The 1974 founding and the festival's focus on film
The Sheridan Opera House hosted the opening night on 30 August 1974. Its founders were Tom Luddy, James Card and the husband-and-wife team of Bill and Stella Pence. It is still run by the National Film Preserve, and it has kept a deliberately low-key style. You are more likely to spot an actor ordering coffee or sitting on a panel than posing on a carpet, and Salman Rushdie once described it as a festival built on love of film, not on deals.
That does not make it a minor stop. Roger and Me made its debut here in 1989, El Mariachi had its first festival screening in 1992, and American audiences first saw Blue Velvet, Moonlight and Saltburn in Telluride. For eight straight years up to 2018 the film that went on to win Best Picture had its world or North American debut here. The Shape of Water was one of them.
Each year three people receive a Silver Medallion; Gloria Swanson, Leni Riefenstahl and Francis Ford Coppola were the original recipients. The town adapts in its own way. A school gym and a hockey rink become cinemas for the weekend. The Werner Herzog Theatre joined the lineup of venues for the 40th edition in 2013.
Getting there
Flying in
Telluride Regional Airport sits at 9,070 feet and has few flights, so most visitors land at Montrose, Durango, Cortez, Grand Junction or Gunnison and finish by road. Check US entry rules for your passport before you book.
Transfers
Telluride Express runs shuttles from the Montrose and Grand Junction airports, with ground transport from the others on request. The festival's travel partner, Ski.com, can also book flights, including charters from Los Angeles.
By road
Telluride is about 350 miles from both Denver and Albuquerque, six to eight hours' drive through the San Juan Mountains.
In town
Downtown cinemas such as the Sheridan Opera House, the Palm, the Galaxy and Masons Hall Cinema are a walk apart. The free Galloping Goose bus loops the streets, and the free gondola reaches Mountain Village in about 12 minutes.
Where to stay during the festival
Rooms over Labor Day weekend are scarce and go to pass holders first, so book a bed as soon as you have your pass.
Downtown Telluride keeps most cinemas within walking distance. Mountain Village, across the free gondola, is the logical base for Acme pass holders, whose home cinema, Chuck Jones', is up there.
Weather and what to pack
Telluride lies at about 8,750 feet, and early September brings warm days and near-freezing nights. Averages for September are a high of about 20°C (68°F) and a low just under 1°C (34°F), with around 59 mm of precipitation in the month (1991-2020 normals).
Afternoon storms are common in the San Juans in late summer, and the evening screenings in Elks Park get cold quickly.
Worth packing
- A warm jacket and hat for outdoor screenings after dark
- A light rain shell for afternoon storms
- Comfortable shoes for walking between cinemas
- A water bottle, as the altitude dehydrates you quickly
- Sunscreen for the strong mountain sun
Car hire in Telluride
Airport transfer to Telluride Film Festival
Met at arrivals and driven door to door to Sheridan Opera House and festival venues.
Restaurants and food in United States
Places to eat in United States before or after the celebrations.
Joe's Stone Crab
11 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139, United States
Cuisine:SeafoodAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
- Bar
Alinea
1723 North Halsted Street, Chicago, IL 60614, United States
Cuisine:ModernistAmerican
- Dine-in
- Counter seating
Franklin Barbecue
900 East 11th Street, Austin, TX 78702, United States
Cuisine:Texas barbecueAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
Commander's Palace
1403 Washington Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70130, United States
Cuisine:CreoleNew Orleans
- Dine-in
Katz's Delicatessen
205 East Houston Street, New York, NY 10002, United States
Cuisine:Jewish deliAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
- Counter seating
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Timing & weather
The film list is kept under wraps until the day before the festival opens. Passes are sold long before then, which means buyers commit without knowing what will play.
What's included
It is the top tier, covering every event at every site with priority seating, plus the Friday morning Guest/Patron Brunch and a shot at the Friday afternoon Patron's Preview. Part of the price is a tax-deductible donation to the festival.
General
The festival keeps a waitlist. Email the passes office (or the patron office for Patron Passes) and ask to be added, then check back as the weekend nears.
Yes. The Filmmakers of Tomorrow strand has run free programmes such as Calling Cards, Student Prints and Great Expectations, built around work by young and emerging directors.
Up in Mountain Village, outside downtown. It is the home venue for Acme passholders and is a free gondola ride of about 12 minutes from Telluride.
Yes. Elks Park hosts open-air screenings after dark, and the Backlot at the Wilkinson Public Library runs free films on a first-come, first-served basis.
The festival's tribute award, given to three honourees each year. The very first medallions were handed out at the 1974 festival.
Not in the usual way. Guests tend to appear at screenings, panels and around town, which is part of the festival's appeal for film lovers.
A Late Show Pass has been sold in past years for the final screening of each night from Friday to Monday. Check the festival website for whether it is offered at the next edition.
Downtown puts most cinemas within walking distance. Mountain Village makes sense for Acme passholders, whose cinema is there, and the free gondola links the two.
Getting there
About 350 miles, a drive of six to eight hours through the mountains. Many visitors fly into a regional airport such as Montrose instead and transfer by road.
Booking
Yes. Its travel partner Ski.com can access seats not sold elsewhere, including charter flights from Los Angeles, which helps when scheduled flights into the region fill up.