Telluride unveils bold 2025 lineup

Telluride reveals its 52nd edition with world premieres from Zhao and Berger, tributes to Baumbach Hawke and Panahi, and a wide slate spanning Venice debuts to Oscar contenders.

Telluride lineup showcases bold premieres and major tributes

The Telluride Film Festival has announced its 52nd edition lineup, highlighting world premieres in the SHOW program. Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet leads the high profile slate, joined by Edward Berger’s Ballad of a Small Player and Scott Cooper’s Springsteen Deliver Me From Nowhere. Venice debuts from Yorgos Lanthimos’s Bugonia, Noah Baumbach’s Jay Kelly and Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grazia will also screen in Telluride alongside other international titles. The program includes titles from Richard Linklater, Joachim Trier, Jafar Panahi and Harris Dickinson, among many others, with more than 60 features spanning over 30 countries.

The festival will honor craftsmen and artists with Silver Medallions awarded to Noah Baumbach, Ethan Hawke and Jafar Panahi, complemented by onstage conversations and film screenings. A Special Medallion will recognize producer Tessa Ross, while guest director Ezra Edelman curates a sidebar of classics. Telluride also highlights its ongoing Nugget project, a year‑round cultural hub planned to open in 2026, signaling a deeper commitment to cinema beyond the festival weekend. Sponsorship from Google, Netflix, Amazon MGM Studios and National Geographic underscores a resilient industry, even as the broader economy tightens. Festival executive director Julie Huntsinger emphasizes a spirit of resilience and compassion in the lineup, noting that Telluride remains a proving ground for original filmmaking and bold voices.

Telluride’s selections weave prestige with courage. The presence of Panahi and politically charged projects alongside traditional awards contenders signals a willingness to embrace art that challenges, even when it carries risk. The festival’s role as an Oscar bellwether persists, but Telluride also tests how audiences respond to global cinema in an era of streaming dominance and budget pressures. The Nugget project and sustained corporate sponsorship show a festival ecosystem that is adapting rather than retreating, using architecture and partnerships to keep cinema deeply personal for viewers and filmmakers alike.

Highlights

The Telluride slate invites readers to judge how cinema can endure upheaval and still shape the year ahead.