Were you there? Northwest Corner celebrates its own links to Woodstock Festival

MILLERTON — The Moviehouse here will host advance screenings Aug. 27 for the new Ang Lee film, “Taking Woodstock.â€

The film, which was partly filmed in Millerton, as well as New Lebanon and other New York locations, celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Woodstock Festival. It is a comedy/drama revolving around Elliot Tiber, whose family owned a motel in Bethel, N.Y., which the 1969 festival’s organizers used as a home base for the event.

The screenplay is based on Tiber’s autobiography and was written by Academy Award nominee James Schamus (“Brokeback Mountain,†“The Ice Stormâ€). Lee is the Academy Award-winning director of “Brokeback Mountain,†“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,†“Sense and Sensibility†and other films.

“The film has a lot of local connections,†said Carol Sadlon, co-owner of The Moviehouse with her husband, Robert.

Parts of the movie were filmed at Lone Pine Farm on Route 22 in Millerton and at nearby sites in Columbia County. Two of the festival’s four organizers, John Roberts and Joel Rosenman, were Salisbury residents.

And Salisbury resident Mamie Gummer (daughter of actress Meryl Streep and sculptor Don Gummer) is one of the stars of the film.

“People had been asking me about [the film],†explained Sadlon. “So we spoke to Focus Films [the distributor] to see if we could get permission to screen the film early. They were very gracious.â€

All proceeds from the premiere will be donated to the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, which serves residents of Columbia and northeastern Dutchess counties, Berkshire County and northwest Litchfield County. The advance screenings will specifically benefit three of the foundation’s area funds: the Fund for Columbia County, the Northeast Dutchess Fund and the Northwest Corner Fund.

The screenings will be on Thursday, Aug. 27, at 6:30 and 9 p.m. Tickets are $20.

An auction and party will also be held that day.

“There will be a spread of munchies, hash-less brownies and wine from Little Gates in Millerton,†Sadlon said. “Guests are encouraged to get into the spirit of Woodstock by wearing denim, tie-dye, velvet and fringe. There will be surprise guests, raffle prizes, posters, T-shirts, books and CDs.â€

Millerton’s master tea maker, John Harney Sr., will auction off two items that evening, which were donated by Woodstock Ventures: an original and authenticated 1969 “Woodstock: Three Days of Peace and Music†poster; and a 1969 poster that says, “Woodstock: An Aquarian Exposition, Wallkill, N.Y.†Wallkill is the town that turned down the opportunity to host the epochal festival.

Tickets can be purchased at the Moviehouse box office or online at themoviehouse.net.