A special 5-day program with Chip Conley
The 3rd Annual MEA Film Fest
Dec 14 - Dec 19, 2026 in Santa Fe, USA Led by: Chip Conley, Darby Rose
The Film Lineup Is Here!
Curious what's playing at this year's MEA Film Fest? We've curated a special lineup of films designed to spark meaningful conversations, fresh perspectives, and a little movie magic. From thought-provoking stories to unforgettable cinematic moments, there's plenty to look forward to.
Our campus is sold out, but we're still accepting commuter registrations!
Although room at our campus is no longer available, we welcome guests to register for a commuter pass to attend all 5 days of the event. You’ll still get to enjoy all meals and other amenities available. Enroll today as commuter passes are limited!
If you'd like to be added to our on-campus waitlist in case a space becomes available, click here.
Do you love watching great movies, especially during the darkest time of the year?
Welcome to the third annual MEA Film Fest!
Here’s your chance to join Chip Conley and other inspired film buffs for five incredible days of unlocking your inner wisdom while watching great movies geared specifically to people aged 50 and older – popcorn included.
This will be a unique and unforgettable way to start the winter holiday season. Both recent and older films will be shown with writing prompts to help you see how cinematic art can imitate and inspire your life. Given that New Mexico is such a popular film location, we’ll also talk about the history of films that have been made near MEA’s campus.
If you love watching and discussing movies, be sure to join us!
In this unique workshop facilitated by Chip Conley, you’ll experience a light version of the MEA core curriculum while also enjoying great movies and inspiring conversations with other wisdom-seeking individuals.
What you’ll gain
Through a combination of our MEA core curriculum and watching and discussing movies that explore themes relevant to people in the second half of life, you will:
By the end of the 5-day film fest with Chip in Santa Fe, you'll have a greater appreciation for the power of film to help you make sense of your own experience, and cultivate meaningful connections with other amazing humans who make you feel like a cherished member of a loving and supportive community.
If you’re looking to do something different this holiday season that feeds your soul and helps you deepen your sense of human connection and love for others, be sure to join us!
Meet your faculty
Chip Conley
MEA Co-Founder and Author of Learning to Love Midlife: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age
A three-time TED speaker on the big stage, Chip Conley is one of the world's leading experts at the intersection of business innovation, psychology and spirituality.
As one of the creators of the boutique hotel movement and the "modern elder" to the young Airbnb founders, Chip's been a disruptor and expert on entrepreneurship and business leadership. He’s a globally-recognized thought leader on the future of work and the competitive advantages of a multi-generational workplace.
Inspired by his experience of intergenerational mentoring as a “modern elder” at Airbnb – where his guidance was instrumental to the company’s extraordinary success – Chip founded MEA and has since dedicated his midlife years to reframing the concept of aging and helping people navigate midlife with a renewed sense of purpose and possibility.
(Plus, have we mentioned he’s a pretty big film buff?)
Meet your facilitators
Darby Rose
Assistant Director
Darby Rose is a multidisciplinary artist, arts administrator, cook, actor and animal lover, currently living in Santa Fe, NM. Born into a family of travelers in Austin, TX, she’s lived more places than she can count — all over Texas, Boston, Jackson WY, Baltimore and Los Angeles, to name a few; and outside the US in Peru and Italy. After a long stint in Marfa, TX, the vast, mountainous horizons and monsoons of New Mexico captured her. This travelers life has built in Darby a deep curiosity and compassion for others, and a gratitude for the beautiful complexities of the human condition, with its myriad expressions of love, humor, struggle and strength.
Amie Tullius
MEA Experience Facilitator
Amie Tullius is a New Mexico-based writer and facilitator whose work centers on belonging, creativity, and the natural world. Before joining MEA, she spent more than a decade in contemporary art as a gallery director, art writer, and creative collaborator, where she was especially drawn to projects that created openings for moral beauty and collective effervescence.
She holds an MFA in Writing and a BA in Religious Studies, where she became fascinated by the questions of ultimate concern that have occupied human beings across cultures and traditions. She teaches meditation and leads silent retreats, drawing on practices of close attention, creative inquiry, and listening to the living world. She is completing a memoir about spending a thousand days in the Santa Fe National Forest—a spiritual inquiry into home, belonging, and the soul of place. Through both writing and facilitation, her work returns again and again to relationship—with place, with one another, and with the more-than-human world.
This workshop is for you if...
You’re looking for something different to do to get in the “holiday spirit”
You love watching movies and discussing them with other people
You’re looking for a fun way to gain valuable insight into yourself
You’re searching for ways to tap into your own capacity for creativity
You want to connect with others and explore powerful topics and ideas with them
The idea of a getaway to nature right before Christmas sounds pretty perfect
Santa Fe, USA
Rising Circle Ranch
An upscale regenerative ranch featuring traditional Pueblo architecture and spanning nearly 2,600 acres of wildlife, hiking trails in the arroyo, with ancient petroglyphs, and awe-inspiring beauty. Close to historic Santa Fe, an artisan’s mecca.
40 films in 5 days with MEA founder Chip Conley and friends
That’s it! That’s the pitch.
Come hang out with Chip and other incredible members of the MEA community, where powerful storytelling meets meaningful connection, and every film becomes a window into humanity's extraordinary capacity for both beauty and complexity.
