As the 51st edition of the Telluride Film Festival concluded on Monday, the featured films clearly fell into two distinct categories: experimental and topical. Renowned documentary filmmaker Morgan Neville and musical director Michael Gracey took bold, innovative approaches to narrate the stories of Pharrell Williams and British pop sensation Robbie Williams (no relation). Neville employed Legos to craft his narrative, while Gracey used a CGI monkey to bring his vision to life. Other filmmakers shined a spotlight on pressing societal issues such as transgender-care laws, abortion restrictions, and other significant matters that will influence voters in the upcoming November elections.

Anticipation for the Oscars in March was a recurring topic of conversation throughout the festival.

Julie Huntsinger, the director of Telluride, advised attendees at the festival’s commencement on Friday to brace themselves for some wildly imaginative films. Her statement was more of a promise than a warning and was immediately fulfilled by Neville’s film “Piece by Piece,” which exclusively used Legos to depict music icons like Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, and Pharrell Williams.

“What if nothing is new?” Pharrell Williams pondered in his glossy depiction, set to hit theaters on October 11. “What if life is like a Lego set, and you’re just borrowing from everyone else?”

Later that evening, Gracey (“The Greatest Showman”) relied on the expertise of Weta FX to portray Robbie Williams as a CGI monkey, allowing the audience to “see Robbie as he sees himself,” as Gracey explained to the crowd. Robbie Williams likened the experience of debuting his story to being “like an 11-year-old who’s having the best day possible.”

The spirit of experimentation continued with “Nickel Boys,” where director RaMell Ross played with narrative perspectives while adapting Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.

And that was just the beginning. Saturday turned its focus towards political awareness and comedy, blending them seamlessly.

The Netflix documentary “Will & Harper” was a highlight, featuring a road trip undertaken by Will Ferrell and Harper Steele, a former “Saturday Night Live” head writer and Ferrell’s friend of three decades. Steele, a transgender woman, embarks on a journey to rediscover America as she once loved it.

The film, which also played at Sundance in January, attracted a diverse Telluride audience, including Martha Stewart (promoting her documentary “Martha”) and Bill Murray (“The Friend”). The film received a standing ovation for Steele, which she humorously pointed out to Ferrell when they took the stage.

Directed by Josh Greenbaum, “Will & Harper” offers an intimate glimpse into a friendship deepened by Steele’s transition and Ferrell’s genuine response. Ferrell appears as both an audience surrogate striving to understand the transition and an empathetic friend. Steele noted that Ferrell’s involvement could impact his professional image. “This is a brand that might get hurt by it,” Steele remarked during the screening.

Audiences then packed the theater for “Zurawski v Texas,” which focuses on women suing the state over abortion rights losses. Festival attendees were eager to see former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, an executive producer of the documentary, engage in the post-screening panel. “We cannot underestimate how crucial this film is to break through the eye-rolling, denial, dismissiveness, and cruelty affecting so many women’s lives,” Clinton stated.

That afternoon, a crowd gathered in Elks Park in central Telluride to hear discussions from the film’s subjects and Chelsea Clinton, another executive producer, about suing Texas over maternal healthcare issues. (In May, the Texas Supreme Court ruled against the 20 plaintiffs.)

Saturday night brought palpable tension. Director Jason Reitman paced nervously before his film “Saturday Night,” which captures the high-stress 90 minutes leading up to the first episode of “Saturday Night Live’s” 50th-anniversary season this fall.

“This is adrenaline at levels reserved for test pilots and heroin addicts,” Reitman quipped in his opening remarks, which featured a guest appearance from Bill Murray, a former “S.N.L.” cast member and longtime collaborator with Reitman’s father, Ivan.

Director Ali Abbasi was also anxious about the first U.S. showing of his contentious film “The Apprentice,” chronicling Donald J. Trump’s rise and his relationship with lawyer Roy Cohn. Abbasi told the packed 10 p.m. screening how worried he was about its premiere here. “This has been years in the making, and now it’s coming back home to you guys,” he said.

The film, which debuted at Cannes to strong reviews in May, had an uncertain future as recently as last week while producers finalized a deal to buy out financier Kinematics, backed by Trump ally Dan Snyder. That deal is now complete, and the film will officially open in theaters on October 11 through Briarcliff Entertainment despite Trump’s threats to sue. “This is not a political hit piece,” Abbasi emphasized. “This is a mirror intended to show you an image of yourselves as a community.”

In what seemed like a companion piece to “The Apprentice,” Telluride also featured Errol Morris’s “Separated,” documenting the Trump administration’s policy of separating immigrant families at the southern border.

Several titles were still seeking distribution at Telluride—a rare occurrence for films debuting there. These included “Zurawski v Texas”; “The Friend,” starring Naomi Watts and a Great Dane; “September 5,” a drama about the 1972 Munich Olympics hostage crisis starring Peter Sarsgaard; and Petra Costa’s documentary “Apocalypse in the Tropics,” which explores evangelical Christians’ impact on Brazilian elections. Telluride appeared willing to assist with sales efforts. “The filmmakers hope that people can get excited about these movies and drive up their prices,” Huntsinger explained.

Major studios also brought their Oscar contenders that premiered at other festivals. Netflix showcased “Emilia Perez,” featuring Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldaña, and Karla Sofía Gascón, after acquiring it at Cannes. Neon presented “Anora,” the Cannes Palme d’Or-winning film about a Brooklyn sex worker played by Mikey Madison. Searchlight sent Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin to promote “A Real Pain,” acquired at Sundance.