FRANK GATI

                 WHO CARES ABOUT FILM FESTIVALS?

Producer Ted Hope cares but he is leaving as head of the non-profit San Francisco Film Festival after serving in this post for just 14 months. The organization is now looking for another person who supports and showcases independent filmmakers.

No doubt the San Francisco Film Society will find a new head, and it will continue putting on the San Francisco International Film Festival, as they have for the past 56 years.
   
A few weeks back, as I reported on the air, I had an opportunity to go to the San Francisco Film Society to interview long-time programmer ROB ARMSTRONG. He explained that programmers and pre-screeners program those films that THEY happen to like. Rob knows San Francisco audiences and he also knows the limitations of the festival to include all films submitted. To quote Rob: “We can’t possibly watch tens of thousands of films in order to put together the festival, nobody can, no festival can.  We rely on the expertise of these pre-screeners to evaluate the film, and hopefully that form and the different elements that they are judging the work on leads us to not miss out on interesting work.  And I think, for the most part, the cream rises to the top.”

ROB ARMSTRONG

    As with all film festivals, they have as their mission to recognize artistic achievement.  They also want to be THE festival that discovers new films and directors.  And if they can be where distribution deals are made, so much the better for the festival AND the filmmaker.



 I also interviewed documentary filmmaker, SALLY GATI who recently finished a personal documentary, ABOUT MY FATHER Sam Cytron: A Life in Music. (slideshow). 

SALLY GATI

She is not very encouraged about getting into any festivals because of the huge number of submissions and because the subject of her latest film may not bring audiences in - something film festivals need to do. Sally said that this is discouraging. In her words: “After you finish a film, where does it go?  In the can? or does it go out there?  You hope people will look at it.”

 How do film festivals get audiences?

    It seems that film Festivals have become the “in” entertainment in every corner of the world.  Here in the Bay Area, and more particularly in San Francisco, there are festivals all the time and for every possible demographic group. Take a deep breath:  S.F. International, the Lesbian and Gay, the IndieFest, DocFest, Another Hole in the Head, the Frozen Film Festival, S.F. Black, the United Nations Association, Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema, the Arab, Annual Italian, Animation, Jewish, Silent, Ocean, Noir City Dance, Shorts, Transgender, Japan, Irish, 48 Hour Film Project, Armenian, International Asian American, South Asian, Latino, Iranian, Global Vietnamese, Hope, Legacy Film Festival on Aging, A Nightmare to Remember, Fashion, S.F. Immigrant, Human Rights Watch, California, S.F. Green, The Disposable Film Festival, American Indian, Save the Waves, Global Health, International Children’s, International Women’s, Tiny Dance, Library Free, Berlin & Beyond at the Castro, New Media, Atheist, not to mention online United Films Digital Channel.  And these are only for our city.  Go across the bridge to the Mill Valley or down to San José for Cinequest, out to Sonoma and to Napa and then to EVERY big city and small town - there’s a film festival.

The Connected and the Curious Audience Members

    Film Festivals put together programs to appeal to specific audiences.  The “connected” are those people who feel deeply about supporting a particular “interest group”.  These are their built-in audiences - the people they can depend on to fill the theaters. Of course, the festivals also want to bring in others whom they can spark an interest in, and these I’ll call the “curious.”


Despite the enormous number of film festivals, it is still very difficult for filmmakers to get their films chosen. “Why is that?” you may ask.  The perfect analogy is the art museum model.  Film festivals are curated in the same way museums curate art exhibitions.  They need to get bodies into the building, and they have to use their marketing skills to interest the public.  Blockbuster shows such as the present David Hockney at the Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco is being advertised as “A Bigger Exhibition”.  You may or may not like Hockney; you may think his paintings are good or not good, or you may not even have any idea who David Hockney is.  But those who have curated it want the “connected” and the “curious” - as many as they can, to come and see it.
It is the same with film festival programmers. They definitely have their preferences; they may be overwhelmed by the number of submissions; and there may be a limited number of days or time slots, but they are going to put a program together on what they like. For the filmmakers who get rejected, it is a big disappointment because they feel this is a lost opportunity to be seen, as I found out when interviewing Sally Gati.

No doubt there are some film festivals that are “non-profit” and there are those that don’t make money or just break even.  But a film festival is a business, connecting culture, commerce, and community. And those festivals that make money can expect to be around for the next year. As for film festival goers in San Francisco, they have many and varied festivals to choose from, and Bay Area people rally to support these festivals.  For those filmmakers whose films do get selected, they feel supported as well.

In my next blog, I will address other ways filmmakers can get their films seen.


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