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FILM FESTIVAL DRAWS WELL DESPITE LOSS OF OPERA HOUSE VENUE
Portland Press Herald
http://www.pressherald.com/news/film-festival-draws-well-despite-loss-of-opera-house-venue_2011-07-25.html
July 25, 2011
Officials say the screening of 120 films, a record, helped keep the
attendance high this year.
By DAVID ROBINSON Morning Sentinel
WATERVILLE - The 14th annual Maine International Film Festival overcame
the loss of a popular venue and attracted nearly 8,000 people to its
screenings of more than 100 films since July 15.
Although attendance fell slightly from last year, festival director
Shannon Haines said this year was still a major success, especially
since it was the first time without screenings in the Waterville
Opera House, which is closed for renovations.
People still flocked to the 10-day festival at Railroad Square Cinema
and Colby College, Haines said Sunday before the festival's closing
ceremony.
The 325 seats in the college's Given Auditorium couldn't replace the
opera house's 750 seats, but the festival screened a record number
of films this year -- 120 -- to give the audience more choices,
Haines said.
Dan Marra and his wife, Barbara Leonard, are veterans of all 14
festivals. The couple from Winslow said the caliber and selection of
films this year made up for losing the opera house.
Marra watched 20 films and Leonard caught nine. She said a film they
watched Sunday afternoon about a forgotten Native American language
being rediscovered won her vote for "best of fest."
"We Still Live Here (As Nutayunean)" told a moving story that just
stood out from the rest, she said.
Marra reeled off a list of films he thought should be recognized.
"There's a lot of good films. It's hard to vote for just one," the
50-year-old attorney said.
The couple watched one film each at Colby College this year. They
called the college's auditorium a nice venue with plenty of space,
but they also talked about missing the atmosphere of the opera house.
"There's just something lovely about being in that historical
building," Leonard said as she left the Railroad Square Cinema.
She said the festival should keep screening some films at the college
in Waterville, however, because it can help people discover the Colby
College Museum of Art.
Festival programmer Ken Eisen called the attendance figures this
year remarkable because people had to adjust to the new venue. "We
got out to a little slower start at Colby than we expected because
people were used to the opera house," Eisen said.
The total attendance will be announced today, but organizers believe
it will be close to 8,000. Haines said more than 8,500 people attended
last year.
This year, as in past years, the festival drew filmmakers and tourists
to Maine from across the U.S., as well as many other countries,
Haines said.
The audience favorite this year was "Stella," a French film by
director-screenwriter Sylvie Verheyde about a child growing up in
Paris. Second place went to "In Good Time, The Piano Jazz of Marian
McPartland," a film by Maine-based director Huey Coleman.
The audience awarded third place to "Sarah's Key," a French film by
Gilles Paquet-Brenner about an American journalist living in Paris.
Haines said the festival hopes to return to the opera house next year
if renovations are finished in time, while keeping a few screenings
at Colby College.
Photo: Arshak Amirbekyan of Armenia had two screenings of his film
"Yerek Yereko aka Three Evenings" this year, his first at the festival.
Portland Press Herald
http://www.pressherald.com/news/film-festival-draws-well-despite-loss-of-opera-house-venue_2011-07-25.html
July 25, 2011
Officials say the screening of 120 films, a record, helped keep the
attendance high this year.
By DAVID ROBINSON Morning Sentinel
WATERVILLE - The 14th annual Maine International Film Festival overcame
the loss of a popular venue and attracted nearly 8,000 people to its
screenings of more than 100 films since July 15.
Although attendance fell slightly from last year, festival director
Shannon Haines said this year was still a major success, especially
since it was the first time without screenings in the Waterville
Opera House, which is closed for renovations.
People still flocked to the 10-day festival at Railroad Square Cinema
and Colby College, Haines said Sunday before the festival's closing
ceremony.
The 325 seats in the college's Given Auditorium couldn't replace the
opera house's 750 seats, but the festival screened a record number
of films this year -- 120 -- to give the audience more choices,
Haines said.
Dan Marra and his wife, Barbara Leonard, are veterans of all 14
festivals. The couple from Winslow said the caliber and selection of
films this year made up for losing the opera house.
Marra watched 20 films and Leonard caught nine. She said a film they
watched Sunday afternoon about a forgotten Native American language
being rediscovered won her vote for "best of fest."
"We Still Live Here (As Nutayunean)" told a moving story that just
stood out from the rest, she said.
Marra reeled off a list of films he thought should be recognized.
"There's a lot of good films. It's hard to vote for just one," the
50-year-old attorney said.
The couple watched one film each at Colby College this year. They
called the college's auditorium a nice venue with plenty of space,
but they also talked about missing the atmosphere of the opera house.
"There's just something lovely about being in that historical
building," Leonard said as she left the Railroad Square Cinema.
She said the festival should keep screening some films at the college
in Waterville, however, because it can help people discover the Colby
College Museum of Art.
Festival programmer Ken Eisen called the attendance figures this
year remarkable because people had to adjust to the new venue. "We
got out to a little slower start at Colby than we expected because
people were used to the opera house," Eisen said.
The total attendance will be announced today, but organizers believe
it will be close to 8,000. Haines said more than 8,500 people attended
last year.
This year, as in past years, the festival drew filmmakers and tourists
to Maine from across the U.S., as well as many other countries,
Haines said.
The audience favorite this year was "Stella," a French film by
director-screenwriter Sylvie Verheyde about a child growing up in
Paris. Second place went to "In Good Time, The Piano Jazz of Marian
McPartland," a film by Maine-based director Huey Coleman.
The audience awarded third place to "Sarah's Key," a French film by
Gilles Paquet-Brenner about an American journalist living in Paris.
Haines said the festival hopes to return to the opera house next year
if renovations are finished in time, while keeping a few screenings
at Colby College.
Photo: Arshak Amirbekyan of Armenia had two screenings of his film
"Yerek Yereko aka Three Evenings" this year, his first at the festival.