Preview
CALGARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
September 24 to October 3
If you’ve ever found yourself at a video store, overwhelmed by the unlimited choices available to you from the seemingly endless shelves of movies, then you might begin to appreciate the challenge faced by festival programmer Pete Harris.
Harris is one of the people responsible for selecting films for the Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) – a task he finds both daunting and rewarding.
Harris is no stranger to choosing movies people want to see. He has over nine years experience working as a projectionist, booker and floor manager for all three local art-house cinemas – the Globe, Plaza and Uptown theatres.
"You have to have a passion for it because it gets a little unruly at times, but it’s amazing," Harris explains. "Calgary sorely lacks a truly alternative screen, so (the festival) is a good opportunity for the two of us – me and program manager Andy Eyck – and the selection committee to jam-pack a whole year of cinematheque into 10 days."
Trying to organize the films into screening times and venues is a very hands-on affair. Forget about using high-tech gadgetry or complicated software programs, the CIFF has a simpler way of sorting through the chaos.
"Well, that’s the Post-It notes on the walls. I couldn’t do (the scheduling) on a computer screen, I just don’t have the skills," Harris says, joking. "Our process is just one big sheet blocked off into days and showtimes and theatres or screens. Then we use the Post-Its to arrange them in such a way, whether it be presentation format or seating capacity."
This year, the CIFF is excited to showcase a wide variety of alternative cinema and midnight shows. Harris attributes the bounty to the record number of submissions the festival received – a staggering 950 entries – with only 307 films being selected for screening.
Harris suspects the reason for the increase is due to the popularity of digital video. Many independent filmmakers choose to use the digital medium because it’s more accessible and less expensive than shooting on film. Digital video productions make up over 50 per cent of the programming at this year’s festival, allowing for more local filmmakers and short films to be included.
"We have eight local features – either narrative or documentary – and 17 shorts from local filmmakers," Harris says. "To me, short films are the best value and most bang for your buck. You can watch one after the other and I think people should give themselves some variety and fun – watch eight or nine short films that you have no idea about."
While Harris may enjoy attending the gala parties and seeing long lineups outside the theatres, the most important thing to him is the film itself.
"Sure, you can go to the reception afterwards, that’s really nice, but the main reason I do this is to give people a one-time chance to see a totally challenging and unique film," he says. "That moment when you arrive early, get your ticket, find your seat and the lights go down – it doesn’t matter if there is five people or 350 people in the theatre, because it’s all about the film on screen."
Cinematic logistics
The CIFF happens to overlap with both the Vancouver and Halifax film festivals. Since there is usually only one print of a film available for the festival circuit, they all have to find a way to share resources. Festival organizers choreograph a complicated Trans-Canada switch, where a film is shipped overnight from Vancouver or Halifax and somehow, through a series of phone calls and e-mails, manages to arrive in time for its screening in Calgary. Sometimes there is a glitch in the system and all the communication in the world can’t help a film from being stopped at an international border.
"Last year we had one film we couldn’t play – Hukkle from Hungary. It was stuck at Bangladesh customs," Harris says. "Three or four days of hard work could not loosen up the bureaucracy of Bangladesh customs and we never got it – until now." |
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