I am incredibly excited to be a part of the Visions 5 staff this year! I have always wanted to learn what it takes to put together a film festival. I worked for the Cape Fear Independent Film Festival last year, and along with another intern, took responsibility for the social media for the festival. I enjoy working with social media; writing is one of my strong suits and I am very comfortable with various social media and relating websites. I didn't do much other than social media within that internship, so I am most excited to learn the who, what, when, where, why of the festival life through Visions. Though I will be working with social media again, I feel as though I will gain a lot more experience in different areas. One thing that I can remember from the first class is hearing that all departments work together. We have our own niches and delegated tasks, but we are not limited; all departments must work collectively for everything to work the way we want it to and for everything to go smoothly. I think that I am most looking forward to that; working together, learning the in's and out's of the festival in it's entirety and seeing it through.
I will be honest and say that most of the time I do not enjoy readings that are assigned to classes. Maybe because they come with a certain stigma of being class readings, or maybe because I often get bored. That being said, I actually, very much enjoyed the readings for this week! Before coming to college, I never really took a great interest in Independent film, but as I learn more and more about filmmaking and film study, I have come to realize that it is the place to begin. The readings have given me even more of an understanding into the world of independent film.
Festivals of Their Own: It was interesting to read about the history of film festivals, from their beginning to their end or to their fall in the eyes of the independent film community by becoming more corporate like. I think the idea of making money is good to keep in mind, but not as to destroy the entire concept and the original purpose of a film festival. The festivals talked about in the reading all began with the idea to bring original ideas and films that wouldn't otherwise receive recognition to viewers, then became politicized, and then fell into the corporate structure because they wanted to market their festivals to a wider audience, and make more money. My favorite quote from this reading is on page 197 and it reads "The best way to show your work is to be proud of it -- excitement about your own project is more important than the location of the screening." I have always believed that it is more important to show your work and be proud of it, rather than focus on the monetary value of it. Sure, it matters when you are putting your own savings and need return to live comfortably; but the most important part should be knowing that others out there enjoy the work you are doing, and more importantly, that you enjoy the work.
A Night at the Movies: From Art Hour to "Microcinema": The most important idea that this reading presented to me was that there are multiple ways, different ways to view and enjoy cinema, but because of popular culture we have always associated cinema viewing with large multiplexes with concessions and comfy chairs. The three problems that the industry faces are monetary, with exhibitions (because watching film from the comfort of you home is becoming more popular), and with the intertwining of mainstream and art house cinema. Though I have not been to many independent exhibitions, I would have to agree with the author and say that it is more community building. Though mainstream cinema may reach more audiences, art house and independent cinema builds a community of cinephiliacs of all types. I know that I definitely enjoy discussion after films!
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