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08/01/2007Judge & jury: Panels to give awardsTwo categories for judging in this year's fest
Brauer
Reynolds
TRAVERSE CITY — Rich Brauer isn't a coffee drinker, but that may change when he joins a team of five jurors called to judge 13 fiction films at the Traverse City Film Festival. "I don't drink coffee, but I may start,” Brauer said. "... I'll go to the coffee shop like I'm going to the therapist ... tell them my hopes and dreams and see what they prescribe.” The three to four films a day Brauer views during the festival may make the caffeine-laced liquid a must, but the founder of Brauer Productions, Inc. doesn't see his new job as a burden. Brauer, who's worked in Traverse City for 30 years, said enjoying the movies won't be the problem. Instead, he'll struggle to take in the film from an average viewer's perspective. "It'll be difficult with my personality,” Brauer said. "If someone makes a film and finishes it, they get an A-plus because I know how hard it is, so I have to splice that part out, split my brain off and come up with a system to evaluate the movie.” In a new twist this year, the Traverse City Film Festival split a lineup of movies into two categories: fiction and non-fiction films. Thirteen will compete in the fiction category with Brauer, Bob Bahle, Tracy Kurtz, Michael Mittelstaedt and Rebecca Reynolds on the jury. The non-fiction competition will slot 12 films judged by Gay Anderson, Pennie Ault and Aaron Olson. Both panels will dole out awards. Festival founder Michael Moore and a few other founding members had been making their own selections the past two years. Reynolds figured it was just a matter of time before the festival developed a set of defined awards. "People will like the new system, especially when you get to win something,” Reynolds said. "Filmmakers like to have that. It does mean something. The festival's grown so fast that it was a logical step.” Deb Lake, the festival's manager, said most of the major film festivals have jury awards and that the panels can only lend to the credibility of the three-year-old event. The jury members are just glad to be a part of the transition. "I was very excited,” said Reynolds, who helped write a show now running on HBO. "... I'm forced to watch four to five films a day. It's like Br'er Rabbit saying, 'Oh please, don't throw me into the briar patch.'” The judges will watch films at scheduled showings, unlike other festivals which hold screenings for jury panels. On Sunday afternoon, they'll make their selections, which will be revealed at the closing party later that night. Brauer said the diverse background of the judges on his panel should promote a fair evaluation process, but he did admit he would have to scratch his "A-plus” criteria for finishing a movie. "My expertise is in filmmaking,” Brauer said. "I'll separate the films into certain components, story telling and cinematography.” Reynolds described her perception of the panels. "It's like jury duty,” Reynolds said with a chuckle. "When you're called to serve, you must show up.”
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