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07/20/2007
Second wave of tickets goes on salePublic on-sale time is noon todayTRAVERSE CITY — There's good news and there's good news. More than half of the tickets for this year's Traverse City Film Festival were sold to festival "friends” before ticket sales were to open to the public today. The other good news? The festival has added more screenings to accommodate anticipated demand (see related story »). The third annual festival, July 31-Aug. 5, opened its box office to members of Friends of the Traverse City Film Festival on July 13, a week before tickets went on sale to the general public. In the first eight hours, it sold more tickets — about 20,000 — than it sold the entire first year of the festival, said filmmaker and festival founder Michael Moore. "It caught us completely by surprise,” said Moore, who had hoped the addition of balcony seats at the City Opera House and the 800-seat Lars Hockstad Auditorium as a new film venue would take care of increased demand for tickets this year. "About a month ago we had 2,000 members. The day before the tickets went on sale, membership had jumped to 3,000.” While that's good news for the nonprofit festival's coffers, it's not so good for people hoping to attend the festival from downstate, Chicago and Canada — or for the region's economy and tourism, Moore said. So the festival is adding 10 a.m. screenings of several of the films — screenings it had hoped to avoid in order not to stretch its volunteer force too thin or to compete with morning panel discussions featuring visiting filmmakers. It is also adding a third screening of the opening night film, "Once,” at 9:15 p.m. at the State Theatre. "We don't want the public on Friday to see a 'sold out' sign on so many movies,” Moore said Wednesday. "It doesn't do any good economically to the area to put on a festival that isn't welcoming to people who don't live here. And there's nothing less welcoming than not having any tickets.” At the Main Box Office at 300 Front Street, nine box office volunteers are working to accept ticket orders in person, online and by phone, said Katie Novak. "Usually screenings at the State tend to sell out first because it's the most popular venue,” said Novak. "It's like the centerpiece of the festival because of the marquee, and it's downtown. And it has that history.” Among the first films to sell out were "Mike's Surprise,” "Once, "Trainwreck: My Life As an Idiot” and "Nimrod Nation,” said Moore, who is considering added a second screening of "Mike's Surprise,” a mystery film he handpicks to play closing night of the festival. "But then it wouldn't be a surprise,” he said, adding that instead there may be two different "surprises.” Besides Moore, filmmakers, producers and actors who will be appearing as panelists at this year's festival include: Gretchen Mol ("Trainwreck: My Life As an Idiot”), Larry Charles ("Borat”), Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda”), Tod Williams ("Trainwreck: My Life As an Idiot”), Brett Morgen ("Nimrod Nation”), John Laurence ("I Am an American Soldier”), Daniel Gold and Judith Helfand ("Everything's Cool”), Eric Reid ("The Fever of '57”) and Billy Luther ("Miss Navajo”). Moore said Charles, who also is on the film festival board, will show censored footage from "Borat” and will preview 20 minutes of his new documentary exploring organized religion from comedian Bill Maher's perspective. Documentarian D.A. Pennebaker ("Don't Look Back”) and his partner Chris Hegedus ("Al Franken: God Spoke”) also will appear and will be feted in a film tribute. Studio head John Lyons of Focus Features, the art house division of Universal Studios, is coming to town as are a "bus load” of people from Watersmeet, the small town in Michigan's Upper Peninsula that is featured in the documentary "Nimrod Nation,” Moore said. Several of the people who appeared in the film, which examines the town's obsessions with hunting and its high school basketball team, will be on stage following its screening. "We have more people that want to come and we're just trying to figure out if the budget can afford bringing them,” Moore said. The festival is also offering jury awards for the first time this year. Jury panels consisting of local filmmakers, film experts and film buffs will view eligible films and present prizes for the best new fiction and non-fiction films at the closing night party Aug. 5. "It's a trophy and the recognition from a film festival that's considered by many in the industry to be the fastest growing and one of the more popular film festivals on the festival circuit,” he said. "It's one more thing that can help them with their film when it does open.” The festival also will present a $1,500 award sponsored by the Kodak company for best cinematography, Moore said. And audiences can vote for their favorite films on site using ballots available at screenings of eligible films. This year's festival will screen over 60 films in a variety of categories, including American Independent Cinema, New Foreign Cinema, Dangerous Docs and Overlooked and Outstanding Films. Other highlights include dedicated matinee screenings of children's and Native American films; Midnight Madness, a selection of new cult-favorite horror films playing at special midnight showings; and select screenings of classic films.
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