Hey kids, I remember way back in 2003 when Local Sightings was a tiny festival in Northwest Film Forum’s tiny Little Theatre and the house was packed 50 people at a time, most of them our close personal friends. Back then, it was unthinkable that Local Sightings would grow to be the weeklong regional love fest it is today.
The phenomenal leap in festival size came with corporate sponsorship from Altoids, a luxury NWFF enjoyed for the first three years in our current home. This year, due to a change in ownership, Altoids was unable to support Local Sightings. On the NWFF staff level it became a tap-dance to maintain the incredible array of benefits to both filmmakers and the public that Altoids had supported. These benefits include large prizes, membership give-aways, free screenings and a top-notch national jury. Holy Cow! That was a lot of support.
Right away, after learning Altoids was out, we gussied ourselves up and tried to attract more big-ticket funding. The natural inclination was to look for large local sources of funding for our local festival. Here on Capitol Hill, spitting distance from some way-way high-end condo developments, it seemed to make sense to ask for support from the developers who are using our presence as “an amenity” to flog their $800,000 condos. We pulled out the dogs and the ponies and were told point-blank that the Film Forum does not cater to the demographic the developers are seeking to attract to their units. They declined their support.
Honey, you are not part of the right demographic!
We sucked it up and kept on looking and ended up with a crazy quilt of support. Our community stepped up and little bit by little bit we found the money to offer the same classy yet down-home week of great regional features and shorts, parties and spectaculars. There will still be big prizes for worthy filmmakers, awarded by well-respected individuals from the national film scene. We will give away 100 free memberships, and many of the screenings are free. In addition, we are presenting, at The Cinerama as our closing event, the regional premiere of one of the most amazing features ever to spring from Seattle or the Northwest, Guy Maddin’s Brand Upon the Brain!
Before we roll out the red carpet I would like to thank, on behalf of the entire Film Forum staff, our great local sponsors for great local films. A big smacky kiss on the cheek for Lucky Seven Foundation, New Belgium Brewery, The Stranger, 4Culture, City of Seattle Off ice of Arts and Culture as well as the Office of Film and Music, AlphaCine, Modern Digital, Washington Film Works, The Canadian Consulate, Oppenheimer Cine Rental, Vulcan, The Cinerama, and all the other people I am forgetting. You are our community and together we will instigate great things.
