Audiences at the 32nd annual Vancouver International Film Festival — much to the surprise and delight of Festival staff — have arrived in large and salutary numbers in the early days of VIFF 2013, with most VIFF screenings either selling out or coming close to doing so. Going into VIFF32, the Festival administration and Board was concerned — after VIFF reported a loss last year — that given the Fest’s move to Crosstown, crowds and ticket sales would be down. Not so, as it happens, making everyone happy.
In conversation on Saturday, with a beaming Festival Director, Alan Franey, he had this to say about audience participation at VIFF 2013 …
In 2012, VIFF experienced day after day of sunny, late summer weather conditions, which occurred throughout almost the entire duration of the Festival, keeping many patrons out in the sun and not in a darkened VIFF cinema. Not so this year, which has brought seasonal autumn rains to our city. Despite the encouragement of weather forecasters who’ve been advising Vancouverites to stay at home and out of the elements, instead loyal VIFF patrons are turning out in the early days of the Festival in record numbers at all seven venues, contributing to a circumstance where VIFF finds itself above initial revenue projection.
Which is not to say that VIFF is out of the woods financially, or that you should stop advising your friends and family to make sure they purchase a raft of tickets for VIFF in 2013. It’s just that early on, the financial picture looks promising, as do the many films that will screen at VIFF this year.
While we had Alan’s attention, we queried him about logistical aspects of the operation of the Festival at the Cineplex International Village …
We regrettably lost the services of John Peterson, our Cineplex International Village VIFF manager and 45-year Cineplex exhibitions manager, on Friday, due to a back injury. Of course, experienced VIFF exhibitions manager Iulia Manolescu remains on hand as a senior VIFF manager at International Village, but it was clear that Iulia would require support in the early days of the Festival, as systems are fine-tuned to best serve the interests of our patrons. Support for Iulia became even more of an issue over the weekend when when one of our other VIFF management staff at the Cineplex site called in sick on Saturday.
The resolution to the challenging early days logistical operation of VIFF’s Cineplex venue? Alan himself stepped into the breach, and working closely with Ms. Manolescu, has set about to create a logistical circumstance that will best serve the many thousands of VIFF patrons who will visit the Cineplex International Village (Tinseltown) venue over the coming week.
Needless to say, VanRamblings was thrilled (read: over-the-moon) to see Iulia Manolescu and Alan Franey working together on Saturday at VIFF’S Cineplex venue, two of the keenest minds within the Festival administration, both individuals possessed of a logistics acumen that knows no peer.
VanRamblings wrote about Iulia Manolescu during the course of VIFF 2010. Quite simply, then, now and over the years, we have found there to be no temporary VIFF management staff person with a firmer understanding of what is required to keep the interests of VIFF patrons at the forefront in all venue decision-making, or a better communicator, than Iulia Manolescu.
Iulia is a veritable Wayne Gretky of theatre exhibition management, with a global view of all that is going on, and able to respond and act to resolve whatever “crises” arises quickly and efficiently, keeping the lines of communication open with VIFF patrons throughout. Only Alan Franey is her match in skill set, a Festival administrator — to extend the metaphor — with the combined skill of Mario Lemieux, Pavel Bure, Gordie Howe, Maurice “The Rocket” Richard, Jean Beliveau and Bobby Orr at their peak.
(In respect of the “beaming” comment at the outset of this posting, VanRamblings suspects that the source of the “beam” arose from the task that Alan had taken on as “temporary VIFF senior manager” at Cineplex International Village. Rarely have we seen Alan so animated, with a bounce in his step, and a grin ear-to-ear. There really is something to be said for challenging, hands-on work. Alan is always friendly, welcoming and forthcoming, and over the years has established a supportive management style within VIFF that deserves recognition — which is to say, in the annals of arts management, Alan has brought an equanimity and humanity to the daily tasks at hand with VIFF admin that has served to create one of the healthiest work environments at any arts organization within the city, and perhaps the province.)
Note should be made that Alan is the final arbiter of all decision-making at VIFF - the buck stops at his door. Alan has proved over the years to be the best listener of any person of VanRamblings’ acquaintance, an individual who readily accepts (informed) commentary and criticism on Festival theatre exhibition operations, and a person able to respond and put into action change that is required, in a more thorough and thoughtful manner than any senior administrator we’ve worked with or witnessed.
In the days leading up to the start of the Festival, Alan had advised calm, as Festival staff grappled with establishing effective systems operations at the “new” venues and set about in the early days of VIFF 2013 to “work out the kinks.” VanRamblings’ initial concerns about Festival “logistics” have been largely alleviated, as we witness the most efficient early operation of our Vancouver International Film Festival that we’ve been privy to in years.
One final note from Alan, on an important aspect of the operation of the VIFF Cineplex site (a cheering development for VIFF patron Len Diner) …
International Village administration recognizes that from Friday, September 27th through Sunday, October 6th, hundreds of VIFF patrons will require parking throughout the day and evening at International Village. The Vancouver Film Festival and International Village have arrived at an agreement where VIFF patrons may park on site, during the day and evening, at no charge for the duration of the Festival, that cars will neither be ticketed nor towed. Should there be a break down in communication, and a VIFF patron be ticketed, all that need be done is for the patron to approach the VIFF box office in the corridor within the Cineplex site, and staff will work to ensure that the ticket is cancelled.
All is well, or on its way to being well, at VIFF operations this year.
Our personal viewing schedule changes from day to day. On Saturday, we sacrificed evening screenings of Termitaria (The Youngest) and Good Vibrations, about which the VIFF’s “generally given to understatement” Ellie O’Day had raved — which we’ve now rescheduled for October 6th at 4:15pm at The Rio — instead taking in the buzz film of the Festival, acclaimed Czech director Jan Hřebejk’s award-winner, Honeymoon.
Here’s the latest edition of VanRamblings’ VIFF programming schedule (pdf).
And based on early film festival patron buzz, VanRamblings has added the following films to our personal viewing schedule: Dormant Beauty, Paradise: Hope, The Gardener, and Under The Rainbow, adding 3X3D today, to fill an open spot on our schedule today, and on the advice of a friend.
Apart from the films listed above, what are the other buzz films to have emerged the first three days of VIFF 2013 audience viewing? VIFF patron response has proved overwhelmingly positive for: The Patience Stone, Matterhorn, Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia, A Story of Children and Film, Miss Violence, and Blue Is the Warmest Colour.
Tomorrow, come on back to VanRamblings, when we’ll expand on our reporting on the films listed above, and write about even more tremendously engaging films that demand your attention, and are emerging in these early Festival days as the must-see films at VIFF 2013.
VanRamblings’ pre-and-early coverage of the Festival was expansive. If you haven’t glanced through this past week’s posts, here are some links …
- For those of you who did not catch our Monday introductory VIFF 2013 post, just click here.
- Parts 1, 2 and 3 of our ‘best bets” posts are here, here and here.
- The titles, and more, of the 15 films shared by the New York and Vancouver Film Festivals may be found here.
- The VIFF’s calendar schedule is located here (you’ll need to put in the correct date).
- The search engine for VIFF 2013 films may be found here.
Enjoy your Festival, keep rested, and c’mon back to VanRamblings for more of our 32nd annual Vancouver International Film Festival buzz each day.
