By VANESSA McCRAY
vmccray@record-eagle.com
TRAVERSE CITY —
The sixth annual Traverse City Film Festival had just started and already there were accolades.
Founder Michael Moore dispensed awards in the form of golden movie reels, golden shovels, keys to the city and Michigan filmmaker honors before the screening of the first film Tuesday night.
Moore, sporting his signature ball cap, was greeted by a standing ovation at the City Opera House. The festive feeling continued throughout downtown. Crowds gathered at the Open Space to watch the free movie "Twister" and revelers frolicked along Front Street, site of the opening night party.
Moore honored nearby community theaters in Frankfort and Elk Rapids during a presentation at the Opera House. He gave golden reel awards to both movie houses and praised the commitment to small town cinema. Moore also promised $5,000 to each theater. The funds are to be among the first distributed from a recently announced project funded with state film tax credit money from Moore's film work. The project aims to help reopen and run downtown movie houses throughout Michigan using Traverse City's State Theatre as a model.
"We are not just the 'Great Lakes State,' we're a great state," Moore said, urging the audience to support local cinemas.
The congratulations continued with a golden shovel presented to the developers, investors and architect of the new multi-use building at the corner of Front and Park streets. Moore joked the shovel was for filling the longtime "hole in the ground" near the State Theatre. Two Cuban filmmakers also were presented with keys to the city. This year's festival features a salute to Cuban filmmaking.
Moore also said the Michigan Filmmaker Award will go to the director, producer and writer John Hughes, who died last year. Hughes' films include favorites such as "The Breakfast Club."
"They meant a lot to at least two generations of people growing up," Moore said.
A line of film-goers snaked around the street corner before the Opera House screening of "Nowhere Boy," a take on John Lennon's life. Inside the ornate building, people read programs, ate popcorn and listened to live covers of songs such as "Strawberry Fields Forever."
"I'm a Beatles fan," said Amelia Kemler, of Boston, Mass., who also spends time in the region.
Gary and Barbara Reed, of Galien, also come up north regularly, but this was their first film festival visit.
"I knew last year that I wanted to go," Barbara said.
They planned to see "Nowhere Boy" and check out the free films shown nightly at the bayfront. Barbara also hopes to attend the festival's film school.
"I would like to go back home and teach my grandkids," she said.
The sky was still light and the sun bright behind golden clouds when people started staking out chair and blanket space to see "Twister" at the Open Space. The fun on Front Street kicked up a notch when the opening party began on the closed-off block in front of the State's glowing sign.
Party participants paid to sample international foods and listen to music varying from drums to an accordion player. Local eats included pickled asparagus dip on crackers from Norconk Farm and a coconut macaroon with lime liquor drizzle from Morsels in downtown Traverse City. The bakery named the bite-sized dessert the "Thai one on."
The shop has offered food in years past for festival gatherings, said Jeff Neidorfler of Morsels. He plans to find time for six movies plus see "Mary Poppins" at the Open Space on Sunday, the festival's final night.
"We love the energy that the film festival brings," he said.
