Wednesday, September 6----With little over one week to go before the launch of the Martha's Vineyard International Film Festival, FEST21.COM's Festivals Editor Sandy Mandelberger sat down with Richard Paradise, the Festival's Co-Director (along with Nevette Previd), to discuss his goals and hopes for this year's inaugural event.

Sandy Mandelberger: There are so many film festivals already on the calendar, and September is a particularly business month...what was your inspiration to launch an event on Martha's Vineyard this year?

Richard Paradise: I see the Festival as a logical evolution of the Martha's Vineyard Film Society, which has been showing over 40 films a year on the island for almost five years. But as with any program that happens that often, I felt we needed a flagship event that would stimulate excitement and awareness. We have decided to put the focus on a strictly international program, which also makes us rather unique.

SM: What are your goals for this year's Festival?

RP: I want to use this year's Festival as a launching pad, to try out some new ideas and see what works and doesn't work for future years. I do believe that the best way to test somethng is to do it. I want to extend the on-going mission of the Film Society, to use film as a language to understand what is going in the world around us. Film is a powerful portal to the outside world. The Festival also allows us to show more specialized films in an environment of excitement and discovery. My personal goal is that we will have a good audience response, and that audiences will come out and have fun.

Film Society Screening

SM: What kinds of things do you hope to introduce in future years?

RP: Well, we would like to do more screenings during the year, to service the community even after the "high season". Also, we hope to be able to be based in one venue that can have a consistent program throughout the year. Right now, we move around to various places on the island, which is fun, but does not necessarily give a consistent feel to what we are doing. Ideally, we would like to have our own theater, a place where people can come on a regular basis to discover new films and filmmakers, and have a discussion about the issues and themes of the films. This would allow us to have on-going program and cultural events during the entire year.

SM: The Film Society has been quite active in the past few years. How will the Festival affect the Film Society?

RP: I believe that by creating this flagship event that can involve many people and businesses both on and off the island, that we are creating a great sense of momentum that will be carried forward into the rest of the year. The Festival undeniably will bring more visibility to the Film Society, and that in turn, we hope, will grow our audiences as we present challenging films and film series during the rest of the year.

Vintage Poster

SM: What are the unique advantages and challenges of holding a Festival at a summer resort such as Martha's Vineyard?

RP: Well, the biggest advantage is that it is a well known destination with high name recognition. When I was assembling the program and talking to distributors or filmmakers, I always got a very positive response. Everyone wants to be involved with something that happens at such a popular and chic place as Martha's Vineyard.

The main challenge is the same as with any other business or cultural activity that takes place here....we are an island. We certainly can draw on the diverse population that lives here permanently or have vacation homes here, but getting people from the mainland involved presents a challenge. People who want to come here have to make the decision to get on the ferry and get here. The fact that we are not in a major metropolitan area also presents a challenge in getting more media coverage. Lastly, with our limited budget for this year, we would have loved to invite more of the international filmmakers whose films we will be showing. I am hopeful that by next year we will be able to invite more people from outside the US, since that obviously is a major attraction for the attending audiences.

Martha's Vineyard Seascape

SM: What are you most looking forward to for this year's debut edition?

RP: On a personal level, this is the culmination of a dream that I've had for several years. Starting the Film Society and bringing these beautiful and challenging films to a wider public has been a great passion of mine. To have that passion be concentrated over the Festival, where we will have multiple screenings, parties and special events, is tremendously fulfilling for me. I see this as a way of expanding the audiences for our future screenings and events and in making this Festival stand out in its own unique way as a place where independent and international cinema is embraced. If it all goes smoothly and I hear someone say to me after it's over..."Great job"....all this hard work will have been worth it.

The Martha's Vineyard International Film Festival opens on Thursday, September 14th with the regional premiere of Michel Gondry's THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP, starring Gael Garcia Bernal. For more information on the Festival, and travel packages to attend, log on to the Festival website: www.mvfilmfest.com.