In Praise of the Film Festival – In St. Augustine, or Wherever It Is
If I had my druthers, there’d be a film festival every month in towns across the country. If only because movie houses today typically show the mega blockbusters featuring superheroes, grizzly beheadings, or animated adventures, so it’s not very often that the neighborhood theatre shows inspiring, though low budget flicks, in this case, about a 59 year old who returns to his high school to complete his senior year – and make the school’s football team. Or about a much-beloved actor who broke racial barriers in the 50s and 60s before becoming a much-respected director. Or, for that matter, see a film that chronicles the lives of the infamous studio musicians behind the talents of Carole King, James Taylor, Stevie Nicks, Linda Ronstadt – the cream of the crop of the 70’s folk-rock era. We’re talking: Danny “Kooch” Kortchmar, Russ Kunkel, Waddy Wachtel, Steve Postell, and Leland Sklar. (If you don’t know the names, look them up. Chances are, you’ll say, “Oh, those guys!”)
The Saint Augustine Film Festival which took place this month included these movies and about 30 others – stories deserving to be told. While this festival is in its 14th year, and a popular one in northeast Florida, the thrust of this story is more about what a film festival offers. While three separate venues were showing movies throughout the weekend, the ones at Flagler College’s Lewis Auditorium showed the ones deemed the “spotlight” films.
Mary Louise Masterson (l) alongside Eileen Flynt; standing is Festival President and CEO, Gregory von Hausch
Take The Senior, the shake-your-head, true story of Texan, Mike Flynt. He gets kicked off his college’s football team AND asked to leave during his senior year because of an anger issue. When invited back to a college reunion years later, he reluctantly attends. During one of the get-togethers with former teammates, he voices his regret at not completing that last year. TV veteran actor, Michael Chiklis portrays Flynt who gets the go-ahead by the college coach to participate in the rigorous tryout. The story focuses on the reasons behind Flynt’s lifelong tendency to get into brawls, and his perseverance to “tackle a dream” before it’s too late, despite strong pushback from his wife, portrayed with an understated strength by Mary Stuart Masterson.
After the film’s conclusion, the stage at the Lewis Auditorium lit up for a Q & A with Flynt and his wife, along with the director, Rod Lurie, and Masterson. Not only did the audience get to see this wild and amazing true story, but the questions and answer portion provided a precious conversation between those behind the scenes, the ones who lived the story, and the movie-goer. Before the movie was shown, the audience was treated to a montage of Masterson’s work before being receiving the festival’s Career Achievement Award. Something you won’t see at the local multi-plex in town.
Leland Sklar and Pamela Poitier
Next up was Sidney, a collaboration between Sidney Poitier’s daughters and Oprah Winfrey, which chronicled the life story and legacy of one of the classiest actors to hit the screen, in his own words, and with rarely seen family photos and videos. Born and raised in the Caribbean, his strong-willed parents gave him the inner strength and poise that carried him through his life. After coming to America and working as a dishwasher, he listened to New York radio to lose his accent and learn proper diction. We see Poitier starting off in off-Broadway plays, becoming the first Black actor to win the Academy Award, taking part in the civil rights movements, and directing notable comedies with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor. When this film concluded, Pamela Poitier was introduced and took questions from the audience and discussed life with her famous father.
The Immediate Family, according to Carole King, “is a window into the lives of my musical brothers, whose gold standard is to make sure that every song they play on comes out even better than the songwriter imagined.” They played on most every important record of the 1970’s including King’s classic Tapestry, James Taylor’s Sweet Baby James, Jackson Browne’s Running on Empty, and the list goes on and on. It was a delight to see bass player Leland Sklar, and his almost two-foot iconic white beard take the stage. He participated in a lively conversation with the audience, made up primarily of those who probably had those albums in their collection, and still play them now.
Amy Glazer and Wendie Malick
Other highlights of the event included the appearance of TV star, Wendie Malick who accepted a Lifetime Achievement Award for her “illustrious film and television career,” and audiences were shown a montage of her most popular movie and TV roles. She was there to promote 7000 Miles, lusciously filmed in Hawaii about a long-hidden secret kept by Malick’s character. At the movie’s conclusion, the Q & A included Malick and the film’s director/producer, Amy Glazer, who is known for her “female-centered, character-driven” stories.
Why are film festivals important? The Motion Picture Association says this: “Film festivals highlight the worldwide passion of cinema and showcase the value of film, both creatively and economically. More than anything, film festivals deliver a new, unique way to experience the movies, always driven by the power of a good story. They create a platform for new talent, attract new audiences, and promote tourism and the local economy.”
Moral: support your local film festival!
The Saint Augustine Film Festival, which included 32 films in this 2024 edition, is an outreach program of the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. The event is supported in part by the St. Johns County Tourist Development Council, the St. Johns Cultural Council and the Florida Division of Arts and Culture.
Photos by MJ Hanley-Goff
Top photo: Pamela Poitier takes questions
