Forum targets areaxs aspiring
filmmakers
Organizers say movies can boost economy
Gabriel Dillard -- STAFF WRITER
After trying and failing to
fund his "passion project," filmmaker Michael R. Barnard encountered
circumstances that brought him to Fresno.
What the Los Angeles transplant found here surprised him.
Since his move three months ago, Barnard has discovered Fresno's budding
filmmaking scene. He said the ease of attaining film permits and shooting
on city-owned property make Fresno a friendly place for the independent
filmmaker.
"More importantly, I discovered there are a lot of people in Fresno
who are talented and skilled at movie making," Barnard said.
Barnard even rewrote the script, entitled "A Father and Son," to include
Fresno as a setting in his movie. It tells the story of a truck driver
whose gay son runs away from home and may have been murdered on the
streets of Hollywood. Barnard describes it as a drama about a man coming
to terms with the mistakes that destroyed his family.
The quest to secure funding for the project took its toll, he said.
"I messed up my whole life trying to get this movie made," he said.
"I left Los Angeles thinking the project was dead."
The Fresno Filmmakers Forum being held at the Tower Theatre Saturday
is the kind of event people in Barnard's position might find useful,
said Suzanne Bertz-Rosa of the group Creative Fresno. From pitching
a script, shooting a film, financing a movie to booking big stars, the
forum appeals to the do-it-yourselfer at all levels, she said. It's
also a networking opportunity to meet with speakers from the film industry
and other local filmmakers.
"It takes a village to make a film," Bertz-Rosa said.
This will be the second year the forum is being held. Last year's event
at Warnors Theater brought in about 100 people. Organizers are expecting
at least double the attendance this year.
Ray Arthur, Fresno's film and entertainment commissioner, said the slate
of speakers includes Bay Area identical twins Logan and Noah Miller.
The pair cornered Oscar-nominee Ed Harris in a San Francisco alley with
the trailer for their movie "Touching Home." Harris agreed to star in
the movie, an autobiographical film about the brothers and their alcoholic
father.
"Harris called them to say he was doing the movie, and he was bringing
people with him," Arthur said.
If the movie-making community is successful in establishing Fresno as
a hub for independent films, the city would see some of the fruits of
that labor, Arthur said. Fresno has seen about $500,000 in economic
benefits from filmmaking in the last 18 months. He said that figure
could grow by $250,000-$500,000 annually in the next several years.
One of his ideas for achieving that vision includes working with a venture
capitalist to build a soundstage in Fresno. He also would help create
a filmmaking cluster that would be included in the Fresno Regional Jobs
Initiative.
The desired benefits are two-fold, Bertz-Rosa said. Bringing in outside
film crews who spend money is a low-impact form of economic development.
In addition, these film crews would have their choice of local film
production talent to round out their projects.
"If we can use our local residents to fill those positions, it keeps
our creatives employed," Bertz-Rosa said.
