A CLOSER LOOK -- Film festival organizers hoping for curtain calls

Young Chang

NEWPORT BEACH -- Last year, it was hard to believe it really happened.

The year before that, it was hard to believe it almost wouldn’t. This

year, the Newport Beach Film Festival is back and organizers say they’re

here to stay.

Big names -- screenwriter David McKenna of “American History X” and

David Franzoni of “Gladiator” -- are adding glitz to the festival’s

programs. Qualifications like “Academy Award nominated” precede titles of

some of this year’s short films. Cast members of the 1973 classic “The

Sting” will grace the opening gala next week and ambassadors from China

will fly in to screen three native films.

But while the local buzz is loud, it doesn’t seem to have reached

industry leaders outside of Newport Beach quite yet.

“It’s sort of begun to be known about in the film business or in the

trade, but it doesn’t have a real high profile or any sense of its

character or what it does that might distinguish it from other

festivals,” said Todd McCarthy, chief film critic for Daily Variety, a

trade magazine covering Hollywood. “I don’t think there’s any particular

opinion, pro or con.”

Organizers acknowledge they’re not at the level of festivals like

Sundance or even the Palm Beach International Film Festival, but they

also plan to just take it year by year.

THE FIRST TRY

What is now the Newport Beach Film Festival was once the Newport Beach

International Film Festival. Jeffrey Conner spearheaded that version,

which survived for four years before Conner declared bankruptcy in the

fall of 1999.

A completely different board of directors presided back then and the

festival was less concentrated in Newport Beach. Screenings spanned all

the way to Garden Grove and Santa Ana, to name a few cities, and sponsors

were less abundant.

Todd Quartararo, director of marketing for the current festival,

worked in the media relations department of the first one and speculates

that this may have influenced its poor financial state.

“I certainly think having the focus back in Newport Beach has helped

the festival,” he said.

Six weeks after the bankruptcy scare hit, Gregg Schwenk, now executive

director of the festival, stepped in to salvage it.

“I really felt that the idea was not bankrupt,” he said. “The want

from the community was out there, to have a film festival, and a group of

us said if we could get this under new management, if we could design and

build an organization that integrated the best in the local community and

in the local film industry, that it would be successful and something

everyone could support.”

The late Rosalind Williams of the Newport Beach Conference and

Visitors Bureau, Richard Luehrs, president of the Newport Harbor Area

Chamber of Commerce, and members of the city council were important in

starting over what was temporarily dead, he added.

Luehrs named another difference between the festival past and present.

“Jeffrey Conner held things pretty close to himself and didn’t allow a

lot of participation, if you will,” he said. “Whereas Gregg Schwenk and

others seem to take suggestions for its improvement.”

Conner had financially supported the old festival largely on his own,

Luehrs added, which makes it understandable that he held the attitude he

did. But Schwenk’s sponsorship development program involves more people

and groups.

“It spreads the risk and reward a little bit further, and I think it

makes much more sense to do that,” he said.

WHAT’S AHEAD

Today, the festival has a home. Almost all of the screenings, galas

and seminars will be held at or around Fashion Island, with the Newport

Beach Marriott and Tennis Club serving as the festival’s anchor hotel.

“Business-wise, it brings the attention to the community and to the

businesses of Newport Beach,” Schwenk said. “Whether it be the

restaurants that support them or Fashion Island in general or the

Marriott or Edwards Theaters, all of these institutions benefit from the

film festival.”

Luehrs says this may be the key to ensuring future success.

“I think having a series of people involved in this, like thousands of

tickets being sold, helps bring in awareness of the entertainment aspect

in Newport Center, for example, where the films are being shown,” he

said. “But I think the real benefit here is that the marketing is done

with the name Newport Beach to a wider audience.”

Doug Stuckey, spokesman for the chamber, said he hopes this year’s

festival will show a marked increase in revenue with fully booked hotels

and crowded restaurants.

Schwenk made clear that the festival’s future success depends on

support from the community.

“I look at the festival as an awesome opportunity for the city and its

many businesses, and we’re just now beginning to see the potential of a

festival like this for the city and county,” he said.

Amy Osajima, general manager for the festival, said she is confident

the new festival will succeed.

“I really see this growing and making a substantial contribution to

the local economy,” she said. “There are a lot of things changing very

quickly and I think people will see a gradual improvement in all aspects

of the festival.”