Volunteers: The face, the glue of film fest

Visit this year’s Newport Beach Film Festival and you’re sure to find them everywhere ? handing out ballots, selling tickets, even pouring drinks.

They’re volunteers, and they’re everywhere. Free help is a key component to the annual event. It draws 500 to 700 volunteers who want a piece of reel magic.

“It’s a chance to see the films, make great friends, meet celebrities and VIPs and be part of a very exciting and dynamic organization,” festival chief executive and volunteer Gregg Schwenk said.

Each volunteer has his reasons for helping out.

Patricia Pillsbury has been helping the film festival for two years and said she donates her time because she likes being immersed in festival culture.

“I really enjoy the atmosphere, and I like to tell my friends about the festival,” said Pillsbury, a native of Ecuador who’s enjoyed several of this year’s Spanish-language films.

It’s also a good chance for her to get out in the community, she said Tuesday while helping sell T-shirts and apparel at Edwards Island theater.

“It’s something I can do in my spare time to help people,” she said.

In fact, volunteers are the festival’s primary face to the public. Volunteers sell tickets, work will call, assist at after-parties and receptions and usher in the theaters.

“They are the true core and face of the festival,” Schwenk said. “They are the people the majority of the audience interacts with.”

Volunteers are usually recruited at movie theaters and with the help of the city of Newport Beach, although many are repeat volunteers who have been with the festival since it opened in 2000.

“You start seeing the same people every year,” said volunteer Marcia Nelson, a retired librarian.

Volunteers can also participate behind the scenes. All 350 entries in this year’s festival were screened three to five times by volunteers who are crucial to selecting which movies will eventually make it to the big screen.

Nelson said she was impressed by the group’s resilience and dedication to the festival.

“They can’t possibly pay this many people to work this hard,” she said.

Plus, there are the perks. Volunteers get free passes to the movies and are invited to attend post-reception parties and workshops.

“You get a lot of benefits from being a volunteer, but you also get to give a lot back,” volunteer Jake Andrews said. “That’s why a lot of people here do it.”dpt.28-film-volunteers-BPhotoInfoUP1QDNNI20060428iyel2qncDON LEACH / DAILY PILOT(LA)Jessica Peterson, left, hangs promotional posters for her brother’s film, “Intellectual Property,” with her mother, Susan, at Edwards Island theater.