Local Industry

Cinematic Spark

1 Dec , 2003  

Written by Hilary Barraford | Posted by:

Cozy up to the Firehouse Film Series, Newburyport’s monthly showcase of Boston’s hottest independent films, and experience a fusion of big city arts and small town charm.

The mercury’s falling, but the cinematic spark of Newburyport’s smokin’ new film series is starting to catch fire. Every month, this quintessential New England town hosts the region’s hottest filmmakers, importing a bit of Beantown film flair to quaint Market Square on the Merrimac River.

Fittingly, the Firehouse Center for the Arts served the community for over a century — from the mid-1800s until 1980 — as the Central Fire Station. But at its groundbreaking in 1823, the citizens of Newburyport never anticipated its tenants would be a fire brigade. Rather, they envisioned a market house and, pointedly, a lyceum — a space in which to showcase public programs and entertainment. In fact, the word derives from the Greek "lukeion," the school outside Athens where Aristotle taught (apropos for a venue home to "arts inspired experiences" just 35 miles north of Boston).

Since 1991, thanks to a collaboration of public and private sectors, the restored, award-winning building has reconnected with its community roots. This "hallmark of local culture and arts" boasts a spectrum of programs, including dance, music, theater, and even an art gallery. Last January, they added a silver screen to their collection.

The light bulb flicked on for one film aficionado who regularly shuttled down from Newburyport to take in pictures in Boston: "I thought, ‘We could do this here.’" Michelle Fino, Program Director for the Firehouse Film Series, doubles as its creator. Encouraged by Newburyport’s cultural charm, from savory cuisine to colonial abodes, and its proximity to the New England triumvirate of Boston, Portsmouth, NH, and Portland, ME, she decided the series would be "a natural fit for Newburyport."

When the Center’s Executive Director, Kathleen Miller, gave her the green light in November 2002, Fino began to raise money for a projector. In just two months, her determination had not only procured a DVD/VHS projector (the irony of a film series sans actual film reels is not lost on her), but also her inaugural program, a bundle of shorts presented by seasoned New England film buff and backer David Kleiler.

Kleiler has since passed the torch to prominent filmmakers like Lucia Small, Cathleen O’Connell, John Sullivan, and George Kachadorian. Just last month, Kleiler returned for an encore appearance, presenting a "Best of Shorts" medley from the Woods Hole, Northampton Independent, and Boston Underground Film Festivals (he’s President of NIFF and Artistic Director/Founder of BUFF). On December 4, 2003, Laurie Kahn-Leavitt will screen her documentary "Tupperware," a look at the woman who gave the "plastic bowls that burp" an ingenious marketing makeover. The Firehouse is a quick stopover for Kahn-Leavitt, fresh from a screening at the Museum of Fine Arts and poised to hit the small screen on PBS in 2004.

From Newburyport to the national spotlight: the Firehouse Film Series is not your average small-town cinematic potpourri. Of course, native filmmakers and actors do get to shine in a Local Film Night for the immediate community. But with just 10 slots per year to fill (the Firehouse cools off in the summer), Fino has to be choosy.

The selection criteria, she admits, are subjective. Fino relies primarily on her own instincts, seeking seamless, compelling films. She considers all genres, from documentaries to shorts, animated pieces to, soon, features. Filmmakers, consider that an official invitation to submit — all you have to lose is the price of postage.

And what you gain? An "enthusiastic" audience whose experience doesn’t end when the house lights come up; you’ll often spy Fino the morning after, discussing a film over a cup o’ joe with a filmgoer still abuzz. Perhaps you’d catch her with self-professed "film fanatic" Hailey Klein, a 15-year veteran of the film industry who relocated from Boston to Newburyport five years ago explicitly because it had an independent theater (the nearby Screening Room theater shows nationally distributed indie films).

When Fino fired up the Series, Klein was "thrilled": "I missed one [screening] because I was dying of the flu and I was so disappointed." She’s not alone. There’s a core group who come every month like clockwork. The 195-seat exposed beam theater has hosted crowds ranging from 40 to120. Not bad for a North Shore movie house.

And the smallest audience may owe to a vicious Nor’easter that bullied the town. Klein, too, remembers that stormy eve, and jests: "Every night there’s a film screening, there’s been crazy weather and people still come. It’s almost become a running joke."

Getting there is easy for Klein and the locals, who relish "the times on a cold, snowy night when [they] have the option of going one mile away." With fresh faces increasingly popping in from all over, however, clearly the fuse has been lit.

So what’s the draw for filmgoers from near and far? An intimate experience that only a community theater could provide. Fino heralds the "interaction" between audience and filmmaker, which Klein echoes: "You feel more connected to the film when you can meet the filmmaker."

Just imagine if you could meet his mom. George Kachadorian’s documentary "Divining Mom" — which follows his mother, a dowser or "diviner" who discovers underground water supplies (among other things) using divining rods — was such a smash last February that he was invited back by popular demand on Mother’s Day, mommy in tow, for an encore and an exclusive meet and greet. Fino even organized a dowsing contest afterward, scattering pennies like Easter eggs. "It was hysterical to see people walking around with divining rods trying to find pennies," she recalls.

The audience’s staggering level of enthusiasm floored Kachadorian. Only seven words deep into his introduction — "This is a film about my mom" — the crowd erupted into applause, elated that a man had made a movie about his mom. After the film, everyone participated in the Q&A session and even dove into the dowsing demonstration, a first in a whopping 25 screenings. Needless to say, Kachadorian "loved" his experience with the Firehouse and will definitely return.

The interactive spin Fino put on the screening illuminates her mantra for the Series: "We show good films that are fun for both the audience and the filmmaker." Kachadorian resoundingly agrees. Despite sub-zero temperatures on a weeknight, the house was packed for his February debut, a feat he attributes to Fino’s knack for igniting interest. He posits: "I believe there’s a reservoir of people that want to see something other than mainstream top-40 movies, and when Michelle brings these films to them, it’s like bursting the dam."

The Firehouse Film Series transcends a mere hodgepodge of quirky films. It focuses on the total experience, incorporating the crackling culture of downtown Newburyport — darling shops, stellar restaurants, and, best of all, free parking — with screenings that give filmmakers like Kachadorian a voice. Indeed, the audience is all ears, brimming with glowing reviews. Still, Klein confesses a lone "divining" Mother’s Day regret: "We were hoping to meet the dad, too."

For more information on the Firehouse Film Series, including Laurie Kahn-Leavitt’s screening on Thursday, December 4 at 7:30 and other upcoming events, go to www.firehouse.org. Film submissions may be sent to the Firehouse Center, Attn: Film Series, One Market Square, Newburyport, MA 01950.


For more information on the Firehouse Film Series, including Laurie Kahn-Leavitt’s screening on Thursday, December 4 at 7:30 and other upcoming events, go to www.firehouse.org. Film submissions may be sent to the Firehouse Center, Attn: Film Series, One Market Square, Newburyport, MA 01950.

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