Stepping Out

Bringing the spirit of Cannes to the South Shore

The Long Beach International Film Festival makes a splash

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Roll out the red carpet once again. The Long Beach International Film Festival returns, bigger and better than ever, Thursday through Sunday, Sept. 24-27. Now in its fourth year, the festival has grown tremendously, and has branched off into Rockville Centre, as it continues to attract thousands to screeen critically acclaimed films.
This year’s edition will feature more than 80 films that include independent and feature-length studio films, as well as documentaries, shorts and animated entries that will compete for a series of jury, festival honors and audience awards. Also during its four-day run, the festival will feature an array of special events, including red carpet premieres, gala celebrations, filmmaker Q&As, and industry seminars, along with musical performances from artist Connell Cruise and American Idol finalist Robbie Rosen, among others.
It almost came to halt just as it was getting started. The young festival got off to an inauspicious beginning in 2012, debuting just two months before Hurricane Sandy. Its future was in doubt: the city’s only movie theater was destroyed; residents and businesses were still reeling from the devastation; and the thought of hosting an event featuring galas and celebrities on a red carpet — in a community that was still in shambles — seemed inappropriate, to say the least.
And without a venue to screen films — the festival was to expand in 2013 to include screenings at the Long Beach Cinemas — attracting filmmakers and sponsors made things even more challenging for co-founders Ingrid Dodd and Craig Weintraub, and the fledgling festival was nearly scrapped.
But Dodd and Weintraub persevered and many rallied around the event, as both a sign of the city’s resiliency and strength in the aftermath of the storm. Nassau County awarded the festival a $20,000 economic development grant; the Allegria Hotel, which had also been damaged in the storm, again sponsored the event and served as host; and films were screened at the Long Beach Public Library.

The City of Long Beach, which hosted the event, offered logistical support, the use of its bandstand and other assistance. Approximately 3,000 people turned out to the festival in August 2013, which showcased more than 50 films, and attracted a handful of celebrities like Long Beach resident Joan Jett and Baldwin native and Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider, among others.
Actor Burt Young, a Port Washington resident best known for his role as Paulie in the “Rocky” films, along with UFC champion Chris Weidman also got involved.
“We decided that the show must go on, and that was our theme,” Dodd says. “Burt Young had that great clip from ‘Rocky,’ ‘It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward.’ That’s how winning is done!’”
And while the future of the festival was still precarious — the local theater remained shuttered — that all changed last year when Angelo Fraboni, artistic director of the Madison Theatre, stepped up and offered to screen films and provide other services.
“We have great films and a great partnership with LBIFF,” says Fraboni. “Last year was a big success and we expect this year to be even more successful. Our partnership continues to flourish with exciting film selections and expanded film showings. We want to keep moving forward and make it [the festival] a destination for fans and filmmakers. We are trying to find a niche so that we can become the premiere festival in the New York area and even throughout the country.”
Weintraub, a writer, director and producer, also comments on festival’s future: “Just watching what’s grown and what it currently is, it’s great to see it’s moving in the right direction. And by seeing how well it’s accepted, it’s inspiring to continue to build it bigger and better each year.”
“We consider this to really be our first full year screening a full slate of films,” adds Dodd, who is also the director of development for the county’s film industry. “The film festival brings the film industry from all over the world to our area and highlights this beautiful place we live in.”
This year also marked the reopening of Long Beach Cinemas after major renovations, and Dodd and Weintraub said they couldn’t be more thrilled to hold screenings in Long Beach.
“There’s no place like home,” Weintraub adds.
The festival took root after Weintraub approached Dodd in 2011 when she was working as a manager at the Allegria Hotel about premiering his latest film on the hotel’s rooftop. Both share a love of film and the arts and the idea took hold. “We hit it off immediately,” she says. “We were on a rooftop overlooking the boardwalk, and he said, ‘We need a film festival here — what they do in France reminds me of this coast.’”

Movies and so much more
In true film festival style, the event includes opening and closing nights, along with an awards gala at the Madison Theatre hosted by T he Sopranos’ Steve Schirripa. But, of course, it’s the films that are the main attraction — and there’s plenty to excite film buffs.
One such film is the festival’s opening night selection — at the Madison Theatre on Molloy College’s campus in Rockville Centre — “The Bronx Bull,” starring William Forsythe, Paul Sorvino, Joe Mantegna, and Tom Sizemore, about the tumultuous life of boxer Jake LaMotta. A star-studded guest list is expected for that screening, on Thursday, at 7:30 p.m. Special guests in attendance include stars of the boxing community — Chris Algieri, Seanie Monahan and Burt Young, along with William Forsythe.
“This is a really exciting film and we are especially excited that William Forsythe will be here at the screening,” says Fraboni.
Also among his picks the Saturday night showing of “Steve Jobs: The Man In The Machine,” the much talked-about new documentary from Oscar winner Alex Gibney, which was just released this month. It’s also being shown at the Madison Theatre, at 7:30 p.m.
Fraboni is also fond of “Chasing Yesterday,” which he describes as a “fun little film.” Schirripa is featured in this film about a washed up twentysomething — once the hometown hero and track star —who is convinced by a local sweetheart to run a marathon and get his life back on track.
Other acclaimed titles include “Till We Meet Again,” a dramatic adventure by director Bank Tangjaitrong starring John Matton and Linnea Larsdotter, which follows a couple from Thailand to their past in New York; South by Southwest Audience Winner “Landfill Harmonic,” from directors Graham Townsley and Brad Allgood, that shares the amazing journey of a garbage picker, a music teacher and a group of children who create the most unlikely orchestra out of trash. The documentary (featured on 60 Minutes) screens along with environmental films “Just Eat It” and “The Burden.”
Local filmmaker Debra Markowitz (who runs the Long Island International Film Expo when she is not busy making films and pursuing her other film industry functions) is also represented with her recent project “The Last Taxi Driver.” The dark horror comedy — written, directed and produced by Merrick’s Markowitz — about a disgruntled taxi driver who refuses to give up his taxi route even though most of the inhabitants left in post-apocalyptic America are zombies, stars Robert Clohessy, who is expected to appear.
“Our objective was to bring on more studio films, along with independent films from around the world, but at a higher level than we have been able to accomplish in the past,” Weintraub says. “Films change the way you see the world, and that’s really our theme this year. The LBIFF will have something for everyone. Some of the films have personally changed my life, so I know that they have the power to do the same for others. I’m looking forward to what our audiences will think of our program this year.”
A major addition this year is the Joan Jett Music Film Series, which was created as a tribute to the artist in recognition of her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April, as well as her continued support for the LBIFF. The series includes the screening of “Landfill Harmonic,” along with a showing of acclaimed hip-hop artist Talib Kweli’s new concert film, followed by a Q&A.
“Joan actually attends the festival and tells people how important the arts are, and how as a community we really need to encourage them,” Dodd says. “It’s so important, and it really touches everyone.”
Dodd also notes that filmmakers who attend the festival have the unique opportunity to see what Long Beach has to offer for filming purposes. She points out that the city has even doubled as Dubai in an episode of “The Blacklist.”
“There’s certain people who will come to the LBIFF and say, ‘Wow, I never even knew that Long Beach existed,’ and then they’ll bring a motion picture or a television series to Nassau County, which brings economic development,” she says. “The LBIFF is not a snooty thing. It’s something that anyone can go to, have the time of their life, have some cocktails, meet new friends, and experience a film that they wouldn’t normally see.”
For more information about how to obtain passes to the festival, and for a full schedule, visit www.longbeachfilm.com.