than going strictly virtual like the FIN Atlantic International Film Festival, for example? CW: Because City Cinema is our HOME—both for the Film Society and the festival, and for our film community. It was important to us to offer the experience of seeing films on the big screen, within the limits the pandemic has imposed. On PEI we are comfortable with small gatherings. And when we were approved to offer 35 seats safely at City Cinema, we HAD to say yes! Plus, we benefited from the fact that PEI was one of the safest places to be in North America during fall [in terms of COVID-19 cases]. Lucky us! So we decided to enjoy such benefits, while taking all the safety precautions. PEI Living: What was your greatest challenge providing both experiences with COVID protocols? CW: This was a GREAT BIG learning curve for our tiny team, which is comprised of basically me, Mary-Helen McLeese, who is the festival and tech director, and Marshall Harrington, the City Cinema manager. And it proved costly. Providing the online streaming availability was not something accounted for in the initial budget prior to March 2020. Plus, due to the need to clean between screenings at City Cinema, we cut down the daily output from five in the past to four screenings on the Saturday and Sunday.
and without them ChFF20 could never have happened.
PEI Living: What would you say was ChFF’s hidden gem in 2020?
CW: That would be our four Industry panels, which were held over Zoom. They came together at the very last minute. Adding Zoom to the technical requirements was a further challenge, and nailing down the topics our sector could really benefit from with our expert participants to share their knowledge and experience was my ambition. I am thrilled with what we accomplished. PEI Living: Film festivals are great places to network and make contacts — how do you think this online format impacted people’s ability to connect — or did it? CW: I think the Zoom Industry Sessions provided the best opportunity for people to meet. But frankly, in the past our festival was so appreciated by filmmakers from our region as a small and friendly event where it was so easy to connect and network, and last year ChFF20 couldn’t provide those opportunities. And we missed that. Next year! PEI Living: Would you consider offering online events for future festivals, and why or why not? CW: To be honest, I am counting on ChFF20 being my very LAST incarnation as the executive director of the Charlottetown Film Festival. But I will be happy to have a coffee with whomever is driving the train next year if they want to pick my brain... what is left of it! To learn more about the Charlottetown Film Festival (ChFF) visit www.charlottetownfilmfest.com
▲ Cheryl Wagner
O nce the dust festival in the COVID era, what sets ChFF apart from other film festivals and why she’s ready to pass the ChFF torch. PEI Living: What was your first thought regarding the festival when we went into lockdown in March? settled, Wagner sat down with PEI Living, via Zoom of course, to talk about what it was like to host a film CW: At that time, the festival wasn’t even on my radar! Since the 2019 festival, the Charlottetown Film Society had successfully bought City Cinema and had new plans to hire a full-time employee to run the cinema and the festival. In August it was announced the person hired had decided to step away, and I was asked if I would step up one more time...and I said yes. PEI Living: In 2020 the festival offered a combination of virtual and in-person events. What led to the decision to offer both formats rather
PEI Living: What were some of the greatest victories?
CW: I think that we managed to have a film festival at all was a victory in itself! Especially since it wasn’t until late August that we were able to get things rolling. Mary-Helen [McLeese] and I truly had thought when we completed the festival in 2019 that it was our last. But COVID changed that. And moving to online streaming successfully is a testimony to how vital a contribution Mary-Helen as tech director and Marshall as cinema manager made. I confess, I am technically challenged
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