Ann Arbor Film Festival’s Endangered Efforts

By Jennifer M. Wood
URL: http://www.moviemaker.com/festivals/article/ann_arbor_film_festival_endangered_campaign_20080118/
From where the audience sits, a film festival seems like an act of kindness—an event thrown together by a local group of diehard cineastes. But as anyone whose ever worked behind the scenes on a film festival knows, there's a reason why so many positions are filled on a "volunteer" business. Bottom line: Mounting a film festival costs money. Lots of it. From renting theaters to printing programs, every penny counts. And even some of today's oldest and most esteemed events find it challenging to exist from year to year. Case in point: The Ann Arbor Film Festival.