By C.S Gilbert

 

The recent Key West Film Festival 2013 was good fun for the locals and visitors who enjoyed the new films, celebrity presentations and lavish parties surrounding the four-day event. But was it good business?

 

 

If the question is making a profit, said Nadene Grossman Orr, not yet. Orr is the festival’s chief operating officer, in charge of all local operations: venues, scheduling and ticket sales plus advertising and marketing in radio and print media. It is, however, definitely a business, she said, founded by Brooke Christian, a very successful young businessman and entrepreneur based in Washington, D.C. The personable Christian was very much a welcoming presence during the festivities.

 

 

He founded the festival, Orr said, because “he is passionate about film and wanted to do something that would last longer than he would, something he could pass on to his (three daughters).” He loves Key West and has been coming here for years, she said; his dad is longtime resident Wayne Kreuer, an active member of the Tropic Cinema board.

 

 

Another aspect of Orr’s job was to develop community partnerships to maximize local support and involvement, such as the sheltered residence Heron Peacock for the Mariel Hemingway film, “Running From Crazy” and the San Carlos Institute for “CubAmerican” — “that was huge,” she reported, adding that John Waters and “I Am Devine” were a “big draw,” especially in the GLBT community.

 

 

The event “definitely” put heads in beds, Orr said. “We sold out our block of 50 rooms at the Southernmost” and other hotel partners, such as the Westin, were able to track bookings. To this end, advertizing was done in the New York and D.C. areas; promotional parties were held there and in Philadelphia and Atlanta, with pre-parties featuring film trivia held in West Palm Beach, Miami’s South Beach and here in Key West.

 

 

The festival has great potential for growth. “People were impressed the first year and definitely impressed this year. I’m personally wonderfully impressed by how the community has embraced the festival,” Orr said, adding “We threw a lot of great parties.”

 

 

Although high occupancies cannot directly be attributed to the festival, the numbers were strong–up roughly 11%, 11%, 7% and 2% over Wednesday through Saturday Nov. 13-17, 2012, according to figures forwarded by Jessica Bennett, director of research at the Monroe County Tourist Development Council. (While not as impressive a hike as the other days, the two percent increase on Saturday night is nevertheless significant, as Saturday is always a top night for visitors.)

 

 

Christian is not the festival’s lone angel. The TDC funded a $15,000 two-year start-up grant allocated by the Florida Keys Council of the Arts. Orr praised the council and Elizabeth Young, its executive director, as “a wonderful resource and asset. Without Liz, I don’t think we could have done it,” she said, also noting the vital importance of about 50 volunteers.

 

 

“We’ve already been approved for $25,000 for next year” from the TDC itself — “the big pond,” Orr called it.

 

 

The festival is expected to break even in 2014 or 2015, she said.

 

 

SIDEBAR:

 

 

In another aspect of film as local business, the Key West Film Commission and the Tropic Cinema are offering a Location Scouting Workshop on Saturday, December 14, 9 a.m. till 4:30 p.m. and Sunday, December 15, 9:30 a.m. till noon at the Tropic, 416 Eaton St. The workshop is free, but space is limited. Contact [email protected] or phone (305) 293-1800.

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