The sidewalks of Sarasota serve as red carpets for such Hollywood stars as Diane Lane, Stanley Tucci, Rosanna Arquette and Aisha Tyler over the next 10 days. When documentarian Rory Kennedy walks into the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall tonight, it marks the launch of the 2017 Sarasota Film Festival, now the largest film festival in the Southeast United States—and good luck getting a place inside the Sarasota Opera House tonight. 

“I’m excited about the fact we’re sold out for opening and closing nights,” says Sarasota Film Festival president Mark Famiglio. “I’m not surprised, but I’m very pleased.” The festival will show Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton, directed by Kennedy, as the Opening Night film before hosting a party that spills out into the streets. Famiglio notes that some seats held for sponsors may open up the night of Opening and Closing events at the Sarasota Opera House, but those who want to get tickets the night of are advised to come early if they want one of those spots.

Michael Dunaway, co-creative director at the festival, notes that Opening weekend will have tremendous cinematic opportunities. In particular, lovers of documentaries can attend an In Conversation event with Kennedy today and see showings of Centerpiece film This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous with director Barbara Kopple, a two-time Academy Award-winning director who significantly influenced the genre with 1976’s Harlan County, USA. “It’s special for us because both Rory Kennedy and Barbara Kopple have been some of the more stalwart friends of the festival in recent years, and this festival really thrives not only from championing up-and-coming artists but being championed by established, legendary figures,” Dunaway says. 

Through the week, the festival expects to host other famous names. Lane will be here for the Closing Night film, Paris Can Wait, next Saturday, April 8, at the Opera House. Tyler will premiere her feature directorial debut, Axis, next Friday, April 7, at the Regal Hollywood 20. Arquette comes to town with Born Guilty, which also screens April 7, while Tucci, a producer for festival selection Paint It Black, will come to town for events on Sunday, April 9. Each of the celebrities, along with Kennedy, will participate in public In Conversation events hosted by the festival. And of course, hundreds of other films will screen all week at Regal Hollywood 20, many with directors and other filmmakers in attendance.

As the Gulf Coast briefly becomes a center of activity for the independent film world, Famiglio says the evolving Sarasota market continues to help the festival grow. He believes the festival may clock in as the largest regional festival in the nation this year. “Filmmakers love it because we are always trying to think of ways to support independent film,” he says. “It’s one of those great phenomena that gets better and better every year.” 

Photo by Evan Sigmund: Rory Kennedy (right) walks the Sarasota Film Festival red carpet in 2015 with mother Ethel and daughter Bridget.

The White House this month proposed a budget calling for the elimination of three cultural agencies: the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). While the impact to the federal budget would be negligible, the cultural impact at the community level could be more pronounced. This is the third in a three-part series examining that possible impact.

Last year, Sarasota Opera set a world record and made international headlines with its completion of the Verdi Cycle, becoming the only company in the world to play every note that Giuseppe Verdi wrote and netting Sarasota Opera Maestro Victor DeRenzi a knighthood from the Italian government for his role through the decades-long project. But that doesn’t mean Sarasota Opera doesn’t benefit from organizations like the NEA.

“It really does have an impact on what we’re doing,” says Sarasota Opera Executive Director Richard Russell, who says that the company has received grants almost annually since 2008 to support everything from commissions and revivals to programs like Sarasota Youth Opera and the American Opera Series. This season, an NEA grant helped fund production of Dialogues of the Carmelites. All are matching grants, says Russell, but that initial push from the federal government builds the company’s reputation and plays a crucial role in securing additional funding. “That’s something that can’t be quantified,” he says, “but is just as important.”

But there’s more at stake than just the NEA, as Ringling Museum Executive Director Steven High reminds. “We receive funds from all of the federal agencies that support arts and culture and museums in our country,” he says, noting that it was a combination of grants from the NEA, the NEH and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)—also on the chopping block—that made this year’s Feast for the Senses exhibition possible. And a grant from the IMLS announced in September will help the museum fund the creation of storage racks to bring an additional 160 paintings from its collection on-site for research and viewing. “It’s a big loss for us, were those institutions to go away,” says High. The dollar impact won’t be “devastating,” he adds, but support for the arts means more than money.

“The support from the NEA is much more than a simple grant,” says Michael Donald Edwards, artistic director at Asolo Repertory Theatre. “The NEA represents the United States government saying to all of us who work in the arts and all of us who consume the arts that the arts matter.” And it’s that message that Edwards fears losing more than funding, which he says is not strictly necessary for the theater to operate. “It is an insistence that American art and culture is as important in informing an American idea as it is to join the military,” he says. “We are part of the American flag too.” 

Partnering with the Sarasota Film Festival, students from Newgate Montessori got to try their hands as movie critics. Working with education docents from the Sarasota Film Festival Education Department and taking a course on the theory of film review, the students took a stab at reviewing one of the films coming to this year’s festival called The Teacher. A satire set in communist Czechoslovakia, a small town is turned upside down by the appearance of a judgmental teacher both easily bribable and influential in the communist party. “We are excited to see how much the students enjoyed and connected with this film,” says Sarasota Film Festival Director of Education and Community Outreach, “and hope you will be as well.” SRQ has two to share today.

What would you do if your teacher demanded to know your parents’ professions on the first day of school? What if your grade depended on your answer? The Teacher, a foreign film directed by Jan Hrebejk from Czechoslovakia, explores the lives of students faced with those exact questions. Using a middle school class, this witty satire highlights the way things might have been if you went to school in Czechoslovakia during the late 1980s. I’d say the best way to explain the situation is that this teacher takes “extra credit” to a whole new level using intimidation, manipulation and humiliation. I walked into this film expecting a foreign satire, and I walked out with much more. I learned more about that time period in another country. I observed the dynamics within that particular school. I understood the actions and consequences behind the characters. Plus, I learned all of these things with emotion. I laughed at some parts and felt sad at others, and I felt myself connecting with many of the characters. The Teacher is an interesting satire that directly reflects the complicated aspects of that time. Review by Tianna Levine, 10th grade

As the story progresses, the audience learns that neither the students, nor the parents, nor the teachers like this new teacher. The Teacher as a whole was extremely well done, containing fantastic lighting, cinematography and an insightful take on communism. It shows the audience how school was in countries that were affected by communism, and how communism still continues to have strong aftereffects on schools in Europe. This film is a definite must-watch that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of mixed feelings. Review by Jett Laub, 9th grade

The Teacher screens at Regal Hollywood 20 April 2 at 12:30pm and April 4 at 4:15pm as part of the Sarasota Film Festival. 

Pictured: Zuzana Maur�ry in "The Teacher." Photo courtesy of SFF.

Get ready for a racous weekend with the White Horse Pub's traditional British beer cheese soup, complete with cheesy bread for your dipping pleasure. Keep it simple: pair with a frothy Guinness and get dunking. 

Beer bread ingredients: 3 cups flour; 1 Tbsp. baking powder; 20 oz. beer grog; 6 oz. shredded cheddar; heavy pinch salt and pepper; ¾ cup sugar; heavy pinch garlic powder

Mix ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Pour into oiled or buttered mini loaf pans and cover each with a teaspoon melted butter and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Bake in preheated oven at 325 degrees for about 22 minutes.

Beer cheese soup ingredients: 2 qt. heavy cream; 1 ½ lb. shredded cheese; ½ tsp. each of salt & pepper; 4 ozs diced, caramelized onions ; 3 ozs chicken base ; 8 drops Tabasco; 2 oz. Worcestershire; 1 oz. of Coleman's mustard powder

Mix and heat in sauce pan at low heat. 

Photo courtesy of White Horse Pub.

The White Horse Pub, 6240 North Lockwood Ridge Rd., Sarasota, 941-358-1353.

Had maybe a few too many bites of that beer cheese last night? Or perhaps went down the rabbit hole with a wine tasting or a wedding reception open bar? The next morning struggle is real—we've all been there—as are the hangover food options available. Instead of reaching for the greasy burger and Bloody Mary recovery system, chug a few of SaraFresh Juice's Hangover Cure. The soothing green cold-pressed cure comes chock-full of inflammation-reducing ingredients that hydrate and cleanse: pineapple, apple, kale, lemon, lime, mint and cilantro go down easy (and are delicious, too). To nip the hangover in the bud, down the activated charcoal lemonade before tossing back the good stuff—activated charcoal is notoriously soothing for anyone with stomach issues, and is especially good at preventing your hangover from ever beginning by trapping toxins and chemicals that then get carried out of the body more quickly.  

Photo courtesy of SaraFresh.

SaraFresh Juice, 941-914-5515.

The Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading has been honored as a Pacesetter by the national Campaign for Grade-Level Reading for exemplary work in eliminating barriers faced by children from low-income families on the path to becoming proficient readers. Pacesetters are part of a nationwide network of more than 300 GLR Campaign communities, representing 42 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The Campaign communities are dedicated to narrowing the achievement gap between children from low-income families and their more affluent peers. The GLR Campaign is recognizing the Suncoast Campaign for its excellence in five of six criteria for success, scale and sustainability: supporting parent success and addressing the health determinants, driving with data, building cross-sector collaboration, prioritizing children and families in public housing and utilizing technology for impact.Especially noteworthy is the Suncoast Campaign’s overarching two-generation approach, the dental sealants program, the successful rollout of Vroom and its focus on public housing.  

Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading

In mid-March, Peter Crowley took the helm as chairman of the board for Goodwill Manasota for the second time. Crowley began his tenure with the organization as an intern in 1993 and has since graduated from the University of Florida with an MBA and law degree and become the president and broker/co-owner of the RE/MAX Alliance Group. He has also become a leader for Goodwill Manasota, serving on the board of directors since 2004, including a term as chairman in 2010 and now chair again for 2017-2019. Crowley is also one of the local celebrity stars featured in the 2017 Goodwill marketing campaign, called “I Am Goodwill.” Crowley's business, RE/MAX Alliance Group, has become part of Goodwill's corporate support base. Last year, RE/MAX hosted Goodwill's traveling Giving Tree, which encouraged workers and customers/clients at area businesses to donate and making a difference in the lives of community members. In 2015, the company was honored as Goodwill Manasota's Corporate Sponsor of the Year. RE/MAX Alliance Group has previously been honored as one of the Ambassadors of the Year during Goodwill's annual awards dinner and also served as one of the event sponsors for the organization's popular annual fundraiser, the Mardi Gras Gala. Crowley, along with his business partners, Ron Travis and Dave Coupland, operate seven real estate offices throughout Sarasota and Manatee counties.
 

Goodwill Manasota

When asked about the formative museum experience they most cherished, SB2 panelists Jeff Rodgers of the South Florida Museum (you can guess which one of the two above was his) and Anne-Marie Russell of the Sarasota Museum of Art (yes, the underwear) shared their passion for the power of authentic objects to transform a space. They were joined by Steven High of the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Tom Barwin of the City of Sarasota and Nathan Schwagler of the Dali Museum, also yesterday morning’s keynote speaker. All kidding aside, participants were on the edge of their seats listening to the number of innovative experiences available in their own backyard. Schwagler spoke of the work he directs at the Dali Museum Innovation Labs where he engages with companies to transform their pathways to creativity. A poignant story about his son and his wooden tiger spoke to how easy it is to shoot down new ideas. For the whole story, check out our coverage in the June edition of SRQ magazine and in the SRQ Inside the Brand blog at srqinsidethebrand.com. 

Visit clicksrq.com to see event photos. 

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