Town considers hosting its own community-wide film festival
The two-day event could happen in fall or spring
Screenings slated for park
By Gloria I. Wang
In the ongoing effort to promote a sense of community for Los Gatos residents, the town is making plans to establish a Los Gatos Film Festival, a free, outdoor event.
The festival, still in its initial planning stages, will take place over two days in the fall or spring and show at least five films, possibly made by local filmmakers. Oak Meadow Park and Los Gatos Cinema are proposed sites of the event.
Mayor Joe Pirzynski says that the concept of a film festival emerged from a meeting he had last year with Jack NyBlom and Jim Zuur, owners of Los Gatos Cinema. Though the reason for the meeting was to discuss the issue of downtown parking, the topic of the importance of film in the community came up. A very tentative proposal for creating a festival for Los Gatos came out of that conversation. "It was kind of a mutually agreed idea," Pirzynski said.
It was put on the back burner, Pirzynski said, until he contacted Zuur and NyBlom in May or June, and they met with the Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce to discuss the idea further.
NyBlom and Zuur say that their inspiration for this event comes from one aspect of Colorado's famous annual Telluride Film Festival. They attended the festival several years ago and were impressed by an evening screening in the park for locals. That showing, NyBlom said, was incredibly well-attended and gave a sense of community. He wants to see Los Gatos locals watch a movie under the stars while sitting on sleeping bags at no cost, NyBlom said.
On the other hand, Telluride is a "world-recognized event" with many exclusive events--and that is definitely not the goal of the Los Gatos Film Festival, Zuur said.
"We don't intend to become Telluride," Pirzynski said. The purpose of the festival is to "enhance the community," which is why advertising will be limited to within the town, with a focus on Los Gatos residents.
The results of that meeting were presented at the July 16 Los Gatos Town Council meeting. The "cultural event" will take place on a Friday evening and Saturday--possibly Oct. 5 and 6--and social and service organizations will be allowed to sell non-alcoholic drinks and snacks. One film will be shown each evening at Oak Meadow Park, during the opening and closing of the festival. During the day on Saturday, Los Gatos Cinema will show at least three movies at no cost, and a Sunday brunch will be held to thank those who helped organize the festival.
Council members were enthusiastic about the idea, but had some questions about the location. Councilwoman Sandy Decker asked if the underused Old Town amphitheater could be the setting for the event. Pirzynski answered that although the amphitheater should be used more for future events, Oak Meadow Park is a better site for the audience to bring along blankets and coolers.
Councilman Randy Attaway suggested using Los Gatos High School, the site of the Fourth of July celebration, or Town Plaza on W. Main Street and S. Santa Cruz Avenue. In response, Pirzynski pointed out that there would be too many parking and traffic problems arising from using the high school, and that Town Plaza, at the intersection of two major streets, is neither enclosed nor soundproofed enough.
Decker mentioned that Dan Jinks, the Los Gatan who won an Academy Award as producer of American Beauty, could perhaps be used as a resource for films and filmmakers.
Councilman Steve Blanton said that while he was supportive of the project, he wanted to make sure that the planning was done right so that the festival would be a "high-quality product."
A Film Festival Steering Committee has been formed, consisting of members of various town organizations and NyBlom and Zuur. The committee will handle all the marketing, financial and scheduling details of the festival; currently they are dealing with fundraising and sponsorships. One of the confirmed sponsors is the Los-Gatos Weekly-Times.
The committee will make a more in-depth presentation, with concrete monetary figures, at the Aug. 20 Los Gatos Town Council meeting.
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
