Behind the scenes/the warehouse crew

July 26, 2009

Behind the Scenes
The Warehouse Crew

By Rick Coates 7/27/09

Each year notable producers, directors, actors and other dignitaries take the spotlight at the Traverse City Film Festival (TCFF). While this cast of characters is an important element to the success of the TCFF, so are the countless volunteers who deserve a “supporting actor” award for making the event one of the top film festivals in the country.
“We have over 1,200 volunteers who make the TCFF work. They deserve the credit. Some take vacation time and many work long hours to make this Festival run smoothly,” said Deb Lake, TCFF manager. “Certainly one group that is the unsung heroes of the Festival is the warehouse crew. They go unnoticed by Festival attendees but their work is invaluable to the Festival’s success.”
The Warehouse Crew is run by manager Alan Collard. Collard is self-employed and works 14-hour days, seven days a week, starting a couple of weeks before the start of the TCFF to get everything ready.
“We receive every item that is part of the festival, whether it is the food and drink for all of the concessions, the merchandise, the films, production equipment. You name it and it comes to us first,” said Collard, who is now in his fourth year as a Festival volunteer. “Before and during the Festival we deliver everything. Then after the festival ends we collect it all up, inventory everything, ship back items and put the rest into storage for next year.”

THREE SHIFTS
The week before and the week of the TCFF the warehouse crew operates on three shifts to get everything done. They are in a building just a few blocks away from downtown Traverse City and they fill a regulation size basketball court and two other large rooms.
“It is amazing after five years that the TCFF needs this much space to warehouse everything,” said Collard. “I am not sure what we would do if the City were ever to sell this building. They lease it to us at a reasonable price and it is centrally located.”
Collard and his crew share space with the film revisionists (the company that comes in and works with editing the film prints).
“It is pretty cool watching the film revisionist’s work. They have unbelievable concentration skills and it is quite the art form,” said Collard. “They are not volunteers; these revisionists travel the country to various film festivals so it is interesting getting their perspective on how we compare to others. They are impressed at how quickly we have grown as a festival.”
For Collard and the others it is a labor of love.
“I see what the TCFF and the State Theatre has meant to our community,” said Collard. “It has become a year-round economic stimulus for us. It is wonderful how busy downtown has become not just during the Film Festival but throughout the year. So I and the others that volunteer are happy to be a part of it all.”

VOLUNTEER NIGHT
Despite their countless volunteer hours Collard and his crew do find a little time to catch some of the films.
“We buy tickets just like everyone else,” said Collard. “I will probably get to three or four. Michael and the board also host a volunteer movie night as well.”
So do Collard and his team see any of the celebrities?
“No, the warehouse is not a destination for them,” said Collard. “Michael Moore has yet to visit us, but I wouldn’t expect him to. His role is spokesperson and host, not being down here. He is very gracious with his time and great to all of us who volunteer when he sees us around town.”
Collard, who also works at the State Theatre during the year, just gravitated towards the warehouse manager position.
“The first year of the Festival I did odd jobs and then Deb Lake asked the next year if I would help out in the warehouse,” said Collard. “A couple of years ago the warehouse manager wasn’t able to come back, so I took it on. I like it. I have a great team, some are film school interns.”
For Collard, it has been a “learn as you go” experience.
“I had no previous warehouse management experience in the past,” said Collard. “It is challenging because when this space is filled up with hundreds of different items people will start calling us or coming down and they expect us to know exactly where every little item is at.”
As for the temptation of all the food and goodies that pass through:
“I tell the interns we have a candy breathalyzer they have to take at the end of the day,” said Collard. “It is amazing with all of this food and merchandise we have never had anything come up missing. We have great volunteers who know that this is a non-profit venture. Sure it is tempting, you look over at that Grocers Daughters Chocolate and you think, wow, that looks good but a lot of this stuff we pay for and turn around and sell.”

Be sure to thank the volunteers as you enjoy the 5th Annual Traverse City Film Festival. The Festival runs from July 28 – August 2. For a complete listing of films, panel discussions and parties check out traversecityfilmfest.org or stop by the State Theatre Box office on Front Street in Downtown Traverse City.