16 Years from the Heart
By Elliot V. Kotek
(Oct/Nov 2006) From Indianapolis, Indiana, a festival with 20,000 attendees, 600 volunteers and a big heart keeps pumping year 'round. Having become known for the Heartland Truly Moving PicturesTM moniker it bestows on films deemed worthy for the whole family, Heartland Film Festival has extended its reach well beyond the State's ten-day festival first held in 1992. In 2006, it distributed $200,000 in prize money amongst its 2006 Crystal Heart Award winners. Results speak volumes for the quiet festival whose Crystal Heart Award winners have been honored with everything from an Academy Award (Visas and Virtue, 1997) to a theatrical debut in the Top 10 at the North American box office (2005 festival winner End of the Spear). The organization can also be proud of an adventurous venture known as F.I.L.M.: Finding Inspiration in Literature and Movies (http://www.youthfilmproject.org). F.I.L.M. was established and supported by an alliance with the National Collaboration for Youth (NCY), a collective that represents more than fifty not-for-profit youth organizations, including the YMCA; Girls Incorporated; the Salvation Army; the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network; the National 4H Council; the National Alliance for Hispanic Health; and the I Have a Dream Foundation. The venture's curriculum directors develop and provide downloads of fun, community-oriented materials for after-school program directors at the local level. In one instance, when the alliance got behind Because of Winn Dixie, Girls Incorporated connected with senior citizens organizations across the country and sent Girls Inc. members to read to the seniors. "One reason they did it," explains Heartland festival director and co-founder Jeff Sparks, "was that in the book and in the movie, the little girl is reading Gone With the Wind to a blind lady in the community (Cicely Tyson). So they are doing something that's done in the movie, and they take it out to their community. In another instance, we ran various environmental programs across college campuses with the film Hoot." "We've got American Red Cross talking to us about projects. We've got the Wildlife Federation, and we're looking at other national organizations that have similar values," continues Sparks, "because our national collaborations exist in literally every community in the country. We're reaching out beyond, way beyond, where most of the normal grassroots efforts do. We are the heartland of America... and the "heartland" is everywhere. There are heartland folks in L.A. and in N.Y. It's not necessarily geographical. It's more of a people who are concerned with our culture that we're looking for; people who are looking for films that inspire and enlighten. I think the industry has ignored the heartland for a few years. We're just looking for ways to reach out and to bring national organizations behind truly moving pictures, whether those be independent films or a larger film." In addressing the current political climate oft-labeled as polemic or polarized, Sparks declares, "If there's going to be a change in the culture, I really believe it's going to come from the heartland... I get this fear of Red State/Blue State, and I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about coming to our senses and realizing that culture and art, and film especially, is a powerful tool. How are we going to use it for good?" Recalling the films that impacted his moral fiber, Sparks cites To Kill A Mockingbird, Tender Mercies, OscarTM-nominee Les Choristes and 1992 Crystal Heart Award-winner The Quarrel, and adds, "Most kids at 16 now have never heard of Glory, and that's a shame. I'd love to find a way to get those great movies back into their conscience as well as promote the good stuff coming out." As for the $200,000 in prize money, Sparks explains, "The first $100,000, for many years, has been underwritten by Bren and Melvin Simon [of the Simon Company, which owns shopping malls in 37 states]. Melvin did Porky's." Sparks, laughing, says, "Talk of truly moving pictures! They had a son, Max, who passed away, so they contribute that money in honor of him. And the Lilly Family came in this year and said, ‘We want to double that,' which is great. And we've started to bring in others... Tony and Laura George, who own the [Indy] 500 are going to underwrite the prize for the shorts program." "I feel we've grown up big time. I feel honored to be part of an organization that's grown so considerably in terms of size, number of films, reputation and budget. When you see the Truly Moving PicturesTM logo on the video box, and you know there are millions of those going out across the country," [he takes a breath] "boy, I never would have dreamed that would have happened, 15 years ago." |
