From a one-man operation launched by Thomas Bena in 2001, the Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival (MVFF) has grown over the course of its 17 years into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with an office space in Chilmark and a staff of four full-time and one part-time employee, as well as scores of seasonal interns and volunteers. Now the MVFF has experienced another growth spurt as, with the help of a three-year $50,000 grant from an anonymous foundation, combined with other grants and donations, they are establishing a filmmaking department and looking to fill a full-time, year-round filmmaker position.
The MVFF’s stated mission is “to produce community events, educational programs, and films that spark discussion, debate, and action.” To those ends, the MVFF has endeavored to continually expand its initiatives from a four-day March film festival and a full summer season of weekly programming, to include a wide range of educational opportunities. The new department will further serve the community by providing a resource for local organizations and individuals to share their stories through locally produced films.
“The goal of the filmmaking program is to tell Island-based stories,” explains MVFF artistic director Brian Ditchfield. “We get approached all the time by patrons and collaborating organizations who want to work with us and tell their stories. In the past we had to say no to them. We didn’t have the resources to complete the process.”
Already the MVFF has entered into talks with Island organizations about plans for future collaborative projects. “We put the idea out there to organizations and to some community members and very quickly we got such a great response and excitement and really great project ideas on Vineyard history and the good work that nonprofits are doing and mission oriented work,” Mr. Ditchfield said. Currently, the MVFF is in discussions on film projects with the Island Housing Trust.
The three-year grant will fund the salary for a full-time filmmaker as well as additions to the festival’s existing inventory of filmmaking equipment. Duties of the new hire will include working with the MVFF’s educational department’s Island school-based initiatives. “The filmmaker will help us bring the projects we create with students to fruition,” says Mr. Ditchfield. “We’ve been working with the schools for six years now.”
The ideal candidate, according to Mr. Ditchfield, will be “someone with filmmaking experience who has knowledge of, or roots on the Vineyard.”
In addition to a filmmaker, the MVFF will be hiring festival and marketing coordinators, and production and development managers.
Last week’s announcement of the grant and the launching of the new department was accompanied by news of a couple of internal job shifts and a permanent appointment. Mr. Ditchfield, who previously served as managing and programming director, has been named artistic director and Hilary Dreyer, a former intern who has been with the organization since 2013, has been promoted to managing director.
“Hilary started with us an intern and has quickly become an indispensable part of the organization,” Mr. Ditchfield said. “We love it when we can offer opportunities for people to grow with the organization and, at the same time, help the organization grow.”
Ben Durrell, who was hired on an interim basis, will continue as the director of children’s programs.
The festival experienced record ticket sales, membership numbers, and film screenings this past summer. School programs are now underway and the MVFF plans to continue a series of off season screenings and other programming. Discussions about a permanent home for the MVFF, which has hosted the majority of its events at the Chilmark Community Center for the past decade or so, are ongoing. “We continue to explore options,” says Mr. Ditchfield. “We’re about to do a feasibility study on that. We’re open to the community’s ideas. We continue to look for a space.”
The new filmmaking department will add another dimension to the festival, best known for screening a variety of non-mainstream movies, including independent films and documentaries.
“It really goes back to Thomas’ original mission for the organization,” says Mr. Ditchfield. “To both share and create films that spark discussions. We just got together a short time ago to develop this idea. We’re thrilled with the amount of support it has generated, both financially and from the community.”