Black Bear Film Fest Prep with Help from New York
An apparently straight white guy from Pennsylvania shows up in Manhattan’s Port Authority bus station and becomes entangled with a trans woman in “Port Authority,” the opening night film for Black Bear Film Festival this year, a directorial debut for Danielle Lessovitz, executive produced by Martin Scorcese. However, conversely, the festival’s curator, Matthew Bechtold, is a New Yorker increasingly drawn to Pennsylvania, according to Veronica Coyne, festival administrator and leader of the Black Bear Screenwriting Collective. The film festival and collective, which has been meeting all year on Zoom, are part of Pennsylvania’s allure for Bechtold, she said, along with the Marie Zimmerman property. He and his wife and friends will be taking over arts activities there.
Meanwhile, Bill Rosado bought the Milford Theatre and did some renovation. That is where the opening night film will be screened, followed by a cocktail party in a tent behind the theater.
“There will be a full weekend of events at the theater, with interviews after Main Stage events,” said Coyne.
Festival Salon events, largely involving independent films, will take place at Forest Hall, on Broad St. All events will proceed with precautionary measures in place to protect audiences from Covid-19 transmission.
“For opening night, vaccinations are required, and guests must show their vaccination cards and wear masks,” Coyne said.
Virus protection rules for other festival events will soon be announced, as will the films.
One festival production is already accessible, Coyne noted. That is a reading by actors of Roger Weisman’s play, “Seasons On Nibiru,” which he worked on with the screenwriting collective.
“It’s one very long scene, where the interpersonal pressure is on and never goes off,” said Weisman of his play about a group preparing for apocalypse. “The day comes and passes. They have to figure out why they bought into it and what to do now. I like to write about realistic emotions among people facing extreme or otherworldly phenomena.”
Weisman, who lives in Long Island City, Queens, was brought into the collective by Bechtold in the past year, attracted by the possibility of doing live theater.
“Matt and I have been involved in each other’s projects,” Weisman explained, recalling a series of theatrical presentations that Bechtold had done, each a monologue based on a song from Bruce Springsteen’s album, “Nebraska,” performed by an actor from his company.
Weisman had studied theater at Emerson College and tended bar to support himself while he wrote, but the pandemic resulted in unemployment for him.
However, he said, “The YouTube readings were opportunities that came out of the Covid-19 crisis.”
The Black Bear Film Festival schedule will be available soon online, Coyne says.
Black Bear Film Festival: https://blackbearfilmfestival.squarespace.com/
Seasons on Nibiru: