BLNov22.ToWeb

MIFF continued
of this town and how warm they treat
me.”
The opening night after party was
again held at The Landing on the roof
of Hotel Melby. It was a private event
for those in attendance at the festival
and featured entertainment by the star
of The Voyagers, Char Good. It was
a beautifully clear night on the top of
the world and a great time was had by
all. Not all of the stars were in the sky,
however. One of Hollywood’s brightest
was on scene as a special guest. Not
slated to speak until Saturday, actor
Patrick Gallo decided to fly in for the
entire weekend and join the fun.
Gallo has played quite a few notable
roles and you would probably
know him best from Scorses’s The
Irishman or even more recently as Mario
Puzo in The Offer, a limited series
about the making of The Godfather.
Later I asked Patrick how he became
involved with the MIFF.
“Back in 2006 I was in a film shot
in Melbourne called I’ll Believe You.
It had a lot of good people in it; Patrick
Warburton, Ed Helms, Chris Elliot
etc…. Anyway, it’s about aliens and
UFOs, and they knew they wanted to
film it on the Space Coast of Florida.
Needless to say the location scouts
found Melbourne and loved it. So we
shot the film here. Well, long story
short, I met Terry Cronin through
some people while I was here and we
became friends and kept in touch; so
here I am,” Gallo told me. “Maybe
you don’t know this, but people know
about Melbourne now. This place isn’t
such a big secret anymore. You have a
lot going on here and people are taking
notice.”
Friday afternoon featured the International
Program showing short films
from around the globe. I absolutely
love this section of the festival. I love
to lean back in my seat and get lost in
the movie magic performed by magicians
from lands far away. It makes for
a wonderful afternoon.
Brevard Live
Evening saw the festival roll into
the Comedy Program featuring comedian
Dara Weinstein (no relation,
she made very clear) hosting the funnies
and cooking up some laughs on
her own. Visiting the MIFF by way of
NYC, Dara is a returning guest and
friend of Terry Cronin. Dara was also
on hand to co-host the Crazy Hat contest.
I have to be honest; this part both
blew my mind and got me unsurprised
at the same time. Cronin is known for
his hat collection so it made sense to
me that he might have a hat contest.
What caught me of guard was just how
many people showed up to participate.
Terry has a way of bringing of providing
an air of whacky fun and this was a
prime example. Everyone loved it.
Later on Friday night was the
very popular and waited for Horror
Program. This is actually my favorite
part of the MIFF so after a quick bar
break at Hemingway’s next door, I
was right back to my seat for the show.
One of the silliest and most endearing
parts of the horror program are the
little cuts in between films that seems
to have become a tradition now. I just
imagine how much fun the “Cronies”
must have shooting these short intros
in front of a green screen picking out
which of Terry’s (I’m assuming they
are his) hats to wear next.
Saturday started early with the Florida
Filmmakers Matinee featuring films
from guess where… before an official
meeting with actor Patrick Gallo
where he talked about his career and
engaged with the audience. I must say,
I was lucky enough to spend a bit of
time with Gallo over the course of the
fest, and I found him to be extremely
friendly and personable. He also
seemed to have no qualms or annoyance
about answering any of my fan
boy questions about life on the screen.
For instance: Right after I asked him
about his process and what he drew
from to develop his performance of
Mario Puzo, I also asked him if Juno
Temple is as wonderful as I imagine
and did he think she might want to
marry me. First off, he did his research
and talked to Puzo’s family and then
he tried to find a mix of himself in the
character combined with the spirit of
who Mario Puzo was as an artist and a
person. And then he graciously let me
know that Juno Temple is an absolute
angel that I would never have a chance
with. Fair and honest. Thanks Patrick.
The rest of the afternoon was
packed with programing including
the Filmmakers Roundtable Q & A
featuring a guest panel fielding questions
from about their processes and
projects, The MIFF Youth Filmmaking
Program which I think is a wonderfully
innovative addition to the festival, and
a screening of Church of Darkness, a
new film by Mike L. Germaine that is
stirring up quite a buzz. The Red Carpet
Reception is always a big hit for
the MIFF. Everyone comes dressed to
impress and walks the carpet for interviews
and pictures in front of the official
MIFF step-and-repeat. It’s only
a short walk through the theater lobby,
but I feel it brings a sense of glitz and
glamour to the fest, and it’s really fun!
The end of the festival found everyone
partying away at Hemingway’s with
two of our favorite local karaoke hosts
Charles and Lisa Knight a.k.a. Rockstar
Entertainment. The Knights are
staples in our neck of the woods and
always put on a good show. They are
also known to show up in local films
now-and-again so they were the perfect
choice to close the festival out
again this year.
The Melbourne Independent Film
Festival continues to be a beautiful
gift of culture for us every single year
and the only issue I ever have with it
is that not more people partake in the
festivities. As Terry told the crowd on
opening night “The MIFF is the best
kept secret we have here in Melbourne.
Make sure to tell all of your friends
about what they are missing and let’s
continue to do this every year!”
Can’t wait until next year!
34 - Brevard Live November 2022