36th cleveland international film festival :: march 22 - april 1, 2012
Film Festival Blog

April 4th, 2011 @ 1:30am

Standing Up Meets Stand-Up

What a magical night. Okay, it didn't go off without a few hitches... but you were all so wonderful about those hitches! You may not have been able to see Soul Surfer, but we did get everybody a seat in a great film and virtually all of you were so gracious and understanding. This is why I've been calling you the best Festival crowd in ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 3rd, 2011 @ 1:52pm

Dressed for success no matter what

Sorry I vanished! We're preparing for the Closing Night ceremony, which has me distracted in about ten directions at once. But here's that wild story I've been promising you, now that I've finally had enough of a quiet moment to write it up. We've had some wild and crazy times at the Cleveland International Film Festival over the years. Some o... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 3rd, 2011 @ 11:30am

Wow, were other things going on yesterday?

When 11,189 people -- yes, that's right, 11,189 -- are pouring through the walkway on their way to films, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that there's still this much bigger town around you and that other things were going on. I have to give a shout-out to our amazing crew, especially Jay in parking and Jessica's Stand-By team, for maki... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 3rd, 2011 @ 12:45am

My best Festival Day ever

Some days are just impossible to top, and I think this was one of them. Not only did I find myself face-to-face with Dan O'Shannon, a screenwriter I admire greatly, I also got to watch my editing mentor (the brilliant Laura Paglin) enjoy an encore performance of her film with a huge walk-up crowd, found myself in the midst of an incredible music... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 2nd, 2011 @ 5:51pm

Spontaneous Magic!

Oh, how I wish I could instantly put things on YouTube! I wish I could just upload things straight from my eyes! Because we just had the most amazing experience in the Hospitality HQ. It started innocently enough... Walt Mahlovlich, one of our stellar staff members, had mentioned to me the other night that his musical group, ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 2nd, 2011 @ 1:10pm

Did we steal the Indians' mojo yesterday?

I doubt any of you are surprised when I tell you that we broke our Friday attendance record again! 7,179 of you were here yesterday, making it the best Friday we've ever had! You bought almost $2,500 in merchandise, too! And the Challenge Match now stands at $37,200!!! We're going to keep going with the Challenge Match all through the weekend... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 1st, 2011 @ 7:45pm

No parking crunch tonight!

I just got word from our amazing parking guru, Jay Bravo, that there are lots of spaces in the Tower City parking lots now. He's been working hard all afternoon to keep the lots open for you, and while there have been a few glitches things have gone brilliantly. We thought the Riverview lot -- which is where overflow from the parkin... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 1st, 2011 @ 5:05pm

AWOL but so worth it!

Oh wow. I went downstairs to ferret out a few people for that story I'm working on -- I still have to catch up with them -- and to snag myself one of the sweatshirts while we still have them in stock. And then I got swept up in a tide. This huge stream of people started coming in, and flowing into the theater for ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 1st, 2011 @ 1:23pm

Some Festival numbers for Thursday...

Well, actually, I don't have the exact numbers for Thursday's attendance, because this day is keeping us hopping so much that I haven't been able to corner Bill and get them! I will, though. I do know that we broke yet another record and had our best Thursday ever. Meanwhile, I know that our Merchandising counter has been flying through... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

April 1st, 2011 @ 12:30pm

Important parking update!

The lots at Tower City are filling up fast. Patrick Shepherd put out a tweet an hour ago -- I need to remember to check Twitter more often -- saying that the primary self-parking lot is full and the Riverview lot -- where overflow would go -- was almost full at that time. If you haven't come down yet, you might want to seriously consider using ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 31st, 2011 @ 4:20pm

The Nor'easter shouldn't touch us!

Did I mention I'm a weather geek? So if any of you are looking at the weather reports about a developing Nor'easter and getting worried, I just thought I'd let you know that your weather geek blogger is paying close attention to the situation. Right now, none of the forecasts indicate that we'll get any of it. There's only a 10% chance ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 30th, 2011 @ 6:30pm

Update: Still snowing, but not that hard!

Yes, the snow is still falling! Back at my house up in Cleveland Heights, there's an inch or two of snow on the grass, bushes and branches -- giving things the look of a fairy tale winter landscape -- and some slush on the pavement. Down here we've got a dusting of white on the sidewalk right outside of the media hub, and some wet roads, but the ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 30th, 2011 @ 4:55pm

Don't be scared of the snow!

Yes, it's snowing! And if you're driving into the city soon for the Festival, give yourself a little extra time and drive carefully, because visibility could drop unexpectedly. But we're still not supposed to get all that much, just a few tenths of an inch. So don't let the snow scare you away! If you really don't want to drive in it, I'm goi... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 29th, 2011 @ 8:50pm

The Festival Wins!

No matter who comes out tonight in the Cavs vs. Heat game, the Festival definitely came out on top! I just went downstairs to check and see how the crowd flowing through affected our lines, and thanks to Bill's wonderful staggered schedule, the impact was negligible. Most of you were probably in a film when the crowds came through, ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 29th, 2011 @ 2:25pm

Be the Film Critic!

I've been talking this up the last few days, and I thought I'd mention it again: members can now leave ratings and reviews on the films you've watched, and share your opinions about them with others at the Festival! Just go to the film index and click on the image to the left of the film you want to review. That will take you to its page, and y... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 28th, 2011 @ 7:45pm

Let nothing impair your Festival fun

Standing in lines, even for the most athletic among us, is a chore. Especially when some of them get as outrageously long as the ones we had the other night! But it's even worse when you're struggling with a disability. And if you are, we want to make sure that you don't have to struggle at all on your way to your film. If you're in a wheelch... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 28th, 2011 @ 1:00pm

Cleveland's Parking Crunch

Now that the weekend is over and the daily commuters are back downtown, parking for the CIFF is actually more challenging than it was on the weekend! I spoke to our Parking guru, Jay Bravo, to find out more about why that is, and what you can do to avoid the parking woes when you come down. First, one of the big reasons that parking is so tight... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 28th, 2011 @ 11:30am

That Was the Sunday to Beat!

I wasn't kidding about how amazing all of you were yesterday -- you set a new record not just for the Festival's "First Sunday," but for any Sunday ever. 8,157 of you streamed into our theaters yesterday -- almost 800 of you just for Danny Greene -- and the results were phenomenal! Thanks to your purchases, the merchandising ... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 27th, 2011 @ 4:30pm

Walkway and Parking Reminder

It's going to be another wild night at the Film Festival and in Tower City, so I thought I'd give you a heads-up about what's happening. Tonight the Cavs are playing the Atlanta Hawks, so we're expecting a lot of traffic in the walkway leading up to the 6:00 tipoff. Things will hopefully stay pretty calm, but be prepared! If you're not lining up... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

March 26th, 2011 @ 12:20pm

In case you got worried...

Last night, at least one of our regular patrons stopped by the Merchandising counter and asked our staff: "What's wrong with the Festival? Where is everybody?" It was hard for them to believe that we were doing so well when the walkway and the lobby was so quiet and orderly! So, just in case you were worried, I thought I'd set your... more

Posted by Lara Klaber

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