Like everything else in life, the Lawrence Film Festival changes through the years and undergoes challenges. The most recent challenge was coming up with funding in the midst of disappearing funding sources.  I am happy to say that reports of the festival's demise are greatly exaggerated. Thanks to a generous grant from the White Fund, the 13^th annual Lawrence Film Festival takes place this year at the Heritage State Park in downtown Lawrence during the last weekend in June.

The film festival got started as the result of a casual conversation. A group of instructors from the college were sitting around one afternoon having coffee and we were talking about foreign films ( they used to call them "foreign" film festivals) and somebody commented that wouldn't it be cool if somebody started a foreign film festival at NECC. My wife, Esther, and I took the idea and  initiated an informal Saturday night foreign film series at the Northern Essex Community College in Lawrence. That was the Lawrence Film Festival at Northern Essex. Back in 1998 , movies were on VHS tapes. There was no Netflix or Google. No Youtube. No downloading of movies from the Internet. As a result, international films seemed much more exotic. Finding quality international films was an adventure which usually meant ordering from specialty mail order firms or searching obscure video stores in ethnic neighborhoods in Cambridge or Allston to find quality films.

The idea behind the film festival was to provide community college students a social experience that they miss because they don't live on a university campus. And do something to build community, because a community college’s mission is too be more than just a vocational and educational resource, but a cultural presence as well.

At first the screenings were sparsely attended, mostly by a few instructors and students. (see photo above) From there it grew gradually and quietly into a successful college film festival. While the film festival is no longer connected to Northern Essex Community College, we have fond memories of its years of incubation at NECC. We especially liked seeing the Lawrence atrium on Franklin St. filled to capacity with a Saturday night crowd.

The screenings have always been free and open to the public, a policy which remains in place. (How can a community event be inclusive if people are only welcome to participate if they have enough money to buy a ticket?) From its early informal beginnings, the festival has evolved into a city-wide event which we hope will continue to grow for many years. We want to thank the many people who supported the film festival through its exciting years of growth, especially the former dean of the Lawrence campus, Kathy Rodger, who helped us get it together.

Special thanks go out to the White Fund, to Joe Bella of the Friends of Lawrence Heritage State Park, and to Jim Beauchesne, Acting Park Supervisor for their valuable help and support.

Mark and Esther Palermo, May 2010