Annual Tacoma Film Festival Encourages the Community to ‘Choose Cinema’ and Save the Grand
By Lindy Rybloom
The Grand Cinema wrapped up its 18th annual Tacoma Film Festival (TFF) last week after four days of celebrating the boundary-pushing works of local and international filmmakers. The annual festival, running since 2006, screens a collection of films and serves as an enriching tradition for community members and local cinephiles. This year featured music documentaries, black and white silent films and animated shorts among others. In addition to four consecutive days of movie screenings, there were also special events for pass holders, an awards night and an exclusive afterparty following the farewell film.
Over the course of the year, filmmakers submit their work to the festival portal in hopes of getting screen time. Grand Cinema staff and board members, filmmakers and even film-enthusiast volunteers participate in the process to curate a selection of “diverse and special independent films.” Wade Neal, Assistant Executive Director at the Grand Cinema, explained the importance of collaboration for the TFF and the greater Grand Cinema community. To nominate a successful collection of films, staff members “rely on and trust each other to make the final decision,” Neal said. The film festival is themeless, with the aim of providing as many opportunities as possible for filmmakers to share the screen. “I feel that we love every kind of film,” Neal said. “The benefit of it is to discover something new, and this is the place where people are really trying to put forward something that is different and special,” he added.
Recently, the local theater launched its “Save the Grand” campaign, a fundraiser aiming to preserve the Merlino Art Center — where the Grand resides – as a hub for culture in Tacoma. It is a “centerpiece of Tacoma,” Neal said.
“If you don’t own your building, you run the risk of someday the owner saying, ‘I’m selling the building!’” he said. “Save The Grand” is a direct effort to make sure that never happens. Neal emphasized the importance of ownership to continue honoring the arts and to avoid potential removal from their well-loved spot in downtown Tacoma. Without the Grand, “we’d be missing out on that level of community that is built around art.”
In a post-COVID world, it can be easy to sit on the couch and turn to streaming services for filmic enjoyment, but Neal encourages Tacoma residents to “choose cinema” and take risks outside of your cinematic comfort zone, adding that it is best to take those risks in theaters. There are many ways to support the “Save the Grand” initiative: you could attend one of the carefully selected films with your loved ones, make a donation (big or small) or even spend a rainy Tacoma evening volunteering at concession sales.
For students in Tacoma, the Grand partners with Tacoma Creates — an initiative that removes price barriers and gives underserved communities access to the arts. College students receive complimentary admission to most movie screenings. For entry, students must show their student ID and valid proof of Tacoma residency. The motive behind free student access is to uplift and enrich students in hopes that “they’ll take chances on something they wouldn’t normally see,” Neal said. This accessible approach to cinema is a perfect example of the Grand’s role in serving the Tacoma community.
The next time you are near the Merlino Art Center, stop by the Grand and take a cinematic risk. You’re sure to exit those beloved theater doors as a changed person.