TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL - A GOER'S GUIDE

The TCM (Turner Classic Movies) Classic Film Festival in Hollywood  has certainly made a big splash since it launched in April of 2010. And now the 2013 festival will again be a heaven come true for classic movie buffs - a three-ring circus of great old movies on the big screen, complemented by introductions and interviews of some of the stars, filmmakers, and crew that brought these screen gems to life. The 2013 Classic Film Festival, the 4th annual, will be held this year over four days, from April 25-28. It will follow the format of prior years, a theme, Cinematic Journeys: Travel in the Movies, a red carpet /premier screening at The TCL Chinese Theatre (formerly Grauman's) of the restored classic, Funny Girl, starring Barbara Streisand, an after-party hosted by Vanity Fair (for Spotlight Festival Pass-level ticket holders), and three very full days of movie showings, panel discussions, and wallowing in classic movie congeniality. Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz will be the hosts once again, with the festival managed by TCM's Genevieve McGillicuddy.  For those of you who have not yet attended this event, this is my take on navigating the festival, experience garnered from attending all three previous festivals at three different Pass levels. Tickets and information can be found at the official festival website: http://www.tcm.com/festival  Hotel accommodations can also be reviewed there.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

The TCM Classic Film Festival is very much a Hollywood-centered event. The classic Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Blvd, the site of the first Academy Award ceremonies, serves as the Festival headquarters, with ticket/registration counter, event master calendar, the TCM gift shop, and the TCM Lounge, where many of the  interviews of stars by host Robert Osborne are conducted and filmed, all for ticket holders to view live. The TCM Lounge also serves as gathering place and the setting for events like panel discussions and interviews. It's also a good place to catch your breath, or meet friends while figuring out your next move. The 2013 TCM Classic Film Festival will feature the 50th anniversary screening of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds, which will be attended by star Tippi Hedren. The newly restored classics The Big Parade (1925), The General starring Buster Keaton, Giant (1956), and The Great Escape (1963). Two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda will be attending and will get her hand and foot-prints in the concrete of the Chinese Theatre forecourt.

The movie screenings themselves are in several locations, most within easy walking distance from each other. If you drive, the best place to park as at the Hollywood and Highland complex, which is adjacent to the Chinese Theatre. The parking lot is accessed from Highland Blvd between the Hollywood & Highland shopping center and the Renaissance Hotel. Parking is reasonable at $10  for a full day. The Roosevelt Hotel is across the street and down a block from the Chinese. Theater venues include the other screens that make up part of the Chinese 6 complex, and the Grauman Egyptian Theater, home of the American Cinematheque, four blocks east on Hollywood Blvd. The Cinerama dome is also a venue, although it's on Sunset Blvd. and about a 20-25 minute walk. The biggest challenge is deciding which of several nearly simultaneous screenings one wants to attend. The screenings themselves start early in the morning and go late into the night. There's usually little time in between movies you will likely want to see, so pack some snacks and don't count on long leisurely lunches. Fortunately, the Hollywood & Highland complex has a food court with various options for getting food on the run, or occasionally, for even eating at a table. There is also a variety of eateries on Hollywood Blvd (after making one's way past the street carnival of costumed characters), including the famous Musso & Frank's restaurant at 6667 Hollywood Blvd (closed Sunday), and the Pig & Whistle at 6714 Hollywood Blvd, close to the Egyptian Theatre.

The printed schedule one gets at registration will have almost all the screenings and events listed, usually color-coded by theme or genre.Some late additions are posted at the poster calendar at the Roosevelt.  It's best to have your viewing schedule worked out ahead with plenty of time to arrive early and, yes, wait in line. If you pay for the most-expensive Spotlight Pass then you will be able to get in the priority line. This is a very nice and convenient benefit, but it is not affordable for most attendees. The Essential and Classic Passes will have their own lines, but sometimes a very popular screening will fill up and you are not guaranteed a seat if you are far down the line. On the other hand, persons with no passes, can pay at the door, space permitting, though this is chancy. The cheaper passes, like the Matinee Pass will get you into the theaters (space permitting and not at the Premiere) up until 6:00 pm only, while the new cheaper Palace Pass will get you into screenings at the two larger venues, the main Chinese and the Egyptian, only.

The premiere takes place at and in front of the Chinese Theatre on Thursday early evening, in this case it will be for Funny Girl. This event is open to Spotlight and Essential Pass holders. The Red Carpet preparations and  activities begin earlier in the day. This is a crowded event and finding where the lines form can be tricky, especially since there are so many tourists hovering around the Chinese Theatre. Since the Spotlight tickets get priority, you will want to get there early if you have an Essential Pass so you avoid being at the end of a very long line. Look for the banners that state the Spotlight or Essential Pass line formation.
While waiting in line is not the most fun thing to do, generally at the TCM Festival it's a great place to meet people from across the country that share the same passions as you do.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

The 2011 TCM Festival featured models gracing the red carpet. While this is not the celebrity-studded event that the major award shows offer, you should still be able to spot some celebrities and stars early in the red carpet opening. 

Photo by Christian Esquevin

Preparations for the Premiere and Red Carpet
at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre, 2011. Photo by Christian Esquevin.

Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant and Eva Marie Saint at
last year's festival. Edward M. Pio Roda photo

The photo below shows the line formation by type of pass, Essential, Classic, etc. at the Grauman's Egyptian Theatre. Since this is a large-capacity theater, like the main Chinese, individual-showing tickets can usually be gotten at the door, space permitting. There are lines for this category of non-pass holder attendees also, so if it's something you're hot for, get there early. The forecourt of the Egyptian is long and it handles lines well - a great place to chat with other classic movie fans. Plus there are free Internet stations available there courtesy of Time-Warner.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

Both the Egyptian and the Chinese theaters are grand old movie palaces that make for the perfect venues for watching classic movies on the big screen. The Chinese Theatre is shown below with a screen shot of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. These theaters are also where live introductions are made by stars, Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz, or where interviews are held of a film's principal participants.

The Vanity Fair party is a fun event where many TCM participants and some of the stars gather for drinks and festivities. Access to this event only comes with the expensive Spotlight Pass. This party is fun but the movies and discussions are the important part of the TCM Classic Film Festival, so don't feel bad if you can't afford it or don't get this Pass level. But zipping through a long film line is a real plus that comes with the Spotlight Pass package.

Above and below are photos of the Vanity Fair/TCM Party from 2011. Peter O'Toole is seen seated below in the left background.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

Robert Osborne is shown below at the TCM Lounge at the Roosevelt Hotel. He interviews special guests and movie stars live. It's a nice bonus feature that one should see when time permits.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

Robert Osborne is also seen below with Debbie Reynolds, whom he interviewed at the Cinerama Theater at a screening of How the West Was Won at last year's TCM Classic Film Festival. When interviews like this are part of the screening, the first row is always popular seating.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

The original Cinerama Dome theater was the venue last year for an anniversary screening of the restored How the West was Won in its original three projector system. The film had premiered there 50 years earlier. This was a fabulous experience and a rare opportunity to view this film the way it was intended to be seen. The line is shown below for the movie, but this theater is also a large-capacity theater and it accommodated the large, and appreciative audience, very well.

Below is a photo of one of the panel presentations from 2012, this one on Designing Iconic Film Imagery.  On the left is Jim Bissel, whose art direction credits go from E.T. to Good Night and Good Luck. Seated in the center is set decorator Jan Pascale, who has worked on 25 films and is a founding member of the Set Decorators Society of America, next to the right is designer Terence Marsh, whose credits include Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, and The Shawshank Redemption, among many others.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

One of last year's main highlights was the screening of Singing in the Rain. It was shown at the Grauman's Chinese Theater, where it had first premiered 60 years earlier and where the film's opening scene was filmed. Debbie was interviewed by Robert Osborne, and following the film, Patricia Ward Kelly, Gene Kelly's widow, provided personal stories from the late Gene Kelly's writings and recollections. She could have entertained us for hours. Last year I had the low-budget Matinee Pass, therefore I didn't quality for this post-6:00 pm screening. I got in the very long line to buy a $20 ticket for the showing on a lark, doubtful that I would ever make it inside. But low-and-behold I made it in and I was thankful I didn't let this opportunity slip.

The previous year in 2011, the restored An American in Paris was shown at the festival and Leslie Caron was there to talk about her experience making An American in Paris. How good does it get?

The Hollywood & Highland complex (its on the intersection of Hollywood Blvd. and Highland Avenue) will be locale for many of your activities. The best parking is there and the food court is there too. If you drive to TCM, you'll probably need to grab some take-out as you're rushing from the parking lot to the next screening. Otherwise, its a good place to view the famous Hollywood sign, and lots of tourists have their photo taken from the upper level with the sign as the backdrop. You may recognize the large rampant elephant statues shown below, they are reproductions of the statues and facade of the palace from D.W. Griffith's film Intolerance.

Photo by Christian Esquevin

Photo by Christian Esquevin

If you are a classic movie fan, make the TCM Classic Film Festival a destination. 
It will become a very special memory.