TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – In an email sent out to supporters from Traverse City Film Festival (TCFF) founder and president, documentarian, filmmaker, and left-wing activist Michael Moore, he confusingly said that the board of directors had unanimously decided to end the film festival indefinitely after having one of their best seasons ever last year and finally breaking even in a year where they screened only about a quarter of the movies they usually do.

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No information was given for the actual reason for the cancellation after the 20-year run of the film festival or why the current board didn’t step down and allow other individuals to run the festival. Moore did not give a plausible explanation for the board’s cancellation of the festival such as a lack of time for the board to run the festival, monetary issues or short-staffing of volunteers.

The TCFF describes themselves online as a “charitable, educational, nonprofit organization committed to the idea that ‘One Great Movie Can Change You: Just Great Movies’ and to helping save one of America’s few indigenous art forms – the cinema. The festival brings films and filmmakers from around the world to Northern Michigan for the annual film festival in late July to early August.”

The festival also brings thousands of visitors into Traverse City from all over the world. Movies are mostly shown at the State Theatre which was donated to TCFF by the local Rotary Charities in May of 2007. Other venues such as Bijou by the Bay, the Old Town Playhouse and the Opera House are also utilized to show movies.

During the week-long event, about 200 movies are shown across all of the venues, in addition to having panel discussions with directors writers, and other members of the film industry. Sometimes there are also celebrity appearances like Madonna. In addition to the movies inside, there are classic movies offered for free in to watch in the Open Space at dusk overlooking the Grand Traverse Bay.

The TCFF was founded in 2005 by Moore along with bestselling author, lecturer and screenwriter Doug Stanton and photographer John Williams.

The board of directors and artist advisory board for TCFF listed publicly in June of 2021 were a mix of Hollywood and Traverse City and includes Moore, Seinfeld writer Larry Charles; actress Christine Lahti; actor Jeff Daniels; filmmaker and writer Mark Cousins; director and filmmaker Terry George; musician and political activist Tom Morello; Traverse City attorney George Powell; Traverse City resident David Poinsett; film producer, attorney and former Traverse City resident, Anne Moore and Rod Birleson, a filmmaker who has been involved in many of Moore’s films

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Moore said in his email about the decision to cancel the festival, “We’ve decided, after much heartfelt discussion, that it’s best to close this era of the film fest now while we’re ahead, no longer in debt, and go out on top with many years of fond memories that we will all collectively cherish for the rest of our lives.”

It has been reported that the festival has been in the red for years – and in Traverse City, the TCFF has long been a controversial issue and the topic of discussion and debate in the news media and on the local radio shows.

One reason for the controversy is that the Traverse City community always seems to be asking “where did the money go?” and “why are they always in debt?” The film festival is mostly volunteer run and their tax forms show that the Board of Directors doesn’t take a salary. They have a plethora of sponsors, which in 2022 included the local Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel in addition to a long list of individuals and companies.

And after the  pandemic hit, the TCFF was given a $933,000 grant in June of 2021 to help restart the film festival after being shut down for two years. They used the money to renovate the building and for other projects. The money came from federal pandemic funds in legislation passed by Congress called the “Shuttered Venue Operators Grant” that helped thousands of shuttered movie theaters, museums, playhouses and music venues across the country.

Other controversies and problems plaguing TCFF included payment disputes with a former sound and lighting contractor, flooding and boiler issues at the State Theatre, the firing of former director Deb Lake in 2017 and breaking the lease with the city when the Bijou wasn’t open 200 days a year as the agreement with the city stated.

Although the motivations for the cancellation of the festival aren’t known, and there is no information on the TCFF website on how to contact the board members, Moore stated what his priorities would be in the future. In his statement he said, “Personally, I’ve decided to continue working on my next film and to spend my time fighting to restore Roe v Wade, ending the mass gun slaughters and preventing the racist, misogynist crime boss from re-entering the White House.”

The film festival has always had many movies that were progressive and left-leaning and the actions and words of some on the board also leaned in that direction. Board member Morello, who like Moore, is very much an outspoken political activist who believes in socialism. Morello has cited the Black Panther Party, Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara and the Weather Underground as “very important” to him.

Moore is proud about using the TCFF for political activism and talked about it in his email when he said, “When our local Planned Parenthood was under attack, we stepped in to help. When our school system refused to recognize Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we convinced them to change their minds. We stood with the local LGBTQ+ community when many others were afraid to and I was honored to be asked to officiate one of the first same-sex weddings in Traverse City on the stage of the State Theatre…”

Moore also took a shot at Traverse City in his email when he said, “we’ve had to give the young people of the area some exposure to a world outside of the narrow-minded view one gets from a lack of diversity, where the wealthy are in charge and one race with its privileges is all you see.”

Moore still owns the State Theatre through the TCFF non-profit organization and plans to continue showing films there and at the Bijou all year long with the help of their volunteers. Moore said in his email, “We will redouble our efforts and focus our attention on building back a post-pandemic audience and continue to provide great movies at these beautiful venues, 365 days a year – creating, in essence, a permanent ‘year-round’ TCFF.”

The cancellation is, no doubt, going to have a big impact on the economy of the city. Traverse City Tourism President Trevor Tkach told 9&10 News, “It was a huge economic driver for our region, especially because it came mid-week. It was something that drew people here in between weekends. Seeing something like that disappear is going to have an impact no doubt.”

Michigan News Source reached out to Rotary Charities about the cancellation of the film festival and Sakura Takano, CEO of Rotary Charities of Traverse City responded by saying, “We are saddened to hear about the conclusion of the TCFF summer festival, as it helped revitalize the State Theatre 20 years ago and engaged hundreds of volunteers and thousands of visitors and residents over the years. We can look back and appreciate all that the festival brought to the community. We are pleased that the State Theatre will remain a community asset and look forward to hearing how it will continue to be special place for the community.”