In 2016, Gary joined the board of Adirondack Film, an organization dedicated to advancing the art and appreciation of film and filmmaking in the greater Adirondack region. Since 2018, Gary has served as the chair of the Lake Placid Film Festival, one of the organization’s key initiatives. It struck me that with everything he’s accomplished, the years of work and noise, surely a little rest and quiet have been earned. I had to ask him the obvious question: Why?

“I’m interested in film as a vehicle to get people together, to learn, to get excited, to create, to analyze, to envision, to play,” he said. “This happens to be the medium that I have at this time, and so I apply all my efforts to it.”

“I’m also deluded enough to think that if people knew what I knew, they’d be all in and have a great time with it,” he jokes. “I guess I try to continue to tell them about the richness of the possibilities. It’s that whole thing that (Soren) Kierkegaard says, If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of the potential… And what wine is so sparkling, what so fragrant, what so intoxicating, as possibility. That’s probably why. That’s really my ethos.”

With my background in Philosophy, Gary had me at Kierkegaard, but the clarity of his plan squarely matched the allure of his existential vision.

A unique place for film

Gary’s vision is deceptively simple: The Adirondacks is a unique landscape that offers dense woods, cascading waterfalls, big water, hidden ponds, high peaks, lush valleys and village life. For many filmmakers, it is a dream set, the vast and the specific in every frame. That’s the simple part. The complexity begins when we start to talk about how to get the film industry into the area.

As Gary explained, there is a lot of interest, but it’s too expensive for filmmakers to bring an entire crew on location. Filmmakers prefer to hire local help to save on expenses like lodging and travel.

However, Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, and the surrounding areas do not currently have sufficient personnel trained in the film trade.

Although it might seem like an obvious question, I wanted to know why we want films made here. As Gary sees it, getting filmmakers to make movies in the Adirondacks is a win-win-win situation. Win number one: The state gives a 40% tax credit to films (with a certain budget) filmed in the state of New York. Win number two: Locals who are trained in the film trade will have work. Win number three: Locals can imagine a future for their children in the area.

It’s the third win that softens and slows Gary’s pace.

“We’re all trying to keep our kids home,” he said. “We’re trying to keep our kids in jobs. … Our communities are coming together now because we’re facing a common threat.”

There is reason to share Gary’s concern. The Adirondack Daily Enterprise recently published an article on the record-low enrollment at Saranac Lake High School. There is evidence that the younger population is leaving home in search of work. Gary’s approach to the problem is practical and local: keep things grassroots, plant seeds of interest in the younger population, and inspire a groundswell of change.

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Futures In Film

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How do we train our community so they can fill a filmmaker’s need for tradespeople? Or, put more simply, how do we get filmmakers interested in making movies here? Gary plans to spark interest in kids. Give them the information. Let them know of the possibilities. Provide them with the educational path to become tradespeople in the film industry. Gary and the board of Adirondack Film are currently in conversation with Lake Placid High School, BOCES, Stockade Works and State University of New York in Plattsburgh, where a film trade program already exists. The future possibilities are bright, and the name of his pilot collaborative project is aptly called Futures In Film.

As to be expected with Gary, we don’t need to wait for the future to happen because he will make it happen now.

He organized a student summit for the Lake Placid Film Festival, a group of 12 students chosen from a wide range of applications and invited to attend the upcoming festival and trade seminars. It’s an opportunity to see great films, learn about the trade, and meet film people. Indeed, the future is bright, and it’s happening now.