Zagottis editing the opening reel Zagottis hangs up a poster for each screening, and the "Cinema t’s a warm night in late June, and a small crowd is gathering in Astoria resident Frank Zagottis’ triangular backyard off Newtown Road. Chairs are lined up in rows facing a fabric screen that hangs from the apartment’s back porch, and Tiki torches twinkle around the property. A chandelier suspended in the air by wires glows over the yard. The host greets old friends and strangers as they arrive, inviting them to sit in “first class, business or coach” (the different areas of seating in the backyard, including adirondack chairs for “first class” and white plastic ones in “coach”). Guests make trips to a snack table around the side of the building, scooping up popcorn for themselves or adding a treat to share. It’s the premiere screening of The Newtown Road Backyard Film Festival’s 2016 season—which happens to be the 10th anniversary season for the festival—and the film for the night is the 1981 Academy Award winner for Best Picture, “Ordinary People.” As the sky darkens, Zagottis, 53, turns on a projector balanced on an old green ladder. The 10-minute pre-show countdown that Zagottis made on Final Cut Pro adds a drive-in movie vibe. He stands in front of the screen and welcomes everyone to the screening. “This is the way movies were meant to be seen,” he tells the small crowd, “in a communal setting, in the correct aspect ratio, and without a pause button.” Years ago, one of the regulars at this homegrown movie festival created a “popcorn fund” from a recycled popcorn jar to help Zagottis pay for items like popcorn, ice and cups, and attendees are invited to donate a little something to the fund to help pay for these communal goods. Otherwise, it’s completely free to attend the movie; this is something Zagottis does for his community, without asking anything in return. FESTIVAL ORIGINS It all started when Zagottis went back to school to study film. “I came back with a finished short film and one of my tenants had a projector, so I dropped a king-sized bed sheet, which was very small, over my porch so we could watch it,” he said. When he told his dad, an Italian immigrant who used to be a tailor, that they watched the film on such a small screen, Zagottis’ father sewed together two bed sheets to make a larger screen. Zagottis thought, “Let’s show I Isabel" banner always adorns his backyard. Forty-two people squeezed into Zagottis’ backyard for a screening of “The Godfather.” It was a record-breaking crowd. Photo courtesy of Frank Zagottis 18 I BOROMAG.COM I AUGUST 2016 ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
BM082016
To see the actual publication please follow the link above