Tonight I attended a meeting at the Fells Point Creative Alliance Ground Floor, oddly located in Highlandtown, where a forum was held to gauge interest in a Baltimore film Co-Op. A group of about 40 gathered to hear a selected panel offer their opinions on forming the co-op and then the floor was open to questions. The entire affair took about a couple of hours, and when it was all over most went their separate ways. Yet it looked hopeful…that finally…Baltimore filmmakers would unite. I certainly hope so.

     A film Co-Op is a group of like-minded members coming together to accomplish goals not simply accomplished by individuals--this is crucial for filmmakers being that film is a collaborative art form. The Co-Op would be an organization which would provide equipment, facilities and contacts for filmmakers to produce their films. And Baltimore’s in bad need of one. Despite the fact that Baltimore has seen its share of locally produced films and tv shows in recent years, local filmmakers are still finding it a herculean task to make films in Charm City. Despite the fact that film festivals have made a comeback around here, and that the Charles theatre shines as the cinematic axis of the city, if you’re contemplating starting an independent film you might as well tell everybody you’re climbing Everest: Experienced crew members are very hard to find as they’ve moved on to greener pastures; Talent searches reveal actors more rough than diamond; Equipment has to be rented from New York or Florida at a hurting cost. In short, Baltimore independent filmmakers should get Olympic medals for effort after completing any project.

     A Co-Op could provide much needed relief to our situation, fellow filmmakers. Equipment would be scrounged and bought by the Co-Op for use by its members. A database would make it easier to contact prospective crew members and collaborators. Perhaps if your project’s promising enough, the Co-Op could provide finishing funds so that your film could make the festival round. But in order for this to work, for this Co-Op to be realized, it needs a sustained wildcard factor: Participation.

     Everything discussed on tonight’s meeting sounded wonderful. Talks of purchased equipment, computer databases, completion funds and regular exhibits. Yet it won’t happen unless the Co-Op can maintain active participation, and that has me a bit cynical. It’s been my experience in the past few years of working the Baltimore local scene that even Baltimore filmmakers can as fickle and uncommitted as the audiences they seek to reach. I attended UMBC, which to this day remains as Baltimore’s only decent film school and equipment center, and despite having been schooled amongst interesting peers, once the diplomas were handed out, most of those peers left Baltimore faster than an Olympic event takeoff. Sometimes I even wonder what am I still doing here where the enthusiasm to make films only shows itself at the occasional film festival. Baltimore filmmakers need to unite and we need to make this Co-Op work. If it doesn’t work, we only have ourselves, filmmakers, to blame, not the audiences, or the mayor, or some wanker renting mediocre films at Blockbuster--it’s us all along that can make this work.

     I will keep a close eye on these Co-Op developments. I’m planning on joining. And only time will tell if it’ll blossom into a resource for filmmakers to get their visions realized or yet another ego-stroking “organization” for wankers who fancy themselves artists. Either the Co-Op will work, or future talented filmmakers will flee Charm City for the promises of New York and Los Angeles. Baltimore Filmmakers…Uunniiittteee!