With a background as an international film publicist for Disney, Warner Brothers and Lionsgate, Events and Programming Coordinator Michael Hebler is determined to expand the importance of cinema at the Alliance for the Arts.
“It’s an art form,” said Hebler. “It’s like theater. It’s a performing art, and whether it’s cinema, theater, dance, we don’t just do galleries. We don’t just do oils and acrylics. We are an eclectic campus of all art forms, and cinema is really a prominent art form and the storylines can have a lot of meaning. It can relate to things that are happening in the world today. It’s expression, as well, whether it’s a big budget movie or a documentary or a short film. It’s all important.”
Hebler mentions two cinematic initiatives in particular.
“We will be doing a member-only screening coming up either in June or July. I guess this is the official announcement,” Hebler said. “And then hopefully we’ll be doing that once a month.”
Hebler calls the second initiative Reel Families.
“That is to give parents a safe place to see if their children are ready to be taken to a movie theater,” Hebler explained. “So we’re going to provide a real movie-like experience here. We have the big screen. We have the dark auditorium. We have the popcorn, the candy, the soda. Basically, parents will be able to tell if their kids are ready for that type of environment.”
Hebler also intends to bring back the Southern Film Series next season and even hints at the possibility of establishing a film festival at the Alliance, as well.
Thursday through Saturday, the Foulds Theatre at the Alliance for the Arts will be one of six venues for the 15th Annual Fort Myers Film Festival.
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Hebler name drops some of the films he worked on during his tenure as a film publicist.
“I had experience doing junkets at film festivals and red-carpet events in Hollywood. I worked on ‘WALL-E.’ I worked on ‘Up.’ I worked on the third ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movie 'At World's End.' I worked on the second ‘Narnia’ movie. The Jim Carrey ‘Christmas Carol’ by Disney, as well as various others. At Warner Brothers, there was ‘Poseidon’ and ‘Superman Returns,’ and some for Lionsgate as well, which I mostly did at Comic-Con when I worked three consecutive years at Comic-Con in San Diego.”
After relocating to Cape Coral, Hebler served as director of events for Rich Dad Education until the pandemic.
As the Alliance’s Events and programming director, Hebler concentrates on each season’s programming in the areas of concerts, theater, cinema, special events, and other art-related ticketed events.
Prior to Hebler’s arrival, the Alliance did include cinematic programming, primarily in the form of documentaries such as “Lift” and “The American Constitution.” Hebler wants to expand the number and type of movies the Alliance screens. He operates from the premise that cinema, from big budget movies to low budget short films, can mirror current events and possess artistic, cultural and psycho-social significance.
Hebler also hopes to foster a community of film enthusiasts.
“I know a lot of cinephiles around here. I am a member of the UFTA.”
The United Film & Television Artists is a nonprofit trade organization. It has a local chapter in Fort Myers. UFTA provides valuable information, assistance, education and a community interest to artists and other craft personnel associated with the production of film, television, video, voiceover, theater and recording products in Florida.
“We have another employee on our staff who is a member of the UFTA, as well, and we have great relationships with them.”
Going forward, Hebler expects programming at the Alliance to not only include cinema, but also fashion, dance and culinary arts. While Hebler holds a degree in theatre arts from Orange Coast College, he is also an award-winning author with a series of four novels, a novella, multiple short stories, and a children’s picture book. His deep passion for all arts inspires his commitment to fostering community and celebrating the transformative power of creativity.
“I expect our programming to be varied and eclectic, a nice mixture of quality art, all arts. I would love to do a fashion show here. I don’t come from that world, but I think it needs to be here. Clothing, fashion, it’s an art. Also bringing culinary art here one of these days, hopefully soon. We’re going to have a kitchen in the Edwards Building and do everything from artistic plating to barista art.”
With respect to dance, Hebler points to the Alliance’s recent storytelling festival.
“One of the performances was storytelling through dance,” said Hebler. “We had the amazing, talented Dance Bochette — they are located downtown Fort Myers — come and do that performance. Quite honestly, it was the most sold-out performance of the entire festival. It just kind of showed how popular, how needed, how wanted dance could be. It’s another performing art. It needs to be here for that reason alone. It could be ballet. It could be tap. It could be breakdancing for all I care. It’s a form of artistic expression and it should be here. So I am looking into finding ways to get dance here. Maybe it’s teaming up, partnering up with some local dance companies, possibly. We’ll see. It’s very much in the infancy stage right now.”
Thursday’s Fort Myers Film Festival screenings include “For the Arts" shorts block at 11 a.m. and three independent films. For the specifics, visit https://www.artinlee.org/event/fort-myers-film-festival-thursday-may-15/.
Friday’s screenings include an environmental shorts block at 1:15 p.m., a "Love & Laugh" shorts block at 2:30 p.m., and three independent films including “Climbing to Life,” “Sanibel Island's Store” ("Sanibel Island’s Store" traces the journey of a family, a small business, and an island determined to rebuild and thrive after Hurricane Ian in 2022), and local filmmaker John Biffar’s “Curveballs” (the inspiring story of America’s only amputee baseball team, The Louisville Sluggers). For specifics, visit https://www.artinlee.org/event/fort-myers-film-festival-friday-may-16/.
Saturday's Fort Myers Film Festival screenings include a “Something for Everyone" shorts block” at 2:15 p.m., a “Reel Thrill" shorts block” at 3:30 p.m. and three independent films, including “Sanibel,” a documentary about seashells, grief, and a community devastated by Florida’s largest storm. For the specifics, visit https://www.artinlee.org/event/fort-myers-film-festival-saturday-may-17/.
Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium, Babcock Ranch, IMAG, and BIG Arts are the other five locations for this year’s Fort Myers Film Festival.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.