I’m in Marin County because my older brother lives here. He had a pretty intensive procedure and he asked me if I could come and give them a helping hand. But as soon as we learned the procedure went well and that he was going to be in recovery, it was a weight off my shoulders. I felt like I could actually enjoy the area now that I’m going to be here for a couple months. 

I graduated college a couple of years ago and I’ve found that if I didn’t actively have something in my life, I was spending 24-7 at my house. Back in Chicago, I just started going into the movie theater as much as I could but I never found those people that were as passionate about films as I was.

One night, we were driving around and I saw a big banner that said “upcoming: Mill Valley Film Festival October 5th”. And I immediately was like, that is amazing. I want to get involved in any way possible. I immediately pulled out my phone and I saw that there were volunteer options. Within five minutes of learning about the existence of the film festival, I had submitted my form.

Seeing how harsh this procedure was for my brother really taught me that life is precious and I need to get involved in things that I want to do. I’ve always had this passion for film, so I took seeing that banner as a sign, literally and figuratively, that I need to just start living life. Later, my brother told me that some of his friends are actually donors to the organization that runs the Mill Valley Film Festival. If they had extra tickets, they would bring me with them. 

I noticed that this theater was much more personal, much closer, and I loved that I was able to talk to random strangers about the films. The films were not what you’d call a blockbuster; they were more about the storytelling and connecting with people. I think that’s what people have lost through the pandemic; being able to connect with random strangers and being able to share an experience together.

At night I would volunteer as much as I could. I found volunteering super rewarding because I got to meet a lot of people. At first I would say “oh I’m just a volunteer at this event,” but I found a lot of the staff members saying, “you’re not ‘just’ a volunteer. You’re one of the helpers running this event. Don’t just don’t diminish your role like that.” It was amazing that everyone was so willing to talk to me even though they didn’t know me.

Everyone was so welcoming within the organization and the festival. It’s like you can walk up to a stranger and say hi, and if you need help, they’ll automatically help you. Not knowing anyone kind of forces you to either put yourself out there or just stay closed off.