Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.7 percent in March 2015, higher than the nation as a whole. The figure is unchanged from the revised February 2015 rate of 5.7 percent, and down 0.8 percentage point from 6.5 percent a year ago, according to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. There were 548,000 jobless Floridians out of a labor force of 9,672,000. The U.S. unemployment rate was 5.5 percent in March. 

Ticket sales at the Sarasota Film Festival were up by approximately 16 percent this year over last year, as the event spread into venues with higher seating capacity and attracted more out-of-town guests to the region. The festival this year ran from April 9-19 with appearances by stars including Rachel Weisz, Jane Seymour, Ben Vereen and Blythe Danner.

“It has a lot of national and international recognition that has only built up over the years,” said SFF President Mark Famiglio.

Organizers say the festival saw increases in both in-town and out-of-town guests. The festival this year screened more than a dozen films in the Sarasota Opera House, and also incorporated event venues such as Florida Studio Theatre and McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre. While the majority of screenings still took place in regular movie theaters at the Regal Hollywood 20, even there high attendance led to more numbers of screenings. In the end, Famiglio said, the festival hosted just under 300 separate screenings, as well as five panels and four “In Conversation…” events.

The Florida festival hosted 38 world premieres of films this year, and programed 33 Florida-based films. There were 237 out-of-area filmmakers hosted by the festival. 

Those who call Southwest Florida home can enjoy an array of events from sporting functions like the Sarasota Music Half Marathon to cultural happenings like the Ringling International Arts Festival. But from a tourism point-of-view, these major events are most important as a stimulus for outside travelers to visit the region, bringing outside dollars into the local economy. “What we really wanted was for people to come in from out of town because they were going to spend more money,” said John Korff, founder of the Sarasota Music Half Marathon. “More money with us, more money in general. They invested in an airline ticket and a hotel room, and they have already come with this preconceived notion that ‘I can have fun.’ ”

The topic was discussed at length at the most recent installment of the SB2 symposium series, Hosting a Crowd: Regional Events as Economic Drivers. The event was hosted by SRQ Media Group last week at the Powel Crosley Estate.

Katherine Harris, chairman of Modern Pentathlon International, a group which successfully lured a series of Olympic-level pentathlon events to the region, said events can bring exposure to the area even beyond those people who attend. When NBC broadcast the last event here, it reached 15 million U.S. viewers. And there were 450 articles written about the pentathlon in outlets around the world. 

Lucy Nicandri, Suncoast Charities for Children executive director, organizes such events as Thunder by the Bay and the Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix. “Our big demographic reach right now is international,” she said, noting the boat races have developed a reputation as the Indy 500 of the powerboat racing world. She also said the event is changing every year to bring a new generation of fans.

And even venues that are open 365 days a year with or without events see a boost by making an occasion to visit. Steven High, executive director of The Ringling, said the museum sees events as a key to long-term achievements. “What we try and do with these events and other things is create an environment of creative energy and excitement at the campus that will bring people here,” he said.

The next SB2 event, Taking Care: Advancements in Women’s Health Initiatives, will be held May 28 at The Francis. 

SB2

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announced director and playwright Emily Mann will head its National Artist Advisory Committee, replacing Brooklyn Academy of Music Executive Producer Joseph V. Melillo, who has held the position since its inception in 2005. The group is responsible for recommending mid-career artists who are invited to receive six-week residencies at the Hermitage Artist Retreat on Manasota Key in Englewood. The committee includes some of America’s top directors, curators and artists. Serving with Mann are: Dr. Tony Bannon, director Burchfield-Penny Arts Center; Dan Cameron, former chief curator, Orange County Museum of Art; Michael Bigelow Dixon, assistant professor of Theater, Transylvania University; Kenneth Fischer, president, University Musical Society; Linda S. Golding, founder/sirector, The Reservoir; Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, executive director, Arizona State University Gammage; Christopher Merrill, sirector, International Writing program, University of Iowa; Josip Novakovich, author; Christopher Offutt, novelist; Carey Perloff, artistic director, American Conservatory Theatre; Barbara Shepherd, director of National Partnerships –Education, The Kennedy Center; and Franklin Sirmans, department head and curator of Contemporary Art, Los Angles County Museum of Art. 

Hermitage Artist Retreat

State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota Venice Campus Executive Officer Darlene Wedler-Johnson was recognized with Phi Theta Kappa’s prestigious Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction at a dinner reception at the organization’s annual convention, NerdNation, last month in Texas. The Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction recognizes an elite group of 23 college presidents and campus executive officers across the country for their support of PTK. The award is named in honor of Phi Theta Kappa’s longest serving board chair and a founder and long-time president of Highline Community College in Washington State. 

State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota

Nick Figlow has been named general manager and managing broker of RE/MAX Platinum Realty. He will oversee all RE/MAX Platinum Realty offices in Sarasota and Manatee counties. Figlow has almost four decades of real estate experience, serving in similar capacities for some of the area's major real estate firms. He has also held executive sales positions for many of the area's largest developments, including The Meadows, Bent Tree and Pinehurst Village. He was the 2004 president of the Sarasota Association of Realtors. 

RE/MAX Platinum Realty