ROCKPORT — Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) founder Ben Fowlie and Development Director Emily Peckham have proposed to operate a drive-in move theater on the former Rockport Elementary School (RES) site from the beginning of June through October 2021.

The pair submitted a proposal to the Rockport Town Office on Jan. 28, which outlines their plan to offer two film screenings each week at the West Street location, located near the intersection of Routes 1 and 90. Last summer CIFF offered 33 screenings at the location, using an existing paved area as a parking lot and projecting films onto a screen via a lighthouse-shaped projection booth.

The drive-in theater will be called “Shotwell,” and audio for the films will be transmitted to audience members through a specific station on their car radios.

The proposal also calls for the placement of food trucks on the site, an element of the experience that existed at  the drive-in last year. The proposal accounts for up to 85 vehicles being parked on the site, though 75 cars would be considered a “full house,” and advises traffic to the site be routed from Commercial Street (Route 1) rather than Pascal Avenue. Tickets for the films would be sold online.

“Much like the 2020 season, we propose to make use of this community space during times it is not otherwise in use by softball leagues, children on bikes, and exercise classes....The films’ start times will be approximately 15 minutes prior to actual sunset. The grounds will open one hour before that. Most films will end approximately 90 minutes after start time,” said Fowlie.

“We will clearly articulate all of the policies and rules of events ahead of time to all patrons - on our website, via the ticketing platform, in all email confirmations to attendees, and through printed information shared with each guest. Guests will be asked to comply with state-mandated requirements for wearing face coverings when outside of their vehicles,” he said.

The use of the site would be granted to CIFF through a lease issued by the Town; a request has been sent to Town Manager Bill Post for a copy of the lease, or the lease agreement from 2020.

“We anticipate ramping up this gathering area with a series of temporary sets for the 2021 CIFF and for one specific special event planned in July to thank the donors who underwrite the Shotwell Drive-In experience....We’re excited to bring back this creative way to engage the community of Rockport and the greater midcoast with a safe way to gather in spite of current restrictions on live and in-person events, which will likely continue for the next several months,” said Fowlie.

The proposal was discussed during a Feb. 3 meeting of the RES Redevelopment Task Force.

The RES Task Force is a group of citizens and town officials whose goal is to “engage with a developer selected by the Town to design and implement plan to redevelop the RES site as per the Vision and Development Principles identified for the site,” according to the town website.

“[CIFF’s] lease will be a non-exclusive lease so that the town can have other activities on the site, and with their activity being basically an hour before sunset until the end of the movie, I think there’s still plenty of opportunity for other types of activity there,” said Post. 

The proposal will be discussed by the Select Board at their upcoming meeting on Feb. 8. RES Task Force Chair Amanda Dwelley asked the other task force members on Feb. 3 if it would make sense for the town to consider promoting the availability of the site during the day to the public for further use.

“I can’t speak for the [Select Board] obviously, but I think their general feeling is ‘the more use there, the better off,’ especially during the pandemic. The board had approved a pop-up retail space there, and I think that they would support any reasonable concept when it comes to activity there but I can’t speak for them, but we can certainly bring it up in the discussion Monday night,” said Post.

The Rockport Select Board will meet via ZOOM Monday, Feb. 8 at 6:30 p.m.