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4B - Thursday, March 20, 2008

4he Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

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AAFF
From Page lB
"It was a big decision to fight
back and we knew it was going
to put us in jeopardy, but it suc-
ceeded in the end," said McArdle
proudly.
Looking back on the number of
contributors, as well as the wide
range of people who lent their
support, McArdle seems most
astonished by the dedication and
perseverance on the part of the
festival's advocates. She argues
that one of the reasons for the
overwhelming encouragement
was a sense of duty to the art
world and the community as a
whole.
"It made everyone step back
and look at the bigger picture,"
she said. "I kind of loved that.
It was very honest to me. I don't
think you see that all the time."
People from all over the world
are rallying behind the AAFF
now. Charlie Koones, publisher
of the entertainment industry's
most revered newspaper, Variety,
ranked it as one of the "10 Film
Festivals We Love" in his speech
at the International Film Festival
Summit in 2007 - not bad con-
sidering he had roughly 6,000 to
choose from. And Larry Flynt,
founder of Hustler Magazine, will
make an appearance next week to
coincide with the screening of a
documentary about his longtime
crusade for free speech.
Though it's faced its ups and
downs over the past year, the Ann
Arbor Film Festival has beaten the
odds and come out on top. McAr-
die sees it as not only a victory for
free speech, but as a victory for
all those willing to take a risk and
stand up against artistic injustice.
"It was a David and Goliath,"
she said, smiling. "We fought
back and won."

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