But one of the big mistakes I made was not preparing enough for Banff. I should have had a clearer idea of who I needed to see and tried to set up meetings prior to my arrival. As a result of my lack of preparedness I ended up not getting the opportunity to see some of those people. This is how the whole thing works. Every morning, people arrive at the delegates lounge where all the participants in the festival have a mailbox.
People drop off notes, treatments, and anything else they want read into somebody's box.
The representatives of broadcasters and funding agencies tend to have their boxes crammed full with papers while first timers like myself tend to end up with the occasional flyer. Barry must have picked up on my disappointment after my first few mornings with an empty box. He sent me a short note promising me production money for a television series that I want to develop which is essentially an in-depth examination of my life and my relationship to all those around me. I was touched by his generosity. After people sift through their mail and peruse the projects that interest them, they then start to set up meetings.