Madonna Wows the Traverse City Film Festival

August 4, 2008 by Jane Boursaw

Madonna caused a major stir in Traverse City, Michigan by appearing at the restored State Theatre to introduce her film, I Am Because We Are, at the Traverse City Film Festival.

Folks waited in line for days to score seats to the event, and weren’t disappointed. She showed up as scheduled, wearing a black dress (I’m pretty sure it was a size 0), stood for pictures outside the theater, and spent several minutes on stage with film fest organizer Michael Moore and director Nathan Rissman, discussing the film to a sold-out 540-seat crowd.

More after the jump, including photos…

“You know what they say,” said the pop star, originally from Bay City and Rochester, Michigan. “You can take the girl out of Michigan, but you can’t take the Michigan out of the girl.” Her dad, Tony Ciccone, a local vineyard owner, was also in attendance.”

“I don’t get here enough,” she said. “Every time I get here, and I see familiar trees and geography it does make me feel a sense of comfort. So, it’s great to be bringing my movie to a place that I feel familiar.”

I’ll post a review in the next day or so. The film is a moving and heartbreaking eye-opener about the AIDS crisis in Malawi, leaving one million children orphaned. The estimated $25,000 in proceeds from the screening will go to Madonna’s charity, Raising Malawi, and be used to help start a girls’ academy in the African country.

“This movie means so much to me for so many reasons,” she said. “Making this film was a journey of a lifetime.”

Although Madonna was there to promote the film, Moore edged into fact that the tabloids have a field day with her and don’t know everything she does behind the scenes. “Well, that would take some investigation and research,” she quipped. “You know, journalism.”