James Franco and I: Part 1

I met James Franco for the first time on September 11th, 2011. More specifically, from 1:45-2:45. James arrived right at 1:47, with the buzz that Seth Rogen was with him. Though Seth wasn’t there, it provided even more excitement, if that was possible.

LEADING UP TO MEETING HIM/ CATCHING A GLIMPSE OF JAMES

I found out James was supposed to be at TIFF roughly a month before the actual event. It was late at night and I instantly called everyone. 

James had a Future Projection playing for the entire TIFF duration at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. I missed school to watch his films `Memories of Idaho` and `My Own Private River` the minute they opened.

James was supposed to do his artist talk on the day before, the Saturday, but he was stuck filming Oz The Great and Powerful. We will later find out that James had to drive home the day I met him to go back to filming. 

My day began at 7:30, waking up early in the AM to get a good spot in line. I wore a James Franco t-shirt and was accompanied by Jackie and 3 artworks centered around James. Later, we were to be joined by my cousin, Danita. We drove into Toronto and arrived at 8:30. There were already 2 groups of 2 people there, so we were 5,6 and 7th in line. It was a first come first serve event, so we were pleased with our spots. I placed the portraits facing the ceiling, on top of each other, the yarn one of top because it`s the most delicate  For the next 5 hours there were many curious observers. We chatted with the ladies in front of us, in their twenties, for a while. They were very nice and it was great to talk to other mega-fans of James. A couple hours in, the young people at the front of the line approached me, asking if I was JamesFrancoForever. I replied with an awkward yes.

More waiting occurred until a few people stood up, but we didn`t realize. The people in front of us told me that James just passed by, heading up to the second floor. In a panic  I asked for a descriptive analysis of what he was wearing. Dark jacket, hat, sunglasses, jeans. I really wish I`d seen it.

Soon, the TIFF volunteer told us to stand up as we were to be moved soon. As they began to hand out tickets, the fellow behind us tapped Jackie on the back and pointed upwards, where we found Ryan Gosling waving down. Everyone on the main floor started screaming to him. We all smiled back. 

We then got our tickets ensuring we were to attend the artist talk with James and Gus Van Sant. We were told that since we had the ticket, we were free to leave and come back before the interview, but everyone bolted up to the second floor where it was to be held. This was particularly hard due to the fact that I was carrying 3 canvases. Everyone starred at me as I came up the escalator. Once at the second floor, a crowd had grown. Now, this part is odd, but I thought the crowd was for Ryan Gosling, as we`d seen him before. So I took the opportunity to fix up my yarn portrait as it had began falling apart on the way up. I was fixated on getting the pieces in line again, but was interrupted by the sound of my name being called. I looked up, and right across from me, at the center of the crowd, was James, in a blue sweater, and blue hat. I caught a glimpse of his back, walking into an elevator. I blanked out and just starred in shock. 

It took a moment to think again, but people were still running to the line up beside where the interview would take place. We rushed, but got about 10th in line this time, with random people in front us, who just happen to get up their quicker. Happy with our placement, I rested my portraits against the balcony. Someone even came up to me and asked to take a photo with it.

As we chatted with our Tumblr friends made that day, I was asked if I was JamesFrancoForever again. This time I was less nervous. Time went by really quickly, and before I knew it, we were being shuffled into the blackberry lounge. There were limited seats, so my cousin and I shared one in the second row. Luckily, the people in front of me were using 2 seats for 3 people, so there was a large gap right in my view. A bit more waiting was required before a buzz began and everyone turned to see what was happening. Buzz of Seth Rogen and James being there swarmed the room, but, as I turned on the camera, James walked into the room.

TO BE CONTINUED