Saturday Farmers Market shifts to make room for the new Santa Barbara International Film Festival line up zone

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The new Film Center operated by the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in downtown has a line up area where the new Saturday Farmers Market normally has vendor booths.

It was all worked out in advance to have the farmers shift slightly to clear the area both this weekend and next weekend. Then it will be back to normal.

The festival has five lines outside on the street split by rails and marked with signs. Those film fans wait for their turn to go inside the five theatres where there are 920 seats. That rotates all day, every day of the festival.

"We are going to be adjusting some of our placement  of farmers on the 900 block so we are going to be  consolidating  on that upper half of the crosswalk so the film festival will have the whole  lower half for staging.  We are expecting big crowds," said Farmers Market General Manager Sam Edelman.

The farmers are hoping the collaboration will actually be a boost for business with many people walking by to and from the movies, possibly picking up some fresh fruits and vegetables.

The market moved in to the new location on September 27 of last year. The footprint is Carrillo St from Chapala to Anacapa, and a short leg up State St. in the 1000 block and down State St. in the 900 block.