Powell River Film Festival is celebrating its 15th anniversary this February and, according to the festival director, so many things have changed since the festival’s first years.
“The industry has changed since the festival started,” said director Michelle Hignell. “When they started it was held in the old high school with a reel-to-reel that kept overheating.”
Now with digital films and two different venues, the festival’s 15th anniversary will be celebrated this year with a special party at Patricia Theatre on the final night, ahead of a screening of British actress Maggie Smith’s film, Lady in the Van.
“We are still looking for good stories with a universal theme that all people can relate to,” said Hignell of this year’s film selection. “A lot of people will recognize Maggie Smith and be drawn to that film.”
In addition to the Lady in the Van, the festival will also be screening Second Mother on its opening night. The Brazilian drama written and directed by Anna Muylaert examines the class tensions that emerge when the live-in housekeeper’s daughter moves in.
“I am most looking forward to seeing Second Mother,” said Hignell. “It covers some serious subject matter in a rather lighthearted way.”
In addition to feature films, the festival also has screenings by local film artists such as Claudia Medina, as well as morning screenings for students and the public, including a showing of an animated film version of Khalil Gibran’s 26 prose essays known collectively as The Prophet.
“This is the telling of that poetry,” said Hignell. “Each of the sequences is animated by a someone different, so it’s a neat way to get kids and the public exposed to this timeless classic.”
The festival will also feature a screening of an Australian film called Tender. The documentary about non-profit funeral services will also feature a discussion panel by Powell River Hospice Society and Powell River Division of Family Practice.
Powell River Film Festival runs from February 17 to 21 with films shown at the Patricia Theatre and Powell River Recreation Complex’s Evergreen Theatre.
For more information, go to prfilmfestival.ca.
