SkeenaWild Conservation Trust is taking its 11th annual film festival online this year in hopes of continuing to shine light on the people and the wilderness of what it considers to be one of the most beautiful places on earth – northern B.C.
The film festival presents an amalgamation of short films, features, youth films and photographs from B.C. residents who live around or have visited the Skeena River. This year’s festival will be available over Zoom on Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.
“I feel like it’s a great opportunity for people to view what north-west B.C has to offer. You have to give yourself the chance to discover it,” said Joelle St-Gelais, SkeenaWild communications coordinator.
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Some of this year’s films include a family’s overnight hike through the mountains, the story of a man completing one lap of the Everest Challenge five years after breaking his neck and a drone’s eye view of berry picking in the north.
“It’s really about celebrating the beauty of nature and the people here,” St-Gelais said.
This year, there are eight short films, two features and two youth films, for a total run time of just over 37 minutes. St-Gelais said they will be posting the films to their website for anyone who is unable to tune in Thursday night and viewers will be able to vote on their favourite films for the next week. The film festival’s photographs will also be available on its website for people to view and vote.
St-Gelais said the film festival is first and foremost about celebrating local talent, but they also hope it inspires people to take care of the natural beauty around them.
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“I hope people take time and really let it sink in that where we live is really amazing. Hopefully it will spike in people’s minds that we need to preserve it and enjoy it.”
St-Gelais is also hopeful that when the COVID-19 pandemic passes, more people will be inspired to visit northern B.C. to see its rugged beauty for themselves.
The SkeenaWild Conservation Trust was created in 2007 with the goal of making the Skeena River region a global model of sustainability.
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