How negative temperatures just can’t keep movie lovers away

The International Festival of Winter Cinema returned for its eighth year in February, remaining completely free of charge for the estimated 1,000 Edmontonians who attended.

Hosted in partnership with the Silver Skate Festival, the International Festival of Winter Cinema
(IFWC) took place in Sir Wilfrid Laurier Park. The nine-day festival began on Feb. 7 and ran until Feb. 16, showcasing films of varied lengths and themes.

Every year, thanks to the films screened by the IFWC, viewers are immersed in themes of winter and Indigeneity both on and off screen. Some of the films are based in Edmonton, like Decolonizing Our Youth, directed by Lyndon Suntjens, which features Edmonton landscapes and various Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Elders.

Trixie Pacis, a Canadian filmmaker, said the free entry to the festival is important because it provides an opportunity for everyone to enjoy cinema without financial barriers.

“It’s always great when you have art that’s available to the public for free,” Pacis said.

Thye Phan is a festival volunteer who helped to build the screen. Phan said that compared to other Edmonton festivals’ high ticket prices, the IFWC’s free admission allows more people to experience arts and culture in the city. “Not everyone can afford to go to every festival,” said Phan.

According to IFWC board president Kevin Heaman, the event relies on fundraising, grants, and sponsors to pay contributing filmmakers and to remain free of charge for the public. Sponsors include the Edmonton Arts Council, YEGFilm, and the City of Edmonton.

“We pay our artists almost $9,000 worth of just screening fees, which is fantastic because that’s one of our main things, to pay our artists,” said Heaman.

After Sunday night’s programming was cancelled due to extreme weather, Heaman said their screenings were moved to an extended Thursday night schedule to ensure all filmmakers still got paid.

The cancellation marked a first in the event’s history, with previous years running in temperatures as low as minus 40.

“We made the tough call to cancel the nightly programming,” said Heaman. “There was literally no one on-site because it was so frigid.”

Part of the festival’s budget goes toward building one of its most unique features — a 16-by-12-foot screen made entirely from snow.

Heaman said the snow screen is both a practical solution and a memorable element to the event, as normal screens would not withstand the low temperatures.

“I think seeing my footage on a massive snow screen will be pretty special,” Pacis said.

To keep costs low, the event is mainly run by volunteers, with up to 10 people there every day to
ensure the event goes smoothly.

For festival goers like Phan, the volunteers help entice participation in the flurries. “I think they bring a lot of good energy to make you want to come out and sit on a bench made
out of snow around a fire, eating whatever snacks they have,” said Phan.

As a winter festival, part of the volunteers’ responsibilities is to keep attendees comfortable and
warm in temperatures below minus 15.

Volunteer Levius Vaal Labyss said, “We got a tent, we got a couple of fires going before the screening is started. There’s a couple blankets offered for borrowing — I don’t think the cold is as big of a problem as people think it is.”

At the time of the interview, Heaman projected their final weekend to be their busiest, with an estimate of 300 to 500 visitors.

Looking forward, Heaman said the IFWC hopes to connect with a larger audience and continue
to provide Edmontonians with inclusive opportunities to view art. He hopes the festival will
feature more premieres and larger events in the future.

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Photo by Mikayla Pohl