VIWFF 2021
The 16th Annual Festival took place virtually from March 4 – 14, 2021 and the program included an international, multi-genre selection of 32 films from 16 countries.
The 2021 festival showcased an international lineup of short- and feature-length films, from narrative and documentary to experimental and animation—celebrating the complexity and diversity of ways girls and women choose to challenge, overcome, and inspire—themselves, each other, their communities, and our world today.
The features slate included three Canadian films, with two from BC: Brother, I Cry from Indigenous director Jessie Anthony and award-winning The Curse of Willow Song from established horror genre director Karen Lam, as well as Passages from Quebec-based director Florence Pelletier; and two Vancouver premieres of international films—Holy Rights (India) from director Farha Khatun, and the Kyrgyzstan-filmed, award-winning drama Ala Kachuu—Take And Run (Switzerland) from director Maria Brendle.
VIWFF 2021 was proud to present a slate of select live-streamed events, including an International Women’s Day Panel on March 8, , featuring major players in diversity and inclusion efforts. The annual Screenplay Competition Panel and Awards Ceremony were both held virtually.
VIWFF 2021 Official Trailer
Awards
Program One: Your Worst Enemy
Program Two: Be Like Water
Program Three: All About Love
Program Four: Break The Sky
Events
IWD Advocacy Panel: #ChoosetoChallenge
VIWFF, in collaboration with WIFT Canada Coalition, hosted a conversation with major government film and television funding agencies and organizations as we challenge ourselves—and the systems that support our film and television industry in Canada—to become more inclusive and representative.
We invited the organizations to report on gender equity, with a focus on intersectionality within their work on gender equity. In particular we invited them to speak about their progress and plans toward equitable representation and opportunities for Indigenous women, Black women, Women of Colour, Women with Disabilities, LGBTQ2++ Women, and Gender Diverse people in their funding programs. The focus was in keeping with the 2021 International Women’s Day theme of #ChoosetoChallenge.
Moderated by Ana de Lara, former Vice President, Women in Film and Television Vancouver.
Panelists:
- Valerie Creighton, CEO, Canada Media Fund
- Christa Dickenson, Executive Director, Telefilm Canada
- Prem Gill, CEO, Creative BC
- Jill Golick, Women in View
- Joan Jenkinson, Executive Director, Black Screen Office
- Claude Joli-Coeur, Government Film Commissioner/ Chair, National Film Board of Canada
- Doreen Manuel, WIFTV Board of Directors / BOSA Centre for Film + Animation, Capilano University
- Barbara Williams, Executive Vice President, CBC
From Our Dark Side Keynote + Finalists
A keynote from Diana Williams, Founder, Kinetic Energy Entertainment, followed by a panel with the five Finalist creative teams of this year’s From Our Dark Side genre development incubator. Moderated by Lindsay Peters, From Our Dark Side program director. Panelists:- The Apartment: Becky Parsons (Producer)
- Dark Woods: Berkley Brady (Director/Writer/Producer)
- Mid Life: Alyson Richards (Director/Writer)
- Red Wings: Kate Kroll (Director)
- Transvengeance: Kaye Adelaide (Director/Writer)
Watch a recording of the From Our Dark Side Keynote + Finalists Panel
Program sponsors: Creative BC, Telefilm Canada Program partner: Frontières International Co-Production Market
Screenplay Competition Finalists
A conversation with the ten finalists of this year’s VIWFF Screenplay Competition. Moderated by Joan Macbeth, Screenplay Competition program coordinator.
Screenplay Competition Finalists:
- Isobel Bradbury & Isabella Vergun – Exes and Ohs – Feature (USA)
- Morgan Brayton – Flannery & Flannery – TV Pilot (Canada)
- Kaili Capito – Regression – Feature (USA)
- Charlotte Daniel – We Were Never Meant to Survive – Feature (UK)
- Helen Doremus – Romanza – Feature (USA)
- Tihemme Gagnon – PB&J – Feature (Canada)
- Arielle Haller-Silverstone – Family Politics – TV Pilot (USA)
- Lulu Keating – Klondike Kalahari – Feature (Canada)
- Nubia Rahim – Pedal Power – Feature (USA)
- Isabella Vergun – Sean Glick F*cks the World – Feature (USA)
Watch a recording of the Screenplay Competition Finalists Artist Talk
Competition Sponsor: The International Screenwriter’s Association
Table Reads: Tricksters and Writers
Workshopped actor table reads of scripts/script excerpts from WIFTV’s Tricksters and Writers film writing program for Indigenous women. Facilitated by Renae Morriseau.
March 12
Queen of East Van by Brenda Prince
One Who Knows by Shilo Nyce
The Words We Can’t Speak by Lindsay McIntyre (excerpt)
March 13
Sadie’s Move by Shaelyn Johnston
Actors (for all readings): Shauna Baker, Sam Bob, Joyce Delaronde, Asivak Koostachin, Shane Leydon, Oivia Lucas, Taninli Wright
Event Sponsor: Indigenous Digital Filmmaking Program, Capilano University
Program Sponsors: Matrix Production Services, CMPA- BC Producers Branch, Final Draft, TELUS Storyhive, Line 21, Creative BC, BC Arts Council
Workshop: Digital Marketing with Annelise Larson
“How to Build a Basic Digital Strategy for Your Film” with Annelise Larson, digital strategist, StorypreneursUnite.com.
Annelise Larson is a digital strategist and former filmmaker who works with media industry stakeholders to use the digital opportunity to find, grow, and engage audiences; and work toward sustainable business models. Her podcast STORY+AUDIENCE with screenwriter Jill Golick can be found on all major podcasting platforms, and she just launched a new online Digital Marketing for Media course in conjunction with the National Screen Institute. See a recent presentation and report from Annelise for Telefilm Canada.
Watch a recording of “How to Build a Basic Digital Strategy for Your Film” with Annelise Larson
Workshop Sponsor: Annelise Larson, Veria.ca / StorypreneursUnite.com
Awards
Feature Film Awards
Short Film Awards
Best Screenplay
Chen-Wen Lo (In This Land We’re Briefly Ghosts )
Honourable Mention: Valerie Tian (The Curse of Willow Song)
Best Performance
Rhona Rees (FREYA )
Screenplay Competition
