Stratford Times

Stratford Winter Film Festival announces film lineupThe inaugural lineup of the Stratford Winter Film

Festival (SWFF) has been announced and promises to

bring light to an otherwise dark time in February.

There are nine films, five venues, one pass to access it

all. The event takes place Friday Feb 9 to Feb 11. Event

space includes Grayson Mills, first and second floor,

Factory 163, Revival House and Avondale Church. Little Prince Micro-Cinema will be doing some adjacent,

“secret” stuff.

“We are planning something that we are keeping quiet, but it is something that is extremely interesting adjacent to our core film theatres that is on top of SWFF,

so off-SWFF, kind of like off-Broadway,” teased Craig

Sangster, SWFF co-founder.

The films featured were curated collaboratively

through sending out letters to people that have been

helpful in the creation of the event, with great response.

“We sent a letter and said we are curating the films

now and each film fits in the category of food, music or

history; you tell us what would be super interesting for

this festival in our inaugural year. We got all these responses back so part of what you’ll see is derived from

that. There’s also things we thought were interesting

and other people suggested,” said Sangster.

They wanted a mix that was interesting enough but

not what would be consumed on a regular basis. Some

old, some new, but nothing too esoteric. Based on the

theme of food, music and history, there is something

for every taste and style.

“This is really about community, and getting out

of our house, and something to do collectively,” said

Bruce MacInnis, SWFF co-founder.

“We think our films are super interesting, we’ve had

a super response. Here’s a lovely collection built by

people who really care about the experience. It’s the

whole experience thing,” adds Sangster.

The themes have been developed using both documentary style and feature films. They are intended to

encompass things that everyone cares about. What they

thought made sense for the festival is having very universal, not exclusionary, appeal.

In the music category, the organizers bring ‘Mr. Jimmy’, ’32 Sounds’ and ‘Have you got it yet’

“These films have just been released, so for our first

outing to have these, we have done well. They have

been shortlisted (for awards),” said Lesley Marsh, third

of the trio of co-founders. “We’re really excited. We

have a bit of a vibe to have something sort of exclusive.”

In the food category is ‘The Truffle Hunters’, ‘Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles’ and ‘Percy’. In the

history category is ‘All is true’, ‘The Last Vermeer’ and

‘The End of Time.’ Previews of each of the films can be

viewed at stratfordwinterfilmfestival.ca.

There will be intentional collaborations within local

business relating to each of the films that will hopefully

drive audience members into accommodations, restaurants and coffee shops while attending the festival. For

example, Revival House will continue to serve while

the festival is ongoing and through introductions to

films, local opportunity to cross-promote will be enjoyed.

Passes are available for $99 each and are valid for all

nine films. They are available online at stratfordwinterfilmfestival.ca and offers the choice of six different

itineraries. Festival goers are encouraged to visit the

site.

Volunteers are also sought for the event. They are actively seeking ten or twelve more volunteers to act as

ushers, merch table, and greeters, for example. Those interested can contact info@stratfordwinterfilmfestival.ca.

https://granthaven.com/