The Fernie Mountain Film Festival is back for another year and is celebrating its 10th birthday. The annual event is a celebration of mountain culture through film and gatherings.
This year, the Festival is set for Feb. 19 and 20, featuring films on both evenings. Why We Fly, which was filmed in Fernie, plays on Friday, showcasing the KAVU athletes. Search for Freedom is the feature film that evening, along with a guest speaker, Gord McArthur.
“Gord McArthur is a climber from Cranbrook, who competes for Canada on the world cup ice climbing circuit,” explained Brian Bell, an event organizer.
McArthur will be speaking about his experience in the sport as an elite athlete, along with photos and video clips.
On Saturday, Jumbo Wild is the feature film, which focuses on the conflict over the Jumbo Wild Glacier Resort. Along with the feature films will be a series of short films, all dedicated to mountain culture.
The Fernie Mountain Social will be hosted before the films on both nights. Local food will be provided from Le Grand Fromage and The Bridge Bistro.
Students from the College of the Rockies help to organize and facilitate the event.
“The Mountain Adventure Skills Program and some local volunteers too, help organize the event,” said Bell. “The students do most of the labour for the festivals and they run the bar, and the door and basically run the show.”
The proceeds from the festival are usually donated back to community programs.
“We do donate proceeds to the Ghostriders’ Kids camp and that is a locally run volunteer organization. It’s for kids that don’t really get a chance to go to camp and it’s run every summer,” said Bell, adding proceeds have also been donated to the Trails Alliance and the Fernie Nordic Society.
This year, a photography contest will be hosted on the Saturday night. The top amateur and professional photographs, as voted on by a Facebook contest, will be featured at the Community Centre, where the public can vote for their favourite images.
“The top amateur and the top pros, their photos will be framed and displayed at the festival for final judging by the audience. And there are cash prizes for that,” said Bell.
Tickets to the festival are $15 per night or $25 for the entire weekend. More information is available online at Ferniemountainfilmfestival.com.