Whistler Film Festival – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

Rama Rau Talks HONEY BEE and Trafficking- Jennifer Merin interviews

October 14, 2020October 18, 2020 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments julia sarah stone, martha plympton, rama rau. honey bee, the female gaze, Whistler Film Festival

In Rama Rau’s Honey Bee, Natalie is an underage truck stop hooker working for a pimp who claims to love her, but regularly abuses She is stopped by authorities and sent to a home, actually a working farm, run by a tough love matriarch played with authority by Martha Plimpton. Honey Bee is a moving and credible drama that points out the dead-end choices that many young women are given little option but to make. The film won AWFJ’s EDA Award for Best Female-Directed Feature at 2018 Whistler Film Festival. The film is releasing online November 10.

News

WEEK IN WOMEN – IFC acquires A CALL TO SPY, WWII Female Spy Drama – Brandy McDonnell reports

July 27, 2020August 1, 2020 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments a call to spy, EDA Awards, ifc, lydia dean pilcher, Radhika Atpe, Sarah Megan Thomas, Stana Katic, truth-based, twiw, vera atkins, week in women, Whistler Film Festival

IFC Films has acquired the North American rights to A Call to Spy, the feature directorial debut of Academy Award-nominated documentary producer Lydia Dean Pilcher, which centers on the courageous unsung female spies who served in World War II. IFC is planning an autumn release.

Interviews

Andrea Stefancikova talks PROMISELAND and Troubled Characters – Marina Antunes interviews

March 3, 2020March 3, 2020 Marina Antunes 0 Comments Andrea Stefancikova, canadian films., Kirk Caouette, promiseland, Whistler Film Festival

Canadian/Czechoslovakian actress Andrea Stefancikova’s budding career got a big boost when Promiseland, her first performance in a leading role, was selected to screen at the Whistler Film Festival in 2019; the first martial arts action film to ever screen at the fest. Additionally, Stefancikova was selected as one of the festival’s Stars to Watch, a prestigious honor awarded by a committee of industry professionals.

EDA Awards Interviews

Filmmaker Meryam Joobeur on Oscar-nominated BROTHERHOOD – Jennifer Merin interviews

January 21, 2020January 24, 2020 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments brotherhood, EDA Awards, meryam joobeur, oscars, Whistler Film Festival

Filmmaker Meryam Joobeur’s 25 minute narrative film takes us to rural Tunisia and into the life of a hardened shepherd, Mohamed, who is deeply shaken when his estranged son Malik, who’d left the family to fight for ISIS, returns home with a Syrian wife. Tensions between father and son slowly build into an inevitable and heartbreaking confrontation with devastating results.

Commentaries Guest Posts

How I Watch Films As A Film Director – Katia Shannon comments (Guest Post)

January 21, 2020January 24, 2020 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments concordia university, female perspectives, guest posts, katia shannon, professor john locke, the female gaze, wavelength, Whistler Film Festival

A few years ago, during an undergraduate film studies class viewing of Michael Snow’s Wavelength, I was struggling to find anything positive about the 40-minute imperceptibly slow zoom we were watching unfold. After reconsidering the value of my student loan, and whether or not people would notice if I took a quick nap, something great happened. I dove into a contemplation of the nuances between entertainment, appreciation, and enjoyment.

Festivals

Whistler Film Festival 2019: It’s a Wrap – Marina Antunes reports

December 19, 2019 Marina Antunes 0 Comments antigone, borsos award, canadian films., Shauna Hardy Mishaw, Sophie Deraspe, Whistler Film Festival

For five short days in December, the Resort Municipality of Whistler turns from one of the world’s top ski destinations into one of the top entertainment destinations as the Whistler Film Festival descends on the village. In its 19th year, the latest edition of festival continued the tradition of celebrating Canadian talent with 71% of the programmed films being Canadian.

EDA Awards Festivals Interviews

Whistler Film Festival 2019: Katharine O’Brien on LOST TRANSMISSIONS

December 5, 2019December 6, 2019 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments awfj eda awards, juno temple, lost transmissions, Simon Pegg, Whistler Film Festival

Lost Transmissions is about mental illness. It’s also about the mental wavelengths we’re on, trying to connect to with one another, and missing. On one hand the film is grounded in realism. It shows someone trying to help their friend with psychiatric care. On the other hand, the film looks at how bizarre the real world is if we take a moment to consider it in depth. Lost Transmissions is the opening film at Whistler Film Festival 2019, where it is among the films nominated for an AWFJ EDA Award. Here’s what directior Katharine O’Briien has to say about making the film.

EDA Awards Festivals Interviews

Whistler Film Festival 2019: Rebecca Snow on PANDORA’S BOX – Jennifer Merin interviews

November 21, 2019November 23, 2019 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments documentary, EDA Awards, Pandora’s box, rebecca snow, the female gaze, Whistler Film Festival

In Pandora’s Box, filmmaker Rebecca Snow deals with a central issue in women’s struggle for gender equality by revealing how for generations women have been shamed, ostracized, and silenced, because they menstruate. Pandora’s Box unmasks the global pandemic of menstrual inequity and period poverty. The powerful stories that emerge raise public consciousness of #Menstrual Equity, a global movement that is going mainstream. Pandora’s Box is among the female-directed films nominated for an AWFJ EDA Award aft Whistler Film Festival 2019. Her insightful comments on the making and meaning of pandora’s Box are fascinating.

EDA Awards Festivals Interviews

Whistler Film Festival 2019: Sarah Phillips on SUPPLEMENTS – Jennifer Merin interviews

November 21, 2019November 29, 2019 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments EDA Awards, Sarah phillips, supplements, Whistler Film Festival

Sarah Phillip’s Supplements is set in the year 2289, When all that’s left on Planet Earth is the domed city Old Centauri, roaming sun flares that scorch the land, and the nomadic tribes that mitigate the two. Kiirke comes from one such tribe, and she must travel to Old Centauri, along with her stowaway younger brother, to seek a small fortune to save her family – But the only way to make money as a newcomer to the city is to enroll in Supplements Labs as what the locals call a “lab rat.” The short film has been nominated for an. AWFJ EDA Award at Whistler Film Festival 2019. The EDA Awards at Whistler Film Festival will be announced on December 10, 2019.

EDA Awards Festivals Interviews

Whistler Film Festival 2019: Kristina Mileska on THE BEAR AND THE BEEKEEPER – Jennifer Merin interviews

November 21, 2019November 23, 2019 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments EDA Awards, Kristina Mileska, the bear and the beekeeper, the female gaze, Whistler Film Festival

In Kristina Mileska’s The Bear and the Beekeeper, an ageing beekeeper tries to keep a pesky predator away from his beehives in order to keep the memory of his loved one alive. The dialogue-free short The Bear and the Beekeeper explores themes of loss and memory with a sense of whimsy and lightness. The short film has been nominated for an. AWFJ EDA Award at Whistler Film Festival 2019.

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