Vancouver International Film Festival launches with 150 feature films set to screen

The 43rd edition of the Vancouver International Film Festival is set to kick off next month with more than 350 screenings in the city.

The Executive Director of VIFF Kyle Fostner says this year’s VIFF is “strong all the way across the board.” He says the eleven-day event is packed with “top-tier titles from around the world.”

The 350 screenings this year include 150 feature films and 81 shorts. There will be an interactive component called VIFF Live, which combines cinema culture with music in live shows.

The festival will also feature filmmaker Q&As and talks with top creatives. The screenings will be held in seven venues throughout the city on ten different screens. This year VIFF will be back in Kitsilano at Fifth Avenue Cinemas.

“You get to see films that will be nominated for Oscars down the line as well. So you have that wide option for yourself. You can see the awards contenders and you can see those films that will never be seen on screens again in this city is the reality,” said Curtis Woloschuk, Director of Programming, VIFF.

VIFF 2024 will kick off with “Ari’s Theme” by local filmmakers – a documentary shining the light on a British Columbia composer with spinal muscular atrophy. The festival will close with Emilia Perez, a musical that was featured at this spring’s Cannes Film Festival, with big names like singers and actresses like Selena Gomez.

In a film industry that was hit hard by the pandemic followed by the Hollywood strike, it’s also a time to celebrate local talent and the resurgence of arts and culture in Vancouver.

“We’re going to have nine films that were made here in the province, and most of those in Vancouver itself. Five of those will be world premieres as well, and I think it just speaks to the remarkable talent in this space and the breadth of storytelling being done here as well,” Woloschuk said.

While VIFF will feature some big stars, viewers are also encouraged to roll the dice on films they wouldn’t usually see, giving them a chance to be surprised.

“I think that if you want the true festival experience, you should start with one of the headliners, one of the things you know, get into the mood. Then choose something completely at random. Because we stand by every 150 features in this festival, all 80 shorts. There is a lot of discoverability here,” said Fostner.

The festival will run from September 26th to October 6th.