The 31st ‘hybrid’ version World Community Film Festival is ready to roll. Opening night is an in-person event, while the online festival of 16 inspiring international documentaries can be viewed at home from Feb. 5- 13 in any order.
Each of the programmers selected the uplifting Fanny: The Right to Rock for opening night Friday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the Sid Williams Theatre. Vaccine cards and masks are required and only 250 tickets will be available. Separate tickets for this one film are available from the Sid box office.
To quote the late David Bowie: “Revivify Fanny. And my work is done.”
Fighting barriers of race, gender and sexuality in the music industry, the incredible women of the 1960s rock band, Fanny, are ready to claim their place in the halls of rock ‘n’ roll fame as they reunite to play music.
With archival footage of the band’s rocking past, intercut with its next chapter releasing a new LP today, the film includes interviews with music icons such as Joe Elliott and Bonnie Raitt. Advisory: Coarse language. The film was named Best Canadian Feature at the Inside Out Festival and by Hot Docs.
Programmer Heather Wilkinson recommends Invisible: Gay Women in Southern Music. This film takes viewer to the country music world in Nashville.
Invisible from T.J. Parsell on Vimeo.
“I was astonished to learn that the many talented, prolific lesbian singer/songwriters, despite being the creators of hundreds of well-known hit songs, are unknown by the public,” Wilkinson said.
“My picks this year include Walking with Plants,” Gord Darby said. “It is a beautifully crafted and thought-provoking film that delves deeply into the journey of Sḵwxw̱ú7mesh Nation ethnobotanist Styawat/Leigh Joseph, and her quest to finding a balance between life in academia and culture.”
Darby’s other recommendation is Keyboard Fantasies: The Beverly Glen-Copeland Story. “It is a wonderfully quirky film that tells the story of Beverly becoming Glen, and how music can reach across generations and around the world.”
Janet Fairbanks selected Daughter of a Lost Bird.
“This complex story about loss of identity and culture was so powerful,” she said. “It’s an example of how intergenerational trauma continues.”
When Kendra reconnects with her birth family and her Lummi heritage, she discovers that her birth mother, April, was also displaced from her family.
Fairbanks also recommends It is Not Over Yet. A small nursing home in Denmark treats people with dementia with hugs, conversation, cake and cocktails.
Tickets for opening night at the Sid are $15 per person, or $11 for those with limited income.
An online festival pass is $45 per person, $65 per household and $25/limited income.
A single online film is $10 per person, $16 per household and $8/limited income.
For descriptions, film trailers and links to purchase tickets, visit www.worldcommunity.ca.