[Wamvan] 10th Annual Vancouver International Women in Film Festival --WAM! Vancouver, you're invited!

[Emily Yakashiro]

Hi WAM! Van Folks,

I’m writing today to invite you to the 10th annual Vancouver International
Women in Film Festival <http://www.womeninfilm.ca/2015_Film_Festival.html>.
I volunteered my time this past year as a judge for this terrific local
event that is run and directed by women, and I’m really proud of this
year’s lineup.

The festival runs March 4-8th downtown, and already the screenings for our
opening night film *Margarita with a Straw,* and the *Highway of Tears*
documentary block have sold out! Given that the festival runs during March
8th, International Women’s Day, I can’t think of a better way to celebrate
women’s achievements.

Our festival is run by Women in Film and television Vancouver, an
organization I have been a member of for two years now. For a film to be
eligible for our festival, a woman must fill three key creative roles
(director, writer, producer, editor, cinematographer, music, etc).

*Filmmaking for women in Canada has been particularly difficult this past
year*—in our festival committee, we noticed a distinct lack of
feature-length narrative films compared to our 2014 festival. This means in
that in an industry dominated by men, *women had a harder time than ever
getting their films made and on screen at festivals*. As such, I really
encourage you all to show your support for female filmmakers by spreading
the word about the festival, and showing up to watch some really excellent
films.

Personally, I would recommend a few films in particular.

*Relative Happiness* showing on Friday, March 6th starting at 9:30 pm has
my recommendation for a few reasons. It’s a feature-length dramedy from
back East, and it’s actually funny—I watched it twice when I was judging
just for fun and laughed out loud all the while. I love the
film’s protagonist Lexi Ivy (played by Melissa Bergland), who is a fiery
30-something who runs a bed and breakfast, wears dresses even when she goes
camping, and makes jams and preserves for local craft fairs in her spare
time. *I also love that the film has some body diversity*—Lexi Ivy is a
‘plus’ size gal and totally steals the show.

*Lady Be Good: Instrumental Women in Jazz* showing Friday, March 6th at
6:30 is a great, fun doc. Yes, the music is amazing, and the subject matter
fascinating. Even if you don’t like jazz, I can guarantee you’ll get into
the 'swing' of things. Thoroughly researched, the film covers musicians
from the 1920s-1970s, and has tons of interviews with women who were in
these bands back in the day. *This film also stands out to me as it
features the perspectives of many women of colou*r—a must-see, for sure. In
the spirit of things, the festival will also have a jazz reception
featuring performer Jillian Lebeck!

Lastly, I want to suggest *A 5-Star,* an Iranian film showing Saturday,
March 7th at 9:30 pm. I didn’t get a chance to see this film while I was
judging, but *my co-judges sold me on the film and I will definitely be at
the screening for this one!* Apparently it’s quite funny and
unexpected—it’s about a mother and daughter working at a fancy hotel, and
all hell breaks loose when a major guest’s watch gets stolen. They didn’t
tell me much more than that, but I’m quite intrigued.

You can check out the whole schedule online here:
<http://www.womeninfilm.ca/Shcedule_2015.html>
http://www.womeninfilm.ca/Shcedule_2015.html

You can purchase tickets online in advance here
<http://www.womeninfilm.ca/cgi/page.cgi/_evtcal.html?evt=151> OR you can
get them at the box office. *All movies are shown at VIFF’s Vancity Theatre
downtown.*

Be sure to check out the festival Facebook group
<https://www.facebook.com/events/1483355371885180>, and if you attend any
screenings or events for the festival, tweet about it using #VIWIFF2015.

Please email me at emily at thclosetfeminist.ca if you have any questions!

Thank-you & enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Emily


-- 
*Emily Yakashiro*
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