Whistler Film Festival to open with ‘Sugar Daddy,’ ‘In Her City’
Posted November 5, 2020 1:40 pm.
Last Updated November 5, 2020 1:54 pm.
A story of a musician who works as a “paid dinner companion” for older men will help kick off next month’s Whistler Film Festival, which will offer a mix of online and in-theatre screenings.
Organizers say the Canadian film “Sugar Daddy,” written by and starring Kelly McCormack, will make its world premiere to open the festival’s online portion on Dec. 1.
Veteran stage and screen actor Colm Feore co-stars, and Wendy Morgan directs.
The festival’s in-theatre portion will launch with limited audiences under COVID-19 protocols on Dec. 3, with the world premiere of “In Her City.”
Carl Bessai directs the Canadian film, which features a series of short vignettes profiling young urban women in Toronto, New York and Los Angeles.
A total of 89 films, including 32 features, are in the 20th anniversary WFF lineup.
The indie-focused festival will premiere films online from Dec. 1 to Dec. 20, and make those titles available until Dec. 31.
The online screenings will be available with a 24-hour window throughout Canada, however some restrictions apply in Quebec.
The in-person screenings will run from Dec. 3 to Dec. 6 in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C.
Other films include the First Nations comedy “Indian Road Trip,” directed by Allan W. Hopkins, and Jeremy Torrie’s horror “The Corruption of Divine Providence,” about a Metis girl who develops stigmata.
Director Sophie Dupuis, whose 2018 drama “Family First” was Canada’s Oscars submission for best foreign language film, is on the docket with the mining disaster story “Underground.”
Joshua Demers’ political satire “Quebexit” features a confrontation between the Canadian military and a newly formed Quebec army following a surprise declaration of Quebec sovereignty.
And acclaimed Quebec actor Remy Girard stars as a former professor dealing with Alzheimer’s in Eric Tessier’s “You Will Remember Me.”
The full lineup is on the WFF website.
The festival says it will share net online proceeds on a 50/50 basis directly with the filmmakers or Canadian rights holders, as a way to support filmmakers struggling during the pandemic.
WFF also will offer 16 awards to films in seven juried competitions.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2020.
Victoria Ahearn, The Canadian Press
