ON SCREEN
What: Feel-Good Film Festival
Where: vijff.ca
When: June 6-10
Admission: By donation
While the province has not yet opened the doors to movie theatres, there is silver-screen news worth celebrating this weekend.
The Feel-Good Film Festival gets underway Sunday with a number of online viewing options. The first-year festival, staged by organizers of the Victoria International Jewish Film Festival, opens with an hour-long stand-up comedy livestream, after which the remainder of the festival program will be available for on-demand viewing through June 10. The stand-up comedy livestream on Sunday will be hosted by NPR’s Ophira Eisenberg, whose sister lives in Victoria. She will be joined by comics from New York (The El-Salomons; Jon Fisch) and Los Angeles (Shawn Pelofsky).
The feel-good nature of film programming was intended to match the levity of opening night. Each film (Kiss Me Kosher, Bukra Fil Mish-Mish, and A Matter of Size) was chosen for its light-hearted and uplifting nature, according to organizers. Comedies always receive a big reception at the VIJFF, which takes place each October, so the idea for the mini festival was made with that reaction from supporters. “This year we decided to add a special mini festival that is focused just on comedy,” festival co-director Deborah Bricks said. “It’s good timing, because things are just now starting to look up, but people still need a little pick me up.”
The online viewing window for each film spans 72 hours. With the presence of COVID-19 health protocols, which have necessitated a switch to online programming, organizers wanted to give viewers the opportunity to enjoy the films at their convenience. “In the virtual world, I think people are expecting a little more flexibility,” Bricks said. “We want to optimize the amount of people who can watch the films, so we’ve left it open so they can fit it into their schedule.”
mdevlin@timescolonist.com
