Banff Film Festival to be hosted in Halifax

Local stores The Trail Shop and Take It Outside have been helping with the event and bringing it to Nova Scotian audiences

CITYnews halifax \ Jordan Parker

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A long-time tradition, the Banff Film Festival is set to return to Halifax once again this week.

With screenings also occurring in Wolfville and Truro, the international film competition will feature beautiful, outdoor mountainous footage.

Local stores The Trail Shop and Take It Outside have been helping with the event and bringing it to Nova Scotian audiences.

“We’ve been working with the festival for over 25 years at the Trail Shop,” said long-time employee Lisa Foote. “We started working with them because we’re all about adventure and the outdoors.”

The Banff, Alta. festival was looking to expand its horizons geographically, and The Trail Shop – and later Take It Outside – were able to help with that.

“The Banff Film Festival folks were looking for someone in Halifax who could host the event,” she said. “We wanted to help them promote and we started doing this with them.”

The festival has come a long way since its humble beginnings screening in Nova Scotia.

“We first began in a library, with a showing that was for 25 people. We’ve shifted a few venues, and we’ve now been with the Spatz Theatre for over a decade,” she said.

“It’s just an event that’s grown substantially. The Spatz is a wonderful theatre and it seats over 750 people.”

In the last few years, the event has expanded beyond Halifax and moved to other areas in the region as well.

“We started a really popular one in Wolfville and we also have one in Truro. We’re now up to three venues and four showings.”

Foote is so happy to see how things have changed, and the way people have embraced the event.

“It’s just a spectacular thing. We moved to Park Lane Cinemas after a while, and grew to an audience of over 100 people yearly. But then we ended up at the Spatz,” she said.

“It’s been overwhelming to see how much people look forward to the event. For two years straight, pre-COVID, we sold out both nights in Halifax. People just wanted to see the outdoor experiences.”

During COVID, the in-person screenings were halted in Nova Scotia, though viewers still had access to the festival.

“People were able to watch the festival online from the Banff Film Festival website from the comfort of their homes,” said Foote. “But there’s a difference between watching it at home and watching it in a theatre.”

Based on early screening sales this year, audiences are also craving the immersive, in-person experience the festival offered.

“When you’re looking at the films from a projector on a big screen, you can see the joy it gives people,” she said.

“The attitudes and enthusiasm to see the films play are there, and people love to experience it together. Nothing brings out the adventure of the festival like that big screen.”

The Wolfville showing is already sold out, and Foote says sales are incredibly strong in Halifax and Truro as well.

“Things are definitely busy. Truro’s sales are picking up and we’re doing better this year in Halifax than last year’s sales already.”

Foote looks forward to hosting an event that will bring people happiness and keep them entertained.

“We’re just hoping this is a great time. The films take from people’s life experiences with the outdoors and their adventures,” she said. “What better way to explore those things than this festival?”

Screenings are January 26 and 27. Find more information or purchase tickets by clicking here.