By Baiba Morrow

Wildsight Invermere

Films have the power to inspire, entertain and provoke us, and the 10th Wild & Scenic Film Festival on November 18 promises to do all of this. 

The evening program is packed full of thought-provoking, funny, and informative films centred around the environment, wildlife, and the enduring human spirit. With the new 36-foot screen and a high-definition projector, the venue at the Columbia Valley Centre now offers an exceptional audience experience. 

With an underlying festival theme of Turn Your Passion into Action, the evening is an opportunity to be connected to your mountain community. It’s about supporting efforts to protect biodiversity, wildlife habitat and a thriving ecosystem. It’s Wildsight Invermere’s annual fundraiser. 

The Auction for the Wild is already in motion with 53 items donated by the arts, wellness, and outdoor communities from both sides of the Rockies. Bidding is online at 32auctions.com/wildsightinvermere. The items will be on display at the Columbia Valley Centre on the night of the festival. 

“As we count down the days to the festival and the auction bidding gains momentum, we’re touched by the support we’ve received,” says Karen Barkley, Wildsight Invermere’s branch manager. “For example, the wonderful women from the Valley Piecemakers, the local quilting guild, have stitched together a mountain-themed quilt. Why? Because they like supporting local causes. And then, when Radium Brewing came to us with the idea of putting our logo on their new beer cans of Purcell Pilsner and Kootenay Park Pale Ale, we were thrilled. Of course, that’s the beer we’ll all be drinking at the festival. With 18 festival sponsors and dozens of in-kind donations for door prizes and the auction, we know that our message of environmental advocacy resonates in the Columbia Valley. We thank everyone for their support.”

As in previous years, students from David Thompson Secondary School will be up at the lectern to introduce one of the films. Feeling the Apocalypse takes on the topic of societal anxiety about climate change. Who better than the teens to address this. 

For an alternate take on the traditional wildlife film, My Neighbour is a Bear offers a heartfelt ode to the joys of coexisting with wild nature. Travel the world through the 10 films – from Brazil to Baffin Island to Chile, Italy and Nevada – and then vow to take action. As Tim Shields, the unconventional field biologist profiled in Eco-Hack! states, “If we don’t want a really lonely planet that’s just us, and ravens, and rats and cockroaches, we’ve got a whole ton of work to do.”

See you at the festival on November 18. Go to wildsight.ca/events/2023wsff-invermere/ for more information and tickets. Cost is $25 for members, $30 for non-members, and youth (15 and younger) $10. Doors open at 5 p.m., with films running from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. For more details call 250-409-5708 or email [email protected].

Erik Boomer and Sarah McNair-Landry embark on a bold, multi-sport 45-day expedition in the remote landscape of Baffin Island.
(Photo submitted)