BY PATRICK LABA, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

As the 43rd Atlantic International Film Festival drew nearer, so too did the threat of disaster. Hurricane Lee was making its way across the Atlantic Ocean, with its sights set on the Maritimes. Precautions had been made, venues had been booked and films were waiting to roll. There was a palpable feeling behind the scenes of AIFF – a mixture of excitement and worry:

Is this thing going to happen?

A brief note: As you read this, you’ll notice an ongoing tally of moments during the festival that gave me goosebumps. This is being done to convey the emotion felt in any of the described situations, because sure, words can be read and considered, but the phenomenon of being moved to such a degree that you experience a physical reaction? That’s universal.

Also universal was the love of film on display by every attendee, industry person, staff member and volunteer during our 8-day celebration of cinema. The sight of the Cineplex lobby being flooded by these people, all weaving around each other to exit or enter a theatre, to slide in line for popcorn, to stand off against a wall and discuss the film they’d just seen with others…this visual alone works as a perfect symbol of the #LoveFilm theme of 2023’s Atlantic International Film Festival.

So, is this thing going to happen?

Not only did the Atlantic International Film Festival happen – it thrived.

The Opening Night Gala saw cast and crew of THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS hit the red carpet before sitting in on a sold-out screening of the film and then treating the crowd to a heartfelt, emotional, inspiring Q&A. Following the film’s screening, a sea of people made their way to the Cable Wharf for our Opening Night Gala Celebration; the lovely, musical energy from the screening of THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS had clearly clung to the partygoers, with groups of people sharing laughs, toasts, and hugs well into the evening.
(Goosebump count: 1).

The cast and crew of our Opening Night Gala film, THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS.

Christian Sparkes had two films screen at this year’s festival, one of which served as our Atlantic Gala film. SWEETLAND captivated a full house and went on to win the AIFF award for Best Atlantic Director, while the atmospheric THE KING TIDE won AIFF’s Gordon Parsons Award for Best Atlantic Feature. Other award winners from this year’s festival included the David Renton Award for Outstanding Performance, which went to Susan Kent’s performance in the hilarious, fan favourite WHO’S YER FATHER?, and the Best Atlantic Documentary Award, won by Eryn Foster and Sue Johnson’s CELESTIAL QUEER: THE LIFE, WORK AND WONDER OF JAMES MACSWAIN, whose screening saw subject James MacSwain in attendance, along with a massive audience of colleagues and fans to support the Halifax art icon.
(Goosebump count: 2).

CELESTIAL QUEER: THE LIFE, WORK AND WONDER OF JAMES MACSWAIN directors Eryn Foster and Sue Johnson embracing the film’s subject, James MacSwain.

Saturday proved sobering: Hurricane Lee had fully hit the Maritimes, and downtown Halifax was left without power. A tough decision, but one made without any other option: Saturday’s screenings and events were cancelled and rescheduled. What could have been a deflating situation proved inspiring, however, as the AIFF Partners team created magic for the delegates who had come from near and far for the annual co-production market. Despite having no power at the Lord Nelson Hotel, AIFF Partners spread candles throughout the space and were provided with enough juice from Star Power Atlantic to conduct meetings and even hold a panel; the resulting day proved a high point for a lot of industry delegates in attendance, with many calling it the best, most memorable AIFF Partners event in recent memory.
(Goosebump count: 3).

When the power returned on Sunday, so too did the crowds of AIFF attendees. Our Programming team worked tirelessly to ensure that anything missed on Saturday would be rescheduled and available to catch on a later date, and the Box Office / Registration team worked doubly to ensure tickets could be reused, exchanged, or reimbursed to anyone inquiring. One of our rescheduled screenings was the World Premiere of Jeremy Larter’s comedy/detective film WHO’S YER FATHER? The screening was sold out and the reaction to the film was one of complete delight; you could hear the laughter of the audience from the hallway of the theatre and when the film’s credits started to roll, the packed crowd exploded into an applause that could drown out the thunder produced by most storms.
(Goosebump count: 4).

Another crowd favourite was the documentary MR. DRESSUP: THE MAGIC OF MAKE-BELIEVE. It had been revealed a day before the film’s screening at AIFF that it had won the People’s Choice Award for Best Documentary at TIFF, so anticipation was high. The film certainly did not disappoint. In the last 15 minutes of the film, the sound coming from the theatre went from saddened sniffles to audible sobs and then to grateful laughter. An experiment in nostalgia and the boundless power of imagination and dedication.
(Goosebump count: 5).

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the incredible Shorts Programmes that resulted in some of the festival’s most insightful and intriguing Q&A’s; these short pieces from Atlantic and International filmmakers alike serve as sparks that catch and burn into one’s imagination, and the themes explored in each of this year’s eclectic pieces proved tender, urgent, unsettling, happy, hopeful and, true to every short in this year’s lineup: affecting.

Of course, I could go on. I could speak on the massive turnouts for our free In Focus / Classics screenings, or about the insightful industry panels that saw attendees excitedly jotting down notes and pertinent tips. I could speak on Oscar-nominated Canadian director Atom Egoyan gifting a bottle of wine to an audience member during his post-screening Q&A for SEVEN VEILS. I could speak on the resilience and commitment of all those involved with this year’s edition of the Atlantic International Film Festival, even when things seemed somber.

But those would all just be words, and words are for dictionaries. Filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky once said, “Being silent for a while is good. Words can’t really express a person’s emotions.” A dictionary can’t define the reaction that happens inside of us when we watch a meaningful film. Words will forever fail when we are sitting silently in a theatre as the credits start to roll. It’s fitting that the ending of a film is accompanied by theatre lights coming back to life, because in many instances, the ending of a film can mark something of a rebirth for the viewer. As theatre lights flicker back to life, so too do lights illuminate within us; some of them old, familiar, and nostalgic, some of them fresh, casting light on new perspectives and emotions.

We hope you found a new light during this year’s Atlantic International Film Festival. May the bulb never burn out. Until next year.