What: LUNAFLIKS
When: Wednesday, July 16, 8:30 p.m.
Where: Lost Lake
Tickets: $7
Cozy up in your favourite hoodie, grab a beach chair and blanket, and head to Lost Lake to catch a flick under the stars.
This is the sixth year for the LUNAFLIKS screenings, which have
become a popular way to spend a weekday evening during the warmer summer
months.
Kiran Pal-Pross is the coordinator of Late and Unique Nighttime
Alternatives (LUNA), the group that organizes LUNAFLIKS and many other
alcohol-free events in Whistler.
“It was the original LUNA coordinator with the bylaw supervisor
that came up with the idea, and it’s just grown exponentially since then,”
Pal-Pross explained.
This year, the pedestrian version of a drive-in movie has been
expanded to include offerings of food alongside the talent of local musicians
and DJs.
“It’s just the epitome of a perfect Whistler summer thing to do
at night,” Pal-Pross added. “It’s an absolutely beautiful setting, the films
are very suitable to who comes to Whistler, and its outdoors.”
They’ve also changed the evening of the event from every
Thursday to every Wednesday night, which should enable all of those Loonie
racers to catch the show.
They’ve also worked hard to diversify the films, to ensure that
they appeal to a wider audience. LUNAFLIKS offerings include a healthy dose of
short films by B.C. filmmakers, as well as a good selection of independent
films, but Pal-Pross said it’s not an easy process to select the movies that
will be shown.
“It takes a good eight months to a year to actually go through
a whole bunch of films and narrow them down, but we try to mix some of the
newest films with ones that are not very well known,” she said.
Organizers tend to look for more obscure titles and independent
films with “feisty” subject matter at their core.
“It’s fun, but hard work, as well,” Pal-Pross said with a
laugh. “By the end of the summer I’m pretty movie-d out.”
Starting July 16, LUNAFLIKS will feature a new film at sundown
each Wednesday evening until the end of August, weather permitting.
“If the weather doesn’t co-operate, we’ve got an alternate
venue at Village 8 Cinemas, and they will screen the same film and it will
start at 9:30 p.m.,” Pal-Pross added.
People can call the event hotline — 604-966-4800 —
to see if the event has been moved indoors.
During the month of July, the films will be screened at Lost
Lake Park or Rebagliati Park, and during August, only at Lost Lake Park. A
special Lost Lake Shuttle leaves at 8:15 p.m. to transport moviegoers to and
from the event for free.
The first film of the series will be In Bruges, starring Colin
Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as hitmen, Ray and Ken, and Ralph Fiennes as their
gangster boss, Harry. The two hit men are sent to the Belgian town of Bruges to
await instructions after botching a job in London. While Gleeson loves the
town, Farrell hates it and can’t wait to get back to the bustle of London. As
they wait for Harry’s call, Ray and Ken find themselves immersed in some very
odd surroundings, and meeting some strange people along the way.
For more information on upcoming LUNAFLIKS films or other summertime events, check www.lunawhistler.com .
