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Whistler Film Festival future to be determined by spring

10th anniversary of festival a success, but theatre needs to be renovated if festival is to carry on
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The 10 th anniversary of the Whistler Film Festival (WFF) was a resounding success, with all of their special events sold out, over 60 per cent of feature films at or near capacity, and an overall attendance of more than 8,000 people (see page __ for highlights from this year's festival).

Even though WFF has wrapped for 2010, co-founder and executive director, Shauna Hardy Mishaw, can't rest yet. The success of this year's festival really begs the question: "Where do we go from here?"

Hardy Mishaw envisions WFF eventually becoming one of the top film festivals in the world.

"We hosted the Olympics, we're the number one ski resort in North America, let's be the number one film festival, and stand up next to Toronto, Cannes, Berlin, Sundance.
"We're only 10 (years old); the top film festivals in the world are between 35 and 60 years old," she pointed out.

But in order to achieve that goal, she believes WFF needs a place to call home.

"We can't be overconfident, we have to be extremely realistic, and we know that it's going to be at least a 10-year investment, we can't do this without a proper theatre - there's no way. And if we can't get it, we can't do it. And if we can't get it to that level, do we want to continue doing this?"

So, the Whistler Film Festival Society has set their sights on the Rainbow Theatre, located in the lower level of the Whistler Conference Centre. They plan to transform the space into a state-of-the-art digital theatre that would be used during the annual festival and throughout the year to draw the film industry here and to rent out to community groups.

"This is something that will not only be used for our festival and our programming; it is a community asset, cultural events will thrive as a result, community events, tourism and business would thrive."

The price tag for the project is $2.5 million for the renovation itself and another $2.5 million for international impact, which includes enhanced programming including professional development, staffing and ticketing.

Hardy Mishaw was planning to have a totally revamped Rainbow Theatre up and running for the WFF's 10th anniversary, but the process wasn't as straightforward as she had hoped.

"It was the combination of several factors. I think timing was a huge part: everyone was so consumed by the Olympics that we were on people's radar, but people just didn't have the ability to give us the consideration that we needed. And then of course there has been the economic meltdown."

So, she's set herself a new deadline: March 31. And if financial support for the project doesn't come through, this may be the last Whistler Film Festival.

"We can't take it any further, or keep going at this pace. If this community decides that this isn't a priority, then it may go away."

The Resort Municipality of Whistler seems to agree that the renovation of the Rainbow Theatre is integral to the continued success of the WFF. They commissioned a $10,000 study to look into the feasibility of renovating the Rainbow Theatre space and found that:

"The proven track record of the WFFS in successfully operating the Film Festival and Forum and the estimating contingency built into the estimates support a relatively high level of confidence in the income and expense projections.

"If the renovation of the Theatre were not to proceed the WFFS would continue to be limited in their programming capacity and in their ability to attract high quality films, industry interest, and filmmakers. Their vision to be one of the top film festivals in the world would be significantly constrained by a lack of quality space and equipment. The potential for the WFFS to make a significant contribution to the Whistler economy and enhance the ability to support a wide variety of regional and community cultural and educational programs would be compromised."

The RMOW has committed $500,000 to the capital project over a two-year period, drawing funds from the Resort Municipality Initiative, provided the province approves the funding and the municipal budget is passed.

The municipality has also applied for an additional $1.1 million from Canadian Heritage's Canada Cultural Spaces fund, and is hoping to have a response by April. The provincial government has been asked to match RMOW funding, as well.

The new Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, Stephanie Cadieux, attended the festival this year and toured the space. According to John Rae, manager of strategic alliances for the RMOW, she spoke "fondly and favorably of the initiative."

The Future in Focus campaign has already raised $400,000 and Hardy Mishaw is hoping that by next week that number will be up to a cool $1 million. There are another $6 million in "asks" out.

While Hardy Mishaw is "cautiously optimistic" that their fundraising campaign will be a success, she points out that community stakeholders also need to step up in a big way. While that may mean some big cheques from the deeper pocketbooks in town, Hardy Mishaw adds that every dollar counts, and people who can afford to make even a small donation should try and do so.

"Actions speak louder than words. We have invested $6.6 million into developing the Whistler Film Festival over the past 10 years, and if this community wants something like this to continue they need to step up and help turn this exciting vision into reality."

Hardy Mishaw estimates the return on that investment is $10 million into the local economy over the five-day period.

"The combination of celluloid and snow is a recipe for great success, and Whistler is an ideal setting for one of the top film festivals in the world, now we just have to make it happen."