‘Cat stuck in a vase’ and other cinematic classics at Just for Cats Festival 2016

Just some of the cat action at this year’s fest.

“You love them. You mock them. But one thing you can’t do is stop watching them. Yes, we’re talking about Internet cat videos. Which either represent the pinnacle of human creative achievement, or a sign that the apocalypse is nigh. Or both.” —Los Angeles Times

Since 2012, the Walker Arts Center has been compiling its Internet Cat Video reel. While not on the scale of the Manhattan Project, it is an 80-minute compilation of cat hilarity in videos ranging from six-second Vine videos to short films and everything in between.

For the second year in a row, Vancity Theatre, in conjunction with the BC SPCA, is bringing the Just for Cats Festival to Vancouver on June 26.

The Canadian Federation of Humane Societies began bringing the reel to Canada as the Just for Cats fundraising festival in 2014. Will Braden, the creator of the internet sensation Henri Le Chat Noir, a series of videos about a French existentialist cat, has curated the reel for the last two years.

We don’t know what this year’s lineup looks like, except that it (probably) includes the instant classic “Cat stuck in a vase” (at 155,000 views on YouTube). Past shorts include last year’s Golden Kitty winner, “Cat Behavior Finally Explained.”

Atrium events at the theatre include a kitten adoption drive, button-making, and cat ears and other merchandise. Visit the Vancity Theatre website for more info.

And in case you’re wondering if what cat videos have to say about modern society, this is from the Walker Art Center’s website:

“Catvidfest and its ongoing success have reinforced the Walker’s reputation for risk-taking, programmatic innovation and community partnership. Internet cat videos are doing all of the things compelling art should: raising questions, challenging assumptions, angering people, and—in the case of our festival—creating a real experience. We assumed when we were assembling the clips that people would be eager to see new videos, but in actuality the greater joy was sharing the experience of watching very familiar videos with each other.”