Inside Vancouver

Sock puppets, an octopus and more at the NSFW film fest for the open-minded adult

by Shawn Conner in Entertainment on September 11, 2017

Short, sexy films covering workplace power dynamics, playful doggie cosplay, and a dreamy animated octopus are coming to Vancouver this weekend.

Born and bred in the great Pacific Northwest, Dan Savage’s HUMP! Film Festival has been bringing audiences a new kind of porn since 2005.

The annual short film festival features erotic and explicit clips from amateur filmmakers. Popular syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage curates the sex-positive program, which is an all-inclusive cornucopia of body types, shapes, ages, colours, sexualities, genders, kinks, and fetishes.

The annual festival premieres a new program each fall in Seattle and Portland. In the meantime, however, the touring edition of the 12th annual compilation is coming to Vancouver’s Rio Theatre this weekend, Sept. 14-16. Read about some of the NSFW entries below.

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Sock puppets, an octopus and more at the NSFW film fest for the open-minded adult

Historic tennis match, the first oil-painted animated feature, and the new one from the director of The Lobster—highlights of this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival

by Shawn Conner in Events on September 6, 2017

Isabelle Huppert (third from left) stars in Michael Haneke’s latest armrest-gripper, Happy End.

Vancouver audiences will get their first peek at the high-profile Borg Vs. McEnroe at this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival (Sept. 28-Oct 13). But there are plenty of other films to watch for in this year’s lineup, including new films from controversial director Michael Haneke (Funny Games, Cache), Ruben Östlund (Force Majeure, a favourite on the 2014 festival circuit), and Yorgos Lanthimos. You may recall Lanthimos from 2015’s rather unorthodox The Lobster, one of the most divisive movies in recent memory.

Scroll down for more on the above movies, as well as other highlights of the Special Presentation series.

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Historic tennis match, the first oil-painted animated feature, and the new one from the director of The Lobster—highlights of this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival

Never mind La La Land, Frankenstein Created Bikers is coming to Vancouver!

by Shawn Conner in Uncategorized on February 15, 2017

Vancouver actor Tristan Risk in Frankenstein Created Bikers.

Film fans are getting excited about February 26.

Sure, that’s the date we’ll find out by how much the musical La La Land cleans up at the 89th Academy Awards. But it’s also the day that Vancouver gets to see Frankenstein Created Bikers.

Described by screenanarchy.com as a “love letter to exploitation films carved into a bullet -and sent skyrocketing into the air after several beers on the Fourth of July at a biker rally,” the 2016 film is screening as part of the Third Annual Badass Film Festival at the Rio Theatre (1660 E. Broadway, near Commercial). In all, the one-day festival is screening three full-length movies as well as over 20 short films, and includes an awards ceremony, trailers and live performances.

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Never mind La La Land, Frankenstein Created Bikers is coming to Vancouver!

This Sunday – Illuminating La La Land at Vancouver Int’l Film Centre

by Shawn Conner in Uncategorized on January 28, 2017

Love La La Land? Join Vancouver film scholar Michael van den Bos this Sunday for a discussion of movie musicals.

Inspired by the current Hollywood sensation starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, van den Bos’ talk is entitled Illuminating La La Land: The Lyrical Legacy of Movie Musicals. In particular, van den Bos will look at the golden era of Hollywood musicals, from the 1930s through the 1950s. As part of the Sunday, Jan 29 programming, van den Bos will present clips from classic flicks featuring top names like Fred Astaire, Frank Sinatra, Cyd Charisse, et al. Following the presentation, the Vancouver International Film Centre will screen two films said to have influenced La La Land.

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This Sunday – Illuminating La La Land at Vancouver Int’l Film Centre

What to see at this year’s Rendez-Vous French Film Festival in Vancouver

by Shawn Conner in Uncategorized on January 26, 2017

Liane Prefontaine in a scene from Sophie Goyette’s film Mes nuits feront echo, one of over 40 French films screening with this year’s Rendez-Vous French Film Festival in Vancouver.

Practice your French – or at least your English-subtitle-reading – at the Rendez-Vous French Film Festival. The festival’s 23rd year features over 40 films from Quebec and France Feb. 2-12 in several locations. Besides award-winning films. The festival includes Q&As with special guests, a tremendous short-film program, and a gala evening Feb. 4 at Auditorium Jules Verne.

So what’s on the agenda? Let’s take a look at some of the highlights.

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What to see at this year’s Rendez-Vous French Film Festival in Vancouver

Where to see holiday movies in Vancouver this Christmas season!

by Shawn Conner in Uncategorized on December 19, 2016

A scene from Bad Santa, a foul-mouthed holiday classic.

Traditionally, Christmas is a great time to catch up on movie-viewing – whether new films the studios have saved up for Oscar consideration, holiday blockbusters, or titles you might have missed that have made critics’ year-end best-of lists.

It’s also a good time to catch Christmas classics on the big screen. In Vancouver, the city’s arthouse theatres all have varied programs, from Cinematheque’s Essential Cinema to Vancity’s Best of 2016 to Rio Theatre’s – well, as usual, anything goes when it comes to the licensed East Vancouver moviehouse.

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Where to see holiday movies in Vancouver this Christmas season!

Where to see horror movies this month in Vancouver

by Shawn Conner in Uncategorized on October 5, 2016

Boris Karloff stars in the classic 1931 horror film Frankenstein.

Everyone likes a good scare, right? As befits our approach to Halloween, Vancouver’s independent theatres are rolling out the blood-soaked carpet to all those who appreciate fright films. Here are some highlights of what you can seen in the dark, with a roomful of strangers and only a pail of popcorn to stave off an ever-mounting dread.

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Where to see horror movies this month in Vancouver