Outside the Box - A film screening, on tour

New Brunswick Filmmaker’s Co-op headed to Miramichi for Feb 13 event.

Outside the Box will bring some of the best films screened at the Silver Wave Film Festival over the past five years to Miramichi audiences.

The tour has been made possible by a grant from the Province of New Brunswickʼs Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture and local sponsors.

“The tour is something that the New Brunswick Filmmaker’s Co-op has wanted to do for years but it is a major undertaking resource-wise for the small staff to take on,” said NBFC’s Cat Leblanc. “Funding was necessary to bring the idea to life and thanks to the province of New Brunswick, a dream became a reality.”

The NBFC regularly hosts socials as well as film and video workshops in Fredericton, Saint John and Moncton. Leblanc feels the addition of screening opportunities provides a “very meaningful and important” extension of the co-op’s annual activities.

“The goal is for the tour to happen on a more regular basis but, there would have to be funding to sustain it,” she said. “The great thing is that it can be done on a small, modest grant and now that there is a template and plan in place, there is a strong foundation to build from.”

As with any arts organization that serves a provincial body, providing outreach opportunities such as screenings and workshops is an essential part of fulfilling mandates and engaging a wider audience.

“It’s a true blue film community building activity,” said Leblanc. “It is a great way to engage people to encourage them to get involved, and help them create their art where they live. The NBFC is very much provincial in it’s scope and way of thinking, and it only makes sense that we would want to take activities and film arts to a wider audience.”

The Silver Wave Film Festival, organized by members of the NBFC, recently celebrated its 15^th anniversary and has been recognized as one of the most important film festivals east of Montreal, attracting hundreds of film fans to the provincial capital for a curated weekend of screenings. Last year’s event showcased over 100 films from Atlantic Canada, Canada and internationally, and over 50 made here in the province.

Leblanc believes Outside the Box will benefit not only the NBFC’s efforts to encourage New Brunswick filmmakers but will also serve to promote the festival to new audiences.

“The tour specifically showcases the best of the Silver Wave Film Festival. Spotlighting the SWFF and its best is extremely important, as it will hopefully result in increased submissions of New Brunswick films and videos for SWFF in the future.

“The tour also serves to support and promote the filmmaker/videomakers whose works are selected, pays them an artist fee, and gives them an opportunity to engage with the wider community and showcase their projects.”