YFF nominated for Marquee Event of the Year

Tourism Saskatchewan has nominated the Yorkton Film Festival for one of their Awards of Excellence. The festival is one of three finalists for the 2016 Marquee Event of the Year, going up against the Craven Country Jamboree, and the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival.

Randy Goulden, executive director of the Yorkton Film Festival, says that as the festival gears up for its 70th year, it’s great to get recognized by organizations in the province. She also emphasizes that the recognition is not for the festival itself, but the crew of volunteers that make the festival work year after year.

“Whether they’re local people or industry people who have been committed and dedicated to making Yorkton the premier event of the year across North America for short film.”

The Marquee Event of the Year is awarded to events that bring in significant visitors to the province as well as large amounts of revenue for host communities.

The other events in the category are major events in their own communities, and Goulden recognizes that they are great events and they’re well organized. She does believe that YFF has a significant advantage over the other events nominated.

“I just want to point out that we’re the only national event.”

She also believes that the professional development opportunities that the festival brings forward each year are a big part of the festival’s nomination, whether they’re professional development and networking opportunities for delegates or the education opportunities for high school students in the area.

The festival also received a Saskatchewan Arts Award for leadership recently, and Goulden says that it shows the amount of work everyone involved is doing, whether it’s outreach programs, education opportunities or the festival weekend itself. She believes that the festival is recognized for reasons far beyond the weekend in May, and is proud of what they have accomplished as they move into the festival’s 70th anniversary celebrations.

“It’s rewarding to be recognized for the work that has happened over 70 years in a city in Saskatchewan. When it was started, there were newspaper articles in Toronto that said it would never last. Well, it’s 70 years.”