The Yorkton Film Festival is hitting the road. In November 2015, the festival began screening films from its catalogue under the theme Voices of Courage: Stories from the World Wars in Yorkton, Melville and Saskatoon.
Now, with the help of grant from the Government of Canada, a three-province tour is planned for February and March.
“We were very fortunate to receive funding for this program from the Government of Canada to highlight Canada’s involvement in the World Wars.” said Randy Goulden. YFF executive director. “It’s been a very ambitious project, as we’ve had several screenings throughout Saskatchewan, and are proud to be bringing the program to Calgary and Winnipeg.”
Fifteen screenings are scheduled beginning January 28, at the Military Museums of Calgary. The tour will also hit Moose Jaw, Yorkton, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Prince Albert, Maple Creek and Regina between February 4 and March 30.
The Yorkton screening is scheduled for February 16 at the Yorkton Public Library as part of the festival’s Open Cinema program. It will feature the film Jajo’s Secret, the story of a grandson’s discovery of his grandfather’s past.
A synopsis from the YFF website reads: After discovering a parole certificate in his deceased grandfather’s attic, filmmaker James Motluk begins a journey that explores how his grandfather, and thousands of other Ukrainian Canadians, were placed in internment camps during World War I.
Danylo Bodnar from Foam Lake will be the guest speaker at the event.
Bodnar is a retired educator and former mayor of Foam Lake who has been a member of the board of directors for the Saskatchewan Provincial Council of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress.
“Ukrainian culture has been and always will be a very important part of my life and my heritage,” he is quoted as saying on ZoomInfo.
“We’ve been fortunate to gain some wonderful partnerships as part of this program, and I want to express my profound thanks to all the organizations, venues and speakers who have helped us make this a very successful program.” Goulden said.
Attendees may have an opportunity to win tickets to the Film Festival’s popular Lobsterfest event during the actual Festival in May.
