Oakville Festivals of Film & Art (OFFA) have announced their full offerings for next month's 10th annual Oakville Film Festival, running June 21-27, 2023.
This year's program includes more than 100 titles, including a record setting 22 feature length films and 79 short films. This is a slight decrease in total films from the 2022 festival, though there will be more individual ticketed events across more venues than last year.
In-person events will return to both Film.Ca Cinemas on Saturday and Sunday June 24 and 25 and gala events at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts on Thursday and Friday June 22 and 23.
But this year also features two other ways to see movies for the festival:
- An opening night party for National Indigenous People's Day: There will be Indigenous film, food and drinks, dance, music, and drumming, as well as a Q&A with the filmmakers from the Canadian Premiere of The Beehive, including Metis writer/director Alexander Lasheras.
- A limited number of tickets to events at Film.Ca Cinemas will be made FREE for anyone ages 21 and under. More details about this program will be announced in the coming weeks.
Tickets range from $15 for a single admission to one showtime or online collection, to full-access passes with admission to unlimited movies, events, virtual shows, Q&As and parties throughout the week.
A launch event was held on last Wednesday with co-founder and executive director Wendy Donnan. Donnan calls the event, "the most exciting we've ever had." (A full video was live streamed on Facebook.)
"We're celebrating a decade as Oakville's only independent film festival," says Donnan. "We can't wait to welcome everyone back all of our venues for this year's festival, showing the best movies across Canada and around the world."
A full video of last week's launch event on site at Film.Ca Cinemas can be seen here:
Tickets are on sale now
Single tickets for in-person shows at Film.Ca Cinemas are $15 CDN each, plus taxes and an order fee. Gala tickets at the Oakville Centre start at $34.99 CDN each.
There are also six special passes being sold for the festival. While single tickets are slightly more expensive this year (by $1 each), all passes have been discounted from the 2022 festival:
- Pick Five Pass for $59.99 CDN plus tax, giving you access to five screenings and Q&As of your choice
- Pick Ten Pass for $99.99 CDN plus tax, giving you access to ten screenings and Q&As of your choice
- Variety Pass for $79.99 CDN plus tax, giving you access one gala show and three regular in-person tickets
- Double Gala Pass for $69.99 CDN plus tax, which includes a single gala ticket to Thursday's opening night screening of The Year of the Dog and Friday's gala show of Polarized
- Red Carpet VIP Pass for $165.99 CDN plus tax, giving you access to one gala ticket, five regular in-person tickets or virtual tickets, an invitation to the opening night party and "a swag bag."
- All-Access Pass for $480 CDN plus tax, for unlimited access to all in-person screenings, galas, virtual festival screenings and Q&As for 2023.
All passes can be purchased here.
More information and ticket sales are both available online directly from the Oakville Film Festival and OFFA website.
Most events in-person include admission to a pre or post show Q&A with the the filmmakers. Both galas at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts and most shows at Film.Ca Cinemas will be hosted by Oakville News' arts reporter Tyler Collins.
Here is the full list of screenings, dates and events taking place at the 2022 Oakville Film Festival:
WEDNESDAY JUNE 21ST - Opening Night at 5 Drive-In
- 9 p.m. - The Beehive, a Canadian sci-fi drama and feature presentation for Indigenous People's Day
- (Tickets also include festival at 5 Drive-In from 6-11 p.m.)
THURSDAY JUNE 22ND
- 7:30 p.m. - The Year of the Dog, the opening night gala at the Oakville Centre; an animal drama co-directed by and starring Rob Grabow
FRIDAY JUNE 23RD
- 7:30 p.m. - Polarized, first time director's Shamim Sarif's Canadian cross-cultural romantic drama; also a gala at the Oakville Centre
SATURDAY JUNE 24TH
- 12 p.m. - Local Shorts Showcase, at Film.Ca Cinemas
- 12:30 p.m. - Lancaster, war history documentary at Film.Ca
- 3 p.m. - Dr. Cliff: Worldwide Vet, nature documentary at Film.Ca
- 3:30 p.m. - Double feature; Canadian war documentaries Broken Courage and The Address on the Wall at Film.Ca Cinemas
- 6 p.m. - Jurassic Punk, biography about Toronto film effects editor Steve "Spaz" Williams and his work on the legendary Jurassic Park, at Film.Ca
- 6:30 p.m. - Blackberry, Canadian comedy drama about the famous RIM company and their Blackberry smartphones at Film.Ca
- 9 p.m. - A Little Prayer, drama with Jane Levy and Oscar nominee David Strathairn at Film.Ca
- 9:30 p.m. - Notre Dame de Moncton, coming-of-age drama in French at Film.Ca
SUNDAY JUNE 25TH
- 11:30 a.m. - Double feature; Indigenous documentaries GCHI-JIMAAN-JIIME: COMPLETING THE VISION OF MARSHALL NADJIWON and Our Teacher, at Film.Ca Cinemas
- 12 p.m. - Shorts for all Sorts Showcase, at Film.Ca Cinemas
- 2:30 p.m. - The Family of the Forest, Canadian nature documentary at Film.Ca
- 3 p.m. - Coven, documentary at Film.Ca
- 5:30 p.m. - This Place, women's romance drama at Film.Ca
- 6 p.m. - Scrapper, English comedy drama at Film.Ca
- 8:30 p.m. - Exile, Canadian crime thriller at Film.Ca
- 9 p.m. - Master Gardener, closing film, the new drama from Oscar winner Paul Schrader, starring Joel Edgerton and Sigourney Weaver at Film.Ca
WED. JUNE 21ST TO TUES. JUNE 27TH: Virtual Movies
The full schedule can be found here on the OFFA website.