With seven weeks to go until ‘Canada’s coolest film fest’ kicks off at the Whistler Film Festival (November 29 – December 3), the industry can start planning their festival experience as WFF unveils its Summit lineup and the first wave of guests.

Featuring 25 interactive sessions designed to foster business collaborations, WFF’s Summit aims to provide practical intel for filmmakers and dealmakers, as well as spark debate through a variety of high-level keynotes and panel discussions on topics that include finance, marketing, distribution, technology and export. With up to 1,000 expected delegates including industry executives, filmmakers and digital trailblazers from across North America and beyond, Whistler is the place to be, connect, and deal this December.

Structured around bringing films to market and designed to provide filmmakers with tools to succeed both within and beyond our borders, delegates can expect to gain insights from key power brokers and some of the great creative minds of our time including:

  • Bill Bromiley – President, Saban Films
  • Bruce Cowley – Senior Director, CBC Documentary Channel
  • Christina Davila – Creative Executive, Stage 13/Warner Bros Digital Network
  • Howard Barish – Founder and President / Executive Producer, Kandoo Films
  • Jeff Sackman – Executive Producer, Someone Else’s Wedding
  • Kim Fox – Partner, MadRiver
  • Kirk D’Amico – President and CEO, Myriad Pictures
  • Kristen Konvitz – Agent, International and Independent Film, ICM
  • Nate Bolotin – Co-Founder, XYZ films
  • Olivia Thomas Steier – Original Programming Executive, Fullscreen

“The Whistler Film Festival’s Summit has become a must-attend event for Canadian talent looking to expand their intel and network within the industry,” said Angie Nolan, WFF’s Director of Industry Programming. “This is in direct correlation to the high-level executives and creatives who now make Whistler a chosen stop in their fall festival circuit.”

WFF’s Summit will address the business and future of film, locally and internationally, as well as the ever-changing landscape of filmmaking in the digital age. Over the course of the four-day event, industry insiders will have the opportunity to hear from and connect with over 100 cinematic masters, creative innovators, business visionaries, and industry leaders.

Each day culminates with Master Classes featuring a prolific actor, director, writer or producer who will share insights into their craft and their most recent project premiering at this year’s fest, and or Signature Series events that will honour distinguished artists of our time in hosted conversations, including the Variety Contender Conversation featuring an industry luminary who is garnering award season buzz and the Variety 10 Screenwriters to Watch Conversation, which WFF has hosted for six consecutive years. New for 2017, WFF’s Tech Den will feature an interactive hub of hands-on VR experiences and new technologies for screen-based media and cinema, complemented by afternoon express sessions that will address the use of VR in documentary and action sports filmmaking.

Visit https://whistlerfilmfestival.com for more information.