5 Things to Do in Vancouver This Week (April 12-18)

The online Reel 2 Reel Film Festival showcases the work of young filmmakers from around the world. This year’s lineup includes Ben’s Room (chronicling a Lego man’s journey home), Hekademia (a high school drama in virtual reality) and Bringing Our Language Back to Life (a doc about language revitalization in a Wsanec community)—all made in B.C.

This is the world premier of Toronto-based dance company Red Sky Performance‘s feature film. The theatre is one of the leading companies in contemporary Indigenous performance around the world, and this film showcases extended excerpts of some of their most compelling works.

This is the perfect marriage of home cooking and takeout—ingredients delivered, a follow-along Zoom class, and actually eating the food as soon as it’s ready. Participants in this class can choose between a chicken, artichoke and basil with Fontina pizza or potato, Gorgonzola, honey and rosemary (so no, there’s no wrong choice). A bonus? Many of the ingredients come in reusable containers, so the convenience lives on beyond the class.

This livestreamed performance from musician Khari Wendell McClelland explores what it means to be essential (and we could say that our capitalist system that favours the rich deems the arts, which provide us with fundamental joy, connection and community, as non-essential, but we won’t get into that). Joined by artists from around the world, including other musicians, poets and scholars, McClelland puts on a COVID-era concert like no other.

The fest puts it best: “Come get your French Canadian On(line)!” It’s the biggest francophone festival in the west, and it’s all virtual. Look out for musical guests The Winston Band (pictured above, though I don’t think the alpaca is an official member), Loig Morin, Sirène et Matelot and lots of children’s performers too (notably Isabelle Le Wonderful who seems like a rainbow in human form).