Reel Stories is back with the presentation of nine documentaries and dramas inspired by true events or people shown on the big screen.
“This year it will be completely in person,” said Barrie Film Festival director Claudine Benoit.
The 18th edition of Reel Stories runs March 24 to 27 at the Galaxy Cinemas on Commerce Park Drive.
“We’ve done a couple of in-person screenings with our monthly series and it’s just so good to get the feedback right away and hear what people think of the movies.
“It’s that shared experience that’s been missing.”
Organizers pivoted to an online version last year as a safe way to negotiate programming through the pandemic.
Benoit said she’s keen to connect with people again to have the conversations that inevitably follow the showings.
Although there will still be precautions. Occupied seats will be buffered by seats kept empty so moviegoers are encouraged to book their tickets in advance.
“We’ve got a curated selection of nine films that are sure to make people feel something or inspire conversation,” said Benoit. “Everything from lighthearted stuff, like Julia (the story of American cooking author and television personality Julia Child)... all these films I’ve learned a lot about these people.”
Flee and Writing With Fire are multi-award winners. Flee, a documentary filmed in amination, has also been nominated for three Academy Awards.
The Lost Leonardo is a detective-type story about a mysterious painting.
Peace by Chocolate is set in Antigonish, N.S. and tells the story of a Syrian family who sets out to rebuild after losing their chocolate factory.
“I’ve been on the hunt for that chocolate because once you’ve seen the film, you’re like, oh my gosh, I’ve got to try this chocolate,” said Benoit.
The Rescue, done by the same filmmaking team that created the Academy Award winning Free Solo tells the story of 12 boys and their soccer coach trapped in a cave in Thailand.
Benoit expects the very visual The Sanctity of Space, focusing on Denali in the Alaska Range, to be spectacular on the big screen.
Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America uses historical and present-day archival footage to tell the story of American Civil Liberties Union’s Jeffery Robinson.
Set in Peace River, B.C., Wochiigii lo: End of the Peace tells a story that Benoit was surprised has not been part of everyday knowledge.
“I love when you watch a film and it just opens your mind to what’s going on in the world,” said Benoit.
Check out the listings and more information online.
