WANDER | 'Imagine Picasso' x Art Exhibition x Canada Place

Waterfront—(October 26, 2021) On the heels of the crazy popular Imagine Van Gogh tour, Tandem Expositions and Encore Productions present the one-of-a-kind Imagine Picasso: The Immersive Exhibition occupying Canada Place (Vancouver Convention Centre East) after getting raves on its first Canadian stop in Quebec over the summer.

CINEMA | Wes Anderson Travels Back to 'The French Dispatch'

"He brought the world to Kansas."

Searchlight Pictures / Indian Paintbrush

Whimsical auteur Wes Anderson makes a dizzying cinematic love letter to The New Yorker magazine in his kitschy French New Wave-inspired period travelogue anthology film spanning five decades, The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun. Starring another deep ensemble cast of famous faces, this is clearly and easily his most stylishly deconstructed film in the vein of the director's usual trademark storytelling he's made yet.

CINEMA | Denis Villeneuve Dreams of 'Dune' – Spice World

"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer."

Warner Bros. Pictures / Legendary Pictures

Quebec filmmaker Denis Villeneuve reimagines his solemn adaptation of the first half of author Frank Herbert's foundational 1965 science-fiction literary opus into a cerebral visual spectacular. Dune: Part One (as titled on-screen) is an interstellar feudal political drama about spice mining set in the distant future of the year 10191.

VIFF 2021 | Call Your Mother – 'Petite Maman' Warms the Heart

"I'm glad we met."

Vancouver International Film Festival

VIFF 2021—French filmmaker Céline Sciamma crafts a beautifully poignant slice of life love letter to mother/daughter relationships in her cinematic children's fable, Petite Maman. Filmed with minimal sets, locations, and actors for a scant but very fruitful 72-minute running time, the film is quite possibly the sweetest tale of childhood wonder ever with its balance of adult themes like grief and loss.

VIFF 2021 | Tessa Thompson Tries 'Passing' in Black and White

"We're all of us are passing for something or other, aren't we?"

Vancouver International Film Festival

VIFF 2021—British actress Rebecca Hall makes her writing and directing debut in the sumptuously dreamlike adaptation of author Nella Larsen's seminal 1929 novel, Passing. Starring Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga as childhood friends, Irene and Claire, who reconnect after running into each other while both "passing" for white, the film questions historical race relations and social progress through two very different Black women linked by their conflicted bi-racial identities.

FEAST | Alimentaria Mexicana x Cantina & Mercado x Granville Island

"We're proud to present a truly authentic Mexican taste of place here."

Granville Island—(September 28, 2021) From the team behind Chancho and Nuba restaurants and spearheaded by Mexican-Canadian chef/restaurateur Ernesto Gomez, Alimentaria Mexicana opened its authentic cantina eatery over the summer in the former Edible Canada location to much delight and early acclaim.

VIFF 2021 | Sean Baker Hustles Hard – 'Red Rocket'

"I would a hundred percent out cardio that guy."

Vancouver International Film Festival

VIFF 2021—Filmmaker Sean Baker returns to his usual subject matter of underseen American subcultures of those living on the margins of society while also showcasing possibly the best use of an 'N Sync song maybe ever. Red Rocket is another wildly entertaining and deeply thoughtful exploration of desperate characters presented without judgment or ridicule.

CINEMA | 007 Spectacle – Daniel Craig Has 'No Time to Die'

"We have all the time in the world."

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer / Universal Pictures

Daniel Craig finally returns for his final James Bond outing in director Cary Joji Fukunaga's long-awaited, much-delayed action jam-packed spy melodrama blockbuster spectacle, No Time to Die. This 007 entry is a sprawling but surprisingly emotional chapter aiming to rewrite and definitely finish off Craig's five-film legacy starting out with Casino Royale.

VIFF 2021 | 'The Power of the Dog' Tames the West

"Don't let your mom make a sissy of you."

Vancouver International Film Festival

VIFF 2021—New Zealand auteur Jane Campion returns to film after a twelve years absence to adapt the 1967 novel The Power of the Dog by American novelist Thomas Savage. Starring a devilish Benedict Cumberbatch in a career-best performance and the always stellar Jesse Plemons as adversarial rancher brothers in 1925 Montana, the slow western is a piercing family drama about the destructiveness of performative masculinity.