This year’s VIFF Closing Gala was held at the heritage-listed Salt Building in False Creek and packed with film industry and fans alike. The Salt Building was built circa 1930 as a salt refinery and later converted to a paper recycling plant in the 1980s. The building sat empty for years before it received both a foundation upgrade and a basement addition.
The Gala’s theme was Middle Eastern. The decor and lighting were resplendent with colour and atmosphere, providing a nice challenge for photographers!
The large warehouse space was sectioned off into a Chill Lounge, several bar areas, a DJ and dance floor and two food service areas. Colourful lantern lighting and cushions gave guests the chance to chat, away from the busy crowd just outside the curtains.
O’Douls Restaurant and Listel Hotel teamed up to provide an array of Middle Eastern appetizers, with servers slicing lamb and plating rice with pita bread. Another table was filled with dishes of hummous, baba ghannouj, salads and smoked salmon.
DJ Flipout, voted the best Canadian DJ, headed up the music that ranged from old-school disco to house and everything in between.
Iraqui singer Alen Elias and belly dancer Ada added to the evening’s entertainment lineup.
With a Stella beer or glass of wine in hand, it was a fantastic way to close out the 30th edition of the Vancouver International Film Festival.
And speaking of film, congratulations to the following films and their directors for the coveted awards that they took home this year:
The Shaw Media Award for Best Canadian Feature Film
Nuit #1, Directed by Anne Émond (Quebec)
Honourable Mention for Canadian Feature Film
Wetlands, directed by Guy Édoin (Quebec)
Most Promising Director of a Canadian Short Film Award
We Ate the Children Last, directed by Andrew Cividino (Ontario)
Rogers People’s Choice Award
A Separation, directed by Asghar Farhadi
VIFF Most Popular Nonfiction Film Award
Sing Your Song, directed by Susanne Rostock
VIFF Most Popular Canadian Film Award
Starbuck, directed by Ken Scott
NFB Most Popular Canadian Documentary Award
Peace Out, directed by Charles Wilkinson
VIFF Environmental Film Audience Award
People of a Feather, directed by Joel Heath
Dragons & Tigers Award for Young Cinema
The Sun-Beaten Path, directed by Sonthar Gyal (a Tibetan director from China)
More photos from the gala can be found here.