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This article was published 21/07/2016 (3348 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Gimli Film Festival 

In its 16th year, the Gimli Film Festival strives to be all things to all people with a wide-reaching selection of films designed to appeal all over the demographic map.

With more than 100 films screening until July 24 in the Lake Winnipeg beachfront community 90 km north of Winnipeg, the 2016 edition offers French-language films, Icelandic movies, a program of circumpolar films, indigenous films, a series of social justice docs, and a Reel Pride series. There’s even a “Seniors Special” with films aimed at the over-55 set. (Of course, the fest allows cross-over. Noam Gonick’s To Russia with Love, about the gay community’s pushback against Russia’s anti-gay legislation during the Sochi Olympics, is included in both social justice and Reel Pride categories.)

The idea, according to GFF artistic director Aaron Zeghers, is to make Gimli the “premier catch-all for whatever is the best stuff of the last year.

“The more people you have interested in one festival, the more people are going to cross-pollinate and get interested in cinema.”

Of course, Gimli’s main event remains the free Sunset Screenings, projected outside on a lakefront screen every evening of the fest beginning at 10 p.m. nightly. This year’s lineup includes: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Thursday, July 21), Raiders of the Lost Ark double-billed with Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made (Friday, July 22);David Bowie and Prince Sing-Along, doubled-billed with the animated doc Nuts! (Saturday, July 23), and The Goonies(Sunday, July 24).

But the fest lines up an equally diverse films in the other categories.

• The Circumpolar Film Series covers the films of the world’s most northern regions with films including Sean Garrity’sBorealis and Roger Spottiswoode’s The Journey Home (both filmed in Manitoba), and the Swedish film A Man Called Ove.

• The Icelandic Film Series pays homage to Gimli’s cultural roots with contemporary cinema from Iceland including the features Rams, Virgin Mountain and Sparrows.

• Social Justice Documentaries include Migrant Dreams and The Prison in Twelve Landscapes.

• The French-language film series includes the Canadian première of Michel Gondry’s Microbe et Gasoil along with Manitoba filmmaker Ryan McKenna’s The Heart of Madame Sabali.

• In collaboration with Winnipeg’s Reel Pride Film Festival, the Gimli fest presents films that explore LGBTTQ* issues, including the Manitoba première of Closet Monster.

The complete listings of films, schedules and ticket information is at gimlifilm.com.

— Randall King

 

 

Limblifter

Vancouver-based foursome Limblifter is back on the road to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its debut self-titled LP, and will be performing a pair of shows in Winnipeg on Thursday, July 21, at the Handsome Daughter, during which the band will play through the entire record, as well as a few other songs from its back catalogue.

Originally founded by brothers Ryan and Kurt Dahle as a side-project for their popular band Age of Electric, Limblifter found success with its first record, which spawned three Top 40 hit on the Canadian alternative charts — Tinfoil, Viciousand Cellophane — and earned it three Juno Award nominations.

After a brief hiatus, the band was revived in 2000. Founder Kurt Dahle left the band shortly after, and Limblifter has since gone through a few lineup changes. Currently, Ryan Dahle is still on vocals and guitar; he is joined by Megan Bradfield on bass, Eric Breitenbach on drums and Gregory Macdonald on keys.

The band released its fourth full-length record, Pacific Milk, in 2015, and their Steve Bay-directed video for the single Hotel Knife is up for a 2016 Western Canadian Music Award for Video Director of the Year.

Limblifter will play two shows — doors for the early show are at 6 p.m. and doors for the late show are at 9 p.m. The late show is sold out, but tickets for the early show are still available for $20 at Ticketfly.com or in person at the Handsome Daughter, located at 61 Sherbrook St.

— Erin Lebar

 

 

The Great Escape

Ever want to relive your favourite summertime childhood memories? For the second year running, FortWhyte Alive is going to help you do that.

No, they didn’t develop a time machine (although we’d be the first in line). Instead, they’ve opted for the next-best thing: a one-night-only adult summer camp they’re calling the Great Escape.

Woodsy, nostalgic types are invited to head out to FortWhyte Alive on Thursday, July 21, for a summer camp-themed party that offers the full range of camp classics, including archery and atlatl, canoeing and crafts. Attendees can even earn badges for participation (another childhood tradition you may not have appreciated enough at the time).

In addition to summer staples, the event will also feature music courtesy of local DJ Mama Cutsworth and alumni from the DJ Academy for All Women, cocktails and tasty campfire food from Diversity Food Services.

“I think it just kind of brings out the kid in everybody,” says Kristin McPherson, communications manager at FortWhyte Alive. “People just really love doing those summertime activities that they would have done at camp as kids, or maybe didn’t have the opportunity to.”

The event will run from 7 p.m. to about midnight, McPherson said.

Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door. You can buy them at FortWhyte Alive or on their website at www.fortwhyte.org.

— Aidan Geary

 

 

Bry Webb

Anyone who has experienced Guelph indie-rock quintet Constantines in concert knows they bring a gutsy, emotional live show. Driving the band is frontman/guitar player Bry Webb, whose slightly gravelly vocals and explosive delivery are key to the band’s trademark sound.

But in 2010, the much-beloved band seemed to be over. The following year, Webb released Provider, the first of two studio albums under his own name, a quieter, more sparse and personal record. It saw Webb emerge from a musical hiatus and contemplate parenthood and adulthood in a more self-reflective way than had been heard with the Cons.

The 2014 followup Free Will, as well as the 2015 live recording Live at Massey Hall, showcased both Webb and backing band the Providers, who bring a slightly rootsier but still-energetic sound to Webb’s songs. The band are accompanying the songwriter at festivals in Saskatchewan, Alberta, Ontario and even the Northwest Territories, as well as at the Good Will Social Club Thursday, July 21 (admission $15). 

Webb’s backing band has taken a few different shapes; at his June 30 Winnipeg show, for example, it was a trio. This time around, it’ll be a quartet, with Rich Burnett on lap steel and guitar, Anna Ruddick on bass and Nathan Lawr on drums. There’s a more relaxed, comfortable roots rock feel to Webb’s recent output versus his work with Constantines — think of Bob Dylan’s foray into the world of electric guitars with the Band versus his later solo material.

Joining Webb at his Winnipeg show will be two acts with close ties to Winnipeg’s the Weakerthans, with whom Constantines gigged in 2009 on the Rolling Tundra Revue tour. Toronto-based Greg Smith, who played bass for the Weakerthans, opens the show with a solo set of material; also playing is Slow Leaves, which features Weakerthans drummer Jason Tait.

And while Webb’s new project may not bring the same sense of urgency as Constantines — who have since reunited for some live shows, including last November in Winnipeg — it still manages to harness his penchant for thoughtful songwriting and inimitable delivery.

— Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson

 

 

Zrada

They’re Winnipeg’s self-proclaimed “ethno-cultural maelstrom”: Zrada, the Ukrainian-Balkan folk-punk rockers giving traditional Eastern European folk music a hard, loud new sound.

On Friday, the group will launch Legend, its third album, following 2011’s Ethnomachina and 2009’s Zrada. If past performance is any indicator, and judging by the few songs the band has posted to YouTube, Legend promises to be a meaty, high-energy response to traditional Ukrainian melodies.

It’s also the first album since a brief hiatus after Ethnomachina was released, when members took time “to invest in Alaska Airlines, save democracy and dabble in ship-building — all to a great success,” according to its wryly written website, as well as say goodbye to former bassist Taras Babiak and welcome newbie Alex Derlago (bass).

It’s a testament to Zrada’s dedicated fanbase that the album was funded in part through a Kickstarter campaign, which doubled its $1,000 goal in just a month.

From Legend, expect a noisy, wild blend of punk, metal, reggae and, yes, traditional folk music, all in Ukrainian. The Scythe is a prime example, taking traditional Ukrainian folk song Tomy Kosa and turning it metal, while the bouncingSolomiya lets the band’s ska and reggae influences shine through.

The band is playing the Goodwill Social Club on Friday, July 22, for the album release, along with Kieran West and his Buffalo Band. The show starts at 9 p.m., and cover is $10.

 — Aidan Geary

 

  

Manitoba Stampede and Exhibition

The province’s only professional rodeo is back in the saddle — the Manitoba Stampede and Exhibition runs this weekend, July 21-24, in Morris.

Started in 1964, the Manitoba Stampede (put on by the Valley Agricultural Society) showcases classic rodeo activities such as bull riding, bronco-busting, tie-down roping, bareback riding, steer wrestling, ladies barrel racing, team roping and chariot and chuckwagon racing. The stampede also includes an agricultural fair — where patrons can learn all about the heritage of rural Manitoba — a beer garden, musical entertainment and a parade that begins Saturday at 10 a.m.

This year, the RCMP Musical Ride will also be taking part, bringing 32 horses and riders that “provide the public with an opportunity to experience the heritage and traditions of the RCMP.” It also raises money for local charities and initiatives across the country.

The first recorded display of the Musical Ride was in 1901 in Regina — it’s a performance in which horses and riders create intricate figures and do drills choreographed to music. The Musical Ride visits cities all across the country, and, in addition to the stampede, will be making 12 additional stops in Manitoba locations. For more information about the Musical Ride and its tour schedule, visit rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/musical-ride.

Adult tickets for the Manitoba Stampede range in price from $20 (day pass) to $200 (VIP weekend pass), though discounts for seniors and family packs are available. To see the full list of ticket prices as well as the weekend’s schedule, visit manitobastampede.ca.

— Erin Lebar