Brigitte Truong
A&E Reporter

The Kingston Canadian Film Festival is an opportunity for Humber student filmmakers to show their work, said film and television program co-ordinator, Eva Ziemsen.
“Film festivals celebrating Canadian cinema are ideal for our students.”
“Some of my former students have gained recognition at [the festival], which strictly promotes Canadian content,” she added.
Ziemsen said the festival’s respectable reputation encourages young filmmakers to connect with other filmmakers in the industry.
“As far as we know, we are now the largest all-Canadian film festival in the world,” said festival spokesperson Stephanie Earp. “What we want to do is show Canadian works to Canadian audiences.”
The festival offers a local short film program every year, where the films created by a young filmmaker are paired with a feature film in the festival.
“That means we show student or amateur films with every feature that we run,” she said.
Second-year film and television student Adam Bendavid, 21, said it is all about promoting and proving yourself in the film industry.
“These Canadian film festivals are great because they encourage people to get out there and make a movie,” said Bendavid. “Festivals encourage you to get up and pursue your dream of film making.”
“Even if you don’t win in a festival, you’re still in there getting the recognition and you can put that experience on your resume,” he said.
“If you have something fantastic, it’s worth submitting. We do take all submissions very seriously,” added Earp.
The tenth anniversary of the Kingston Canadian Film Festival opened yesterday and will run until Sunday in the downtown core of Kingston, Ont.