Whistler, BC: Hit with a record-breaking early snowfall, the sixth annual Whistler Film Festival rolled out the white carpet to host four days of 90-plus flicks, and at its Dec. 3 finale handed its $15,000 Borsos award to first-time screenwriter/director Stéphane Lapointe for La Vie secrète des gens heureux (The Secret Life of Happy People).

The French-language film – about a family that lives in oblivious happiness until a young woman turns their world upside down – beat out five other films, including Joshua Dorsey’s The Point, which received an honorable mention. The Borsos prize goes to the best new Canadian feature at the festival.

Mystic Ball, director/producer Greg Hamilton’s look at the Burmese sport of chinlone, also struck a chord, picking up the People’s Choice Award for best feature.

Best mountain culture film went to the snowboarding doc and opening gala Let It Ride! by North Vancouver’s Jacques Russo. The doc about the life and death of snowboard legend Craig Kelly played to a sold-out house. Love Seat by Vancouver’s Kris Elgstrand won best short film.

Another stand-out hit at this year’s fest was the National Film Board’s Citizen Sam by director Joe Moulin. The intimate portrait of Vancouver’s quadriplegic Mayor Sam Sullivan during his 2005 campaign garnered tremendous buzz despite losing best documentary to Air Guitar Nation, about two dueling air guitar icons, directed by U.S. filmmaker Alexandra Lipsitz.

According to organizers, attendance at Whistler rose by 15% to approximately 6,100, with nine of its 41 screenings selling out. Attendance at its Film Forum conference hit 590, up 43% over last year.

‘We provided more workshops, panel discussions and business meeting opportunities than ever before,’ says festival programmer Bill Evans. ‘We expanded from two days to four; we’re really ramping up the network opportunities for serious filmmakers and decision makers.’

One of the most talked about industry events was Pitch Fest West. Eight preselected Western Canadian docmakers pitched projects to a roundtable of 30 Canadian and international broadcasters, specialty networks and distributors. ‘It’s a bit of a blood sport. They’re brave,’ laughs Evans.

Shauna Hardy, festival cofounder and director says ‘deals were made,’ but she couldn’t release details.

The peak experience for many fest-goers was the tribute to director Norman Jewison, during which the famed filmmaker spoke candidly about his career and the future of Canadian filmmaking to a standing-room-only crowd of some 1,500.

‘It was the highlight of my career,’ says Hardy. ‘To hear his words – that he acknowledged that we have a ton of potential here, that we can make this festival a hub for Canadian features, shown alongside international films – was overwhelming.’

www.whistlerfilmfestival.com