Back for its third year, The Canadian Forces Memorial Film Festival is produced by the Empress Theatre in honour of those who have served or continue to serve in the Canadian Forces and to further enlighten the general public of Canada’s forces past, present and future.
This year’s festival runs November 2 and 3, 2012. The opening ceremonies to be held at 7:00 pm on November 2 will be led by the animated and extremely knowledgeable Dr. Stéphane Guevremont of the University of Calgary and Mount Royal University.
Dr. Guevremont holds a PhD in Military Aviation from the University of Calgary, a CEGEP degree in Aircraft Maintenance, a BA in History from McGill University and a civilian MA in War Studies from the Royal Military College of Canada. He presents public lectures across Canada with the goal of promoting the lifetime achievements of surviving Canadian Veterans.
Passchendaele, 2008, rated 14A with a runtime of 113 minutes, stars Paul Gross, Caroline Dhavernas and Joe Dinicol and follows the opening ceremonies at 8:00 pm. Passchendaele tells the story of a troubled veteran, his nurse girlfriend and an inexperienced boy who first meet in Alberta and then in Belgium during the bloody World War I battle of Passchendaele. The movie Passchendaele also holds special meaning in many Fort Macleod residents’ hearts as parts of the movie was filmed in Fort Macleod with many local residents filling the roles of extras in the movie.
2:00 pm on November 3 again brings guest speaker Dr. Guevremont to the Empress stage, along with Veteran and WW2 Devil’s Brigade member Henry Planger along with the son of a Devil’s Brigade member John Hart. Both men lead extremly enlightening dicussions about the Devil’s Brigade during the 2011 Canadian Forces Memorial Film Festival.
The Devil’s Brigade, also known as The Black Devil’s and The Black Devil’s Brigade, were the first official special service force formed in 1942. An elite commando unit of Canadians and Americans trained to fight in impossible and do the impossible in winter conditions.
Following the discussion, the documentary “Daring to Die, The Story of the Black Devils”, 2003 will play on the Empress screen. The documentary is 47 minutes in length was made by Greg Hancock grandson of a Force member and written by Greg Hancock and Wayne Abbott. The film documents the story of the super elite unit The Black Devils, members who had volunteered for the unit even though they were being sent on potential suicide missions during WW2. The Germans called them The Black Devils for their stealth and bravery and for the terror and results the Black Devil’s missions produced.
The afternoon discussion and documentary are completely free to the public.
At 7:30 pm on November 3, the Rhythm Gunners Big Band takes to the stage performing songs from both WW1 and WW2. The Rhythm Gunners Big Band, a section of the Royal Canadian Artillery Band, is one of Canada’s six Regular Force Bands. The band is based out of CFB Edmonton and has more than 100 years of performance history. Made up of 35 professional musicians, the band represents the Canadian Forces both within Canada and abroad.
The Royal Canadian Artillery Band performs many musical styles with the full symphonic concert band to smaller groups like the Rhythm Gunners Big Band, jazz bands and smaller chamber groups.
1-800-540-9229 or 403-553-4404 for more information and pricing.
Thanks for posting this! Much appreciated.
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