The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) announced yesterday that Fidelity Investments Canada had signed on as a major partner in a multi-year, six-figure deal.
Fidelity Investments Canada will be the presenting sponsor of VIFF's closing gala on October 12.
Earlier this year, the province's ministry of community, sport and cultural development's community gaming grants program provided a total of $250,000 towards festival programming, marketing and operations. This included one-time funding to modernize the film festival's ticketing and database system.
The new ticketing system is being implemented for this year's festival and is designed to streamline festival operations, provide efficiencies and support a better customer experience.
For the first time, the Department of Canadian Heritage's Building Communities through Arts and Heritage program has also awarded the film festival up to $119,400 in funding to support programming, citizen engagement and volunteer programs.
One of the top five film festivals in North America and the largest in Western Canada, with a record-setting attendance of 152,000 last year, VIFF also contributes significantly to Vancouver's economy.
A 2010 Moneris Solutions study revealed that during VIFF each year, credit and debit card spending on hotels increases by approximately 21%, restaurant spending by 18% and personal services spending by 13% during VIFF each year.
This year's event kicks off September 27 and runs through October 12.
