A Coquitlam filmmaker will learn on Thursday if he is the winner of a prestigious international prize.
Alex Nagy, who created the short animated flick Helpful Hand, is one of three finalists in The Radcliffe Foundation competition to highlight the plight of refugees around the world.
The foundation, in collaboration with the Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF), launched the contest to encourage filmmakers to create a work — up to 60 seconds in length — that “educates, inspires, engages, and empowers Canadians to take tangible action on the crisis.”
Among those on the jury are Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, Sarah McLachlan and the Honourable Louise Arbour.
Born in Romania and raised in Vancouver, Nagy produced Helpful Hand as a 3D computer-generated story about a little girl’s struggle to find a better future.
Nagy is up against Zeeshan Parwez, a filmmaker and musician from Peshawar, Pakinstan, who currently lives in Vancouver. A graduate of the Vancouver Film School, he entered Humanity, a narrative to inspire Canadians to assist and support the resettlement of Syrian refugees.
Nagy also faces competition from Michele Hozer and Roxana Spicer, with their movie called Show the World about a group in Prince Edward County that sponsored 28 Syrian refugees.
The Radcliffe winner will receive $20,000 and a screening at VIFF.
WRITE ON
Scribes working in the Tri-Cities and New Westminster will gather in Port Moody for the fifth edition of Writers in our Midst.
The readings at Gallery Bistro (2411 Clarke St.) start at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, with a set menu dinner for $12 at 6:30 p.m. Visit gallerybistroportmoody.com.
Meanwhile, painter Maysa Pettes and her daughter Ama Isméria P. Velludo, a photographer, will open a new exhibit at the eatery on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
The pair, who are from Brazil, will display eight acrylic paintings on canvas and six digital collage images. Their exhibit runs until Oct. 23.
AUTHOR WORDS
Emerging and professional scribes can hear from author and instructor Perry “PA” Wilson at the next Tri-City Wordsmiths’ meeting in Port Coquitlam.
The group, which meets Oct. 1 from 2 to 4:30 p.m. in the Terry Fox Library (2470 Mary Hill Rd.), will host a presentation by the New Westminster resident on how to upload eBooks. Call 604-927-7999 to save a seat.
BAD GIRLS
Port Coquitlam actor Sarah Smith will appear in the Canadian premiere of Bad Girls, which opens on Saturday.
Smith, a full-time performer at the Giggle Dam dinner theatre in PoCo, is in the adult-only production by DramaNatrix, which this year clinched nine Community Theatre Coalition awards for its show The IT Girl in 2015.
Bad Girls: The Musical runs Oct. 1 to 15 at The Renegade Shop (125 E. 2nd Ave., Vancouver). Visit dramanatrixproductions.com.
