While a lot of movie-goers may be flocking to award-buzzed films, there are plenty of film festivals to keep you busy over the last few months of winter.

If you want to stay indoors, check out our rundown of Canadian TV highlights. But if you need to get out of the house but stay out of the cold, here are just some of the upcoming festivals to keep an eye out for.

SPARK VFX 2009
Already underway, the Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH's  SPARK  VFX festival features a ton of visual effects  industry professionals and experts, as well as screenings of classic films from Forbidden Planet to Lord of the Rings. The festival runs until Monday, January 26.

Victoria Film Festival
Across the pond (as in the Georgia Strait, not to be confused with the Georgia Straight, bien sí»r), the 2009 edition of the VFF unfolds from January 30 to February 8. There's plenty of Canadian content and international selections. Good for a jaunty escape from this city over to the Island.

French School Matinées
Do you  have children that want  to practise  their franí§ais? Eh bien,  they might want to check out this series of matinées aimed at school children. There'll be about 50 Canadian, French, and Swiss  features running from February 4 to March 2 as part of the  Cultural Olympiad  program. Visit their Web site for specific details.

Whistler Film Festival Snow Screen
What would winter be without watching a film in the snow? Or on the snow?
Believe it or not, the Whistler Film Festival is going to be presenting 20 Olympic-related short films on a massive screen made out of snow at the base of Whistler Mountain from February 12 to 15. 15 of the films were specially commissioned by B.C. filmmakers. Visit the Cultural Olympiad Web site for details.

Social Justice Film Festival
The fifth annual Social Justice Film Festival in White Rock, which runs February 19 to 21, will be held at three venues: First United Church, the Salvation Army, and the White Rock branch of the Fraser Valley Library. Discussion will be held after each film.

Writer-director John Pilger’s War on Democracy, which questions how democratic the U.S. actually is, will kick off the festival on Februay 19 (7 p.m.). Langara College political science professor Peter Prontzos will lead the post-screening discussion.

Broadcaster Raif Mair will participate in a post-screening discussion of two short films (“Art of the Rain Forest”, “Power Play: The Theft of B.C.’s Rivers”) along with producer Damien Gilles.

A special screening of Michael Moore’s Slacker Uprising will be shown for youth (February 20, 1 p.m., Fraser Valley Library White Rock branch).

To close the festival, the screening of Pete Seeger: The Power of Song (which features Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and more) will be preceded and followed by performances by banjo player Tom Neighbour.

Other films address female body image, Chinese sweatshops, the impact of the 2010 Winter Olympics on Vancouver, and more. See the Web site for the full lineup.

Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival
Rock climbers, hikers, skiers, and outdoor enthusiasts, take note: the 12th VIMFF runs February 20 to 28. It’ll be held at Centennial Theatre (2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver) and the Pacific Cinémathí¨que (1131 Howe Street). Guest speakers from all around the world will be featured, including famed climber Alex Huber from Germany; rock climber Silvia Vidal from Spain; Majka Burhardt from Colorado, who will present a slideshow on an Ethiopian climb; amputee environmentalist, climber, and writer Warren MacDonald; as well as locals.

There’ll also be films about paddling, mountain biking, environmental issues, and traveling in Asia. Visit the Web site for full details and a schedule of films and events.

Reel 2 Real International Film Festival for Youth
The 11th annual festival designed for youth audiences (aged seven to 19) will bring a world of films and workshops to the Roundhouse Community Centre (181 Roundhouse Mews) and Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour Street) from February 20 to 27.

Among the highlights will be Iceland’s No Network, about a boy who both loses his way and his cell phone connection in a blizzard and Germany’s Red Zora, which follows a gang of orphans who resort to inventive means to fight off their foes. Local films will include John Bolton’s short “Valentines” and Peg Campbell’s “What Your Mother Should Know”. Also look for films from Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Spike & Mike Sick & Twisted Festival of Animation
This year, Spike, who picked the films, will be attending the Vancouver opening weekend for signings and to introduce the show at the Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway).

The show runs February 20 to March 5.

There’ll be 22 films, including “Home Honey, I’m High”, “Fantaisie in Bubblewrap”, “Happy Tree Friends”, “The Mosquito Who Gave Up Blood”, and “Dr. Tran”. Local selections include “Yellow Sticky Notes”, Stillwaters”, and “Odious Lepus”.

There’ll also be some crazy competitions. The first 25 people to the Friday and Saturday night screenings will get a free Spike & Mike DVD and Happy Tree Friends paraphernalia.

Okay, that’s not so crazy, but if you bring along your refrigerator with a Spike & Mike flyer attached to it, you get in free. Wow. Will anyone actually be up for the challenge?

But that’s not all. There’ll also be a best ass contest. The winner gets a complete set of Spike & Mike DVDs (that’s a lot of S&M) plus a Sick & Twisted thong. Gross! Fun! Woo!

Hockey Nights in Canada
As part of the Cultural Olympiad, Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour)  will be showing a series of hockey-related films from March 9 to 20. Selections range from Paperback Hero (Canada, 1973),  Slapshot (USA, 1977), Home  Game (Germany, 2000),  The Chiefs (Canada, 2004), The Rocket (Canada, 2005),  and the NFB's Junior (Canada, 2008). There'll even be a special free screening of Atom Egoyan's CBC TV 1993 movie Gross Misconduct, which was written by Paul Gross (Passchendaele). And arthouse fans may want to take in Canadian surrealist  Guy Maddin's Cowards Bend the Knee (2003). Details at the Cultural Olympiad Web site or Vancity Theatre.