A B.C. film festival has a new leader at its helm.

The Whistler Film Festival Society announced in October 2020 that founder Shauna Mishaw Hardy resigned as its executive director, which she had been since the festival was first created.

In her place, managing director Angela Heck led the 20^th edition of the festival in December. Due to the pandemic, Heck was involved in overseeing the adaptation of the festival (which presented 97 films, including 30 features and 67 shorts) and Content Summit to an online format, which also made the festival available across Canada for the first time.

Heck has now been appointed executive director, according to an announcement issued today by the festival society.

She’ll be responsible for annual programming, including the annual festival and Content Summit, as well as 11 talent development programs.

Heck has been involved with WFF in various capacities since the festival was established and has over 20 year of experience in screen and entertainment industries, which includes previous positions at the National Screen Institute, CBC, the National Film Board of Canada, Winnipeg Art Gallery, and the University of Manitoba. She is also a former board member of Women in Film and Television Vancouver, DOC-BC, and the University of Manitoba.  

As a documentary producer, her first film was In the Shadow of the Chief, about the first ascent of the Squamish Chief, and her latest film, Carved in Stone: Sanannguaqtit, is available on CBC Gem.

For filmmakers who want to submit their films to be considered for inclusion in the 2021 edition of the festival, the deadline for submissions is August 15.