News and Events
Film Screening: Tantura
Weird Cinema Hosts Tantura Documentary to Mark 76 th Anniversary of the Nakba
On Saturday, May 18 th at 7 pm, Weird Cinema at Weird Church in Cumberland will showcase a documentary that marks the anniversary of the Nakba, This Arabic term means “catastrophe”,
and refers to the mass displacement and dispossession of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab- Israeli war. Before the Nakba, Palestine was a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society. However,
the conflict between Arabs and Jews intensified in the 1930s with the increase of Jewish immigration, driven by persecution in Europe, and with the Zionist movement aiming to
establish a Jewish state in Palestine.
The feature film Tantura is a 2022 Israeli documentary challenging Israel's understanding of the war. Director Alon Schwarz and crew investigate controversial events at the Palestinian village of Tantura in May 1948, where survivors claimed to witness a massacre of civilians by Israeli troops. The Los Angeles Times calls the documentary “Chilling and blood boiling”. Following the viewing, the audience is invited to participate in a Q&A with Joel Beinin, Donald J. McLachlan Professor of History and Professor of Middle East History, Emeritus at Stanford University. He is a noted scholar and author of a number of books on the Middle East with a focus on Israel/Palestine. He will appear via Zoom.
Admission to Weird Cinema at 2688 Penrith Ave. in Cumberland is by donation. The event is co-sponsored by World Community Development Education Society and Mid-Islanders for Justice & Peace in the Middle East/CV. FMI please call 250-331-9391 or visit weirdchurchcumberland.com/events.
Tickets On Sale for the 32nd World Community Film Fest Opening Night
Experience opening night of the 32nd World Community Film Festival! The film festival showcases engaging and inspiring documentaries that highlight social and environmental justice stories from Canada and around the world. This critically acclaimed film festival is an incredible place to fuel your passions for community and planetary well being.
Dear Audrey – Thursday, December 1st -7pm
Dear Audrey (89 min.) is a new award-winning documentary about remarkable love that endures through all the challenges that Alzheimer’s can present. World Community’s film series continues with this extraordinary film on Thursday, December 1st at 7 pm in the Stan Hagen Theatre, North Island College, Courtenay. Everyone is welcome. Admission is by donation.
World Community Future Vision Event
Help us set directions at the
World Community Future Vision Event
Thursday November 17, 6 – 9 pm, Creekside Commons Cohousing
Light refreshments will be provided.
Location: 2202 Lambert Drive, Courtenay
We are looking for your ideas & inspiration to chart directions for our future.
We Moved to the south side of the same building in Tin Town
Visit us at our NEW LOCATION ACROSS THE STREET at 2449D Rosewall Cres.
Programmer Picks for World Community Film Festival
The 28th World Community Film Festival brings a dynamic program that will move and inspire
audiences in five venues in downtown Courtenay Feb. 1 and 2.
World Community Film Festival Schedule
The Film Series will continue in February at Stan Hagen Theatre, NIC, Courtenay. Check back later for details.
"My people will sleep for 100 years, but when they awake, it will be the artists that give them their spirit back" Louis Riel (1885) Don't miss this special screening of the powerful film, When They Awake (92 min.), co-hosted by World Community and the Immigrant...
FILM SCREENING: TUES. NOV. 13TH – 7 PM AT NIC
The Reluctant Radical (77 min) If a crime is committed in order to prevent a greater crime, is it forgivable? Is it, in fact, necessary? The documentary, The Reluctant Radical, follows activist Ken Ward as he confronts his fears and puts himself in the direct path of...
Film Screening: Wajd: Songs of Separation – Tues. Oct. 30th, 7pm at NIC
After the trauma and dislocation of the war in Syria, how does one begin to pick up the pieces and heal? The documentary, WAJD: Songs of Separation looks at the important role music plays in the lives of refugees. Wajd: Songs of Separation introduces us to three...
FILM SCREENING: TUES. NOV. 13TH AT 7 PM – THE RELUCTANT RADICAL
(77 min) follows activist Ken Ward as he confronts his fears and puts himself in the direct path of the fossil fuel industry to combat climate change. “This film highlights the personal struggles and victories of one person’s path.” Bill McKibben A story of heroism...
Film Screening: Being the Change -Tues. October 9th at 7 pm – Stan Hagen Theatre at North Island College, Courtenay.
Is it possible to move away from fossil fuels and live a more joyful life? That is the question NASA atmospheric scientist Peter Kalmus explores in the film, Being the Change: A New Kind of Climate Documentary, presented by World Community. Peter, his wife Sharon, and...
Film Screening: After Spring – Tuesday Sept. 25th at 7pm
World Community is partnering with the Immigrant Welcome Centre for a special screening of the award-winning documentary, After Spring, at 7pm, Tuesday Sept. 25 in the Stan Hagen Theatre, North Island College, Courtenay. The film, produced by Jon Stewart, premiered at...
World Community AGM – Wednesday, June 27th – 7:30pm – Creekside Commons, Courtenay
Come learn more about World Community at our Annual General meeting. Following the business portion of the meeting, Filmmaker, Ed Carswell will show a sneak preview of a new film about World Community Coffee. Carswell has just returned from a trip to Nicaragua and...
Film Screening: Metamorphosis Tuesday, May 15th – 7pm – Stan Hagen Theatre, North Island College, Courtenay
A poem for the planet, Metamorphosis takes the pulse of our earth and bears witness to a moment of profound change: the loss of one world, and the birth of another. The film captures the true scale of the global environmental crisis, a crisis that is also an...
Guest Speaker: Robert Massoud – Monday, May 7th – Comox United Church, 250 Beach Ave, Comox
Palestinian-born and Canadian-raised Robert Massoud, who hails from Toronto, is the founder of Zatoun fair trade products from Palestine. Moussad will be visiting Vancouver Island in May, engaging Canadians to learn more and empathize with Palestinians and their struggle for a just peace for Israel/Palestine. His Comox Valley appearance takes place on Monday, May 7 at 7 pm at the Comox United Church, 250 Beach Ave, in Comox. Food samplings made from Zatoun fair trade extra virgin olive oil and za’atar herb blend will be featured.
Film Screening: Directly Affected, Tues. April 3, 7pm at NIC
5 years ago, Vancouver filmmaker, Zack Embree set out on a mission: to understand the impacts of the Kinder Morgan pipeline on local communities and give a voice back to those who had been ignored by the National Energy Board process. He interviewed residents affected...