Wrapping 'It' up in Whitehorse

'It' = the cross-Canada tour, not my extremities although that was also important given it was 40 below when I touched down.

Whitehorse is an amazing place. It's superbly-lit natural beauty aside, the people definitely make the place. (This has surfaced as a common theme on my tour.) Case-in-point: the hard-working Andrew Connors, Yukon Film Society Programmer and filmmaker in his own right, who is dedicated to bringing in a diversity of films from around the world. (I felt honoured that my film was one of them.)

The screening of "The U.S. and Us" at The Old Fire Hall, a beautiful heritage building overlooking the Yukon River (above), was the perfect ending to my cross-Canada tour. And it surprised me. Even though I'd heard that Whitehorse is the northern Canadian cultural centre, with a vibrant artistic community, I was thrilled with the turnout and level of discussion during the Q&A. The questions struck a balance between 'issues', the filmmaking process and stylistic/aesthetic treatment. (Thanks to Council of Canadians, Tori Russel, who helped with the Q&A, and Kristina Mercs, Project Coordinator at The Old Fire Hall. (K.M. photos: 'Whitehorse Moon' and me by the river.)

(Please stay tuned for Part 2 of my Yukon experience which took me way off-the-grid to Fish Lake. New friends, Katie and Dennis, generously answered the call for a billet and showed me the time-of-my-life, snowshoeing one day and snowmobiling the next. Sore muscles were soothed in their homemade sauna where the hot sits were interspersed with plopping down into 2 feet of snow at 10 below.)