A woman who lives in Walkerville holds the record for the most films watched at the Windsor International Film Festival.
Vincent Georgie, the executive director, said the woman watched 77 films.
That's over the 11 days of the festival, which wrapped up on Sunday.
"We had many people who had watched 20-plus, 30-plus, 40-plus, and 50-plus films. Oh yeah! A hundred per cent!" he exclaimed.
As Georgie closes the book on another successful festival, he said it was great to be back, in full force, after two years of pandemic restrictions.
(Photo courtesy of the Windsor International Film Festival)
"Seeing the whole community return, it was so lively downtown. Fun! People catching films, grabbing coffees, going for dinner and catching up with old friends," he gushed. "The amount of reunions and high-fives that you'd see in the lineups was just beautiful to see."
Not only was the festival extended to 11 days this year, but it also broke a record for ticket sales. Georgie said it sold 45,000 tickets, over 2,000 more than in 2019.
So many of those ticket holders were first-time festival goers.
"So many tourists. We had so many people coming in from across Canada, and also from across the U.S.," he said.
This year's locally produced offerings included the 'Boblo Boats," and 'Walkerville's Willistead Manor: The Home That Shaped A Community.' Both sold out.
"Our audience came out in droves for both of those films, for sure. As they did for the WIFF local shorts, and the film 'A Year In The Forest,' that local filmmaker Michael Evans made," Georgie said.
Georgie and his team devoted Monday to tearing down the displays, and over the next few days, they'll discuss what worked and what didn't during the festival, but he said work is already underway to set up for next year's event.
WIFF 2023 will run from Thursday, October 26, to Sunday, November 5.
