Live performances that push the boundaries of traditional film programming, intersecting cinema culture with music, comedy, podcasting, and performance in unique, cinema-infused live shows.
Upcoming Events
Round Midnight: Ardeshir Plays Dexter Gordon
Loosely based on Bud Powell's time in Paris, Round Midnight (131 mins) is maybe the greatest of all films about jazz thanks to the towering performance of real-life jazz great Dexter Gordon. Saxophonist Ardeshir channels Gordon's vibe in his live set.
True North: Andy Milne in Concert + Film Premiere
Michèle Stephenson's brilliant essay film is an electrifying history of Black Canada. Award-winning jazz pianist Andy Milne, who composed the film's superb score, will perform a solo set live before the movie's West Coast premiere.
The Adventures of Prince Achmed Live Scored by Gordon Grdina & Hamin Honari
A handsome prince with a flying horse befriends a witch, meets Aladdin, and battles demons to win a princess' heart. Celebrate the centenary of the first animated feature film, with a new, improvised score.
A Tribute to Lee Morgan: Feven Kidane Plays Lee Morgan
Feven Kidane pays tribute to the music and legacy of one of the greatest trumpeters in Jazz history, Lee Morgan. After Feven's set, enjoy Kasper Collin's dazzling film about this tragic icon, I Called Him Morgan.
The Voice of a Generation Lost
Inspired by the iconic photography of his father, Pulitzer Prize–winning photojournalist Jahangir Razmi, composer Ali Razmi blends Persian classical music, jazz and experimental sounds to reflect on memory, identity and the power of art to bear witness.
Erika Chow + Blue Giant
Revered pianist Hiromi Uehar composed the score for this electrifying jazz anime, about a young man who wants to be the next John Coltrane. Before the film, tenor sax Erika Chow will lead a quartet through selections from the soundtrack.
Image: ©2023 BLUE GIANT Movie project ©2013 Shinichi Ishizuka, Shogakukan
Salón México + Midnight Boogaloo Live!
To celebrate our Mexico Noir series we invited Midnight Boogaloo to get the party going with a mix of salsa, boogaloo and rock & roll. After their set enjoy the seminal dancehall melodrama Salón México, a classic from the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema.
Tony Wilson's The Homeless Project
Combining music, text, still photography, and film to shine a sympathetic light on Canada's urban dispossessed, The Homeless Project is the third in composer, guitarist Tony Wilson's series of multimedia projects addressing pressing social issues.
Past VIFF Live Events
Beverly Glenn-Copeland, online performance, VIFF 2020
Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin Plays Deep Red Live, VIFF 2019
On Cinema at the Cinema Live!, VIFF 2019
This is Spinal Tap: Anniversary Live Score, VIFF 2019
Song Exploder Live with Chuck D, VIFF 2019
Feminist Live Reads Some Like It Hot, VIFF 2019