The Vancouver Web Series Festival, also known as the Vancouver Web Fest, is a

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single i ...

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

based in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is known as the first ever Canadian festival dedicated solely to entertainment and programming created exclusively for the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

. In 2017,

IndieWire IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...

called the festival "one of the leading destinations for quality web content". Raindance dubbed it one of the "must attend" web series events for creators and fans of online content. ''

The Province ''The Province'' is a daily newspaper published in tabloid format in British Columbia by Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, alongside the ''Vancouver Sun'' broadsheet newspaper. Together, they are British Columbia's only ...

'' described the festival as "the future of broadcast."

Background

The festival was founded in 2013 by Canadian film and television producer, writer and entrepreneur Suzette Laqua, and had its inaugural event May 2 through May 4, 2014. The 2nd annual event was held March 6 through March 8, 2015, at Performance Works on Vancouver’s

Granville Island Granville Island is a peninsula and shopping district in the Fairview, Vancouver, Fairview neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is located across False Creek from Downtown Vancouver under the south end of the Granville Street ...

and was covered by various media and press outlets including ''Playback''. The 3rd annual event was held March 18 through 20, 2016, at the same location. The 4th annual festival took place March 17 through 19, 2017. The fifth annual festival took place at a new location, the

Vancouver Convention Centre The Vancouver Convention Centre (formerly known as the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre, or VCEC) is a convention centre in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; it is one of Canada's largest convention centres. With the opening of the ne ...

, from April 19 to 21, 2018. In 2019, the festival went on hiatus due to Laqua's diagnosis with

hippocampal sclerosis Hippocampal sclerosis (HS) or mesial temporal sclerosis (MTS) is a neuropathological condition with severe neuronal cell loss and gliosis in the hippocampus, specifically in the CA-1 (Cornu Ammonis area 1) and subiculum of the hippocampus. It wa ...

; Laqua told Playback that she had to step back and take time to focus on her health. A 2020 festival was planned, but has not yet taken place.

Reception

The festival attracts filmmakers and industry executives from around the world and is one of the main events of its kind dedicated to

. In 2017,

called the festival "one of the leading destinations for quality web content". Raindance dubbed it one of the "must attend" web series events for creators and fans of online content. ''

'' described the festival as "the future of broadcast."

Awards

The festival presents screenings of their official selections and hosts an awards ceremony at the end of each festival; award-winners receive silver trophies and certain categories include financial or

in kind The term in kind (or in-kind) generally refers to goods, services, and transactions not involving money or not measured in monetary terms. It is a part of many spheres, mainly economics, finance, but also politics, work career, food, health and othe ...

prizes. Main awards include Best Canadian Series, Best of B.C., Best Foreign Series, and other craft or

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

-specific categories such as Best Director, Actor, Actress, and Screenplay.

Current categories

*Best Overall Series *Best Canadian Series *Best of B.C. *Best Foreign Series *Best Actor *Best Actress *Best Director *Best Screenplay *Best Cinematography *Best Original Score *Best Sound Design *Best Special Effects *Best Drama Series *Best Dramedy Series *Best Comedy Series *Best Animation Series *Best Documentary Series *Best Fantasy Series *Best Horror Series *Best Reality Series *Best Science Fiction Series

Past winners

5th: 2018

*Best of Festival Award: ''Inconceivable'' (Canada) *Best Canadian Series: ''

Teenagers Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

'' (Canada) *Best Foreign Series: ''Scout'' (Australia) *Best of B.C.: ''Girls vs. The City'' (Vancouver) *Best International Series: ''Thesha'' (South Africa) *Best Actor: Jason Gendrick, ''Trouble Creek'' *Best Actress:

Odessa Young Odessa Young (born 11 January 1998) is an Australian actress. She is known for her roles in the 2015 feature films ''Looking for Grace'' and '' The Daughter'', the latter of which earned her an AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Sh ...

, ''High Life'' *Best Director: Stacey K. Nlack & Shea E. Butler, ''Trouble Creek'' *Best Screenplay: ''Fluffy Marky'' (Canada) *Best Cinematography: '' Filth City'' (Canada) *Best Original Score: ''Spiral'' (Canada) *Best Sound Design: ''The Drive'' (Canada) *Best Special Effects: ''The Last 7'' (Malaysia) *Best Visual Effects: ''Strowlers'' (USA) *Best Drama Series: ''Nasty Habits'' (USA) *Best Comedy Series: ''The Dangers of Online Dating'' (Canada) *Best Dramedy Series: '' Adulthood / L'Âge adulte'' (Canada) *Best Animation Series: ''This is Desmondo Ray!'' (Australia) *Best Documentary Series: ''KYNNSTLAH: A Series of Artist Portraits'' (Germany/USA) *Best Family Series: ''Scout & The Gumboot Kids'' (Canada) *Best Fantasy Series: ''The Dreamcatcher'' (Australia) *Best Horror Series: ''Burkland'' (Belgium) *Best Pilot (under 30 minutes): ''The Last 7'' (Malaysia) *Best Pilot (over 30 minutes): ''The Gamers: The Shadow Menace'' (USA) *Best Reality Series: ''House Call with Dr. Yvette Lu'' (Canada) *Best Science Fiction Series: ''Restoration'' (Australia) *Best Virtual Reality Project: ''The Great'' (Mexico)

4th: 2017

*Best Overall Series: ''The Wizards of Aus'' (Australia) *Best Canadian Series: '' That's My DJ'' (Canada) *Best Foreign Series: ''Scout'' (Australia) *Best of B.C.: '' This Is That'' (Vancouver) *Best Actor: Paul Witton, ''

Dropping the Soap ''Dropping the Soap'' is an American comedy web series that parodies the soap opera genre, created by Paul Witten, Mandy Fabian and Kate Mines. It goes behind-the-scenes of a struggling daytime soap opera called ''Collided Lives''. Premise In ...

'' *Best Actress: Rosie Lourde, ''Starting From Now'' *Best Director: D. W. Waterson, ''That's My DJ'' *Best Screenplay: ''This Is That'' (Vancouver) *Best Cinematography: ''Thornbrook'' (USA) *Best Editing: ''InVancity'' (Vancouver) *Best Original Score: ''The Wizards of Aus'' (Australia) *Best Sound Design: ''Telegraph Cove'' (Canada) *Best Special Effects: ''Discocalypse'' (Germany) *Best Visual Effects: ''The Wizards of Aus'' (Australia) *Best Drama Series: ''Nasty Habits'' (USA) *Best Comedy Series: ''Sublets'' (USA) *Best Action/Adventure Series: ''Surf Therapy'' (France) *Best Animation Series: ''The Adventure of a Broken Heart'' (Australia) *Best Documentary Series: ''No Strings Attached'' (Norway) *Best Family Series: ''Fluffy Marky'' (Canada) *Best Fantasy Series: ''The Wizards of Aus'' (Australia) *Best Horror Series: '' Or So the Story Goes...'' (USA) *Best Musical Series: ''Roo-ining Christmas'' (USA) *Best Mystery Series: ''Petrol'' (Canada) *Best Reality Series: ''Late Bloomer'' (USA) *Best Science Fiction Series: ''Conversations from the Afterlife'' (USA) *Best Thriller Series: ''Kill Skills'' (France) *Carter Mason Award of Excellence: Ed Brando

3rd: 2016

*Best Overall Series: '' Riftworld Chronicles'' (Canada) *Best Canadian Series: ''The Banks'' (French: ''Les Berges'') (Canada) *Best Foreign Series: ''Persuasive'' (France) *Best Actor: Jarod Joseph, ''Coded'' *Best Actress: Sarah Jane Seymour, ''Rapt'' *Best Director: Stuart Gillies, ''The Drive'' *Best Screenplay: ''

'' (Canada) *Best Cinematography: Jens Bambauer, ''Number of Silence ''(Germany) *Best Original Score: ''Arthur'' (Switzerland) *Best Sound Design: ''Airlock'' (Australia) *Best Special Effects: ''Phoenix Run'' (USA) *Best Drama Series: ''The Banks'' (French: ''Les Berges'') (Canada) *Best Comedy Series: ''Couch Surfing U.S.A.'' (USA) *Best Action/Adventure Series: ''Sudden Master'' (Canada) *Best Animation Series: ''Uberdude'' (Canada) *Best Documentary Series: ''Stories Of Youth: A Portrait Of A Generation'' (Norway) *Best Family Series: ''Ty The Pie Guy'' (USA) *Best Fantasy Series: '' Walking In Circles'' (USA) *Best Horror Series: ''Il Sonnambulo'' (USA) *Best Mystery/Thriller Series: ''The Rolling Soldier'' (USA) *Best Reality Series: ''Listen Up: Making it at Berklee College of Music'' (USA) *Best Science Fiction Series: '' Riftworld Chronicles'' (Canada) *

Dailymotion Dailymotion is a French video-sharing technology platform owned by Vivendi. North American launch partners included Vice Media, Bloomberg and Hearst Digital Media. It is among the earliest known platforms to support HD (720p) resolution video. ...

Choice Award: ''Manic Pixie Dream Wife'' (USA)

2nd: 2015

*Best Overall Series: '' Guidestones: Sunflower Noir'' (Canada) *Best Canadian Series: ''

Whatever, Linda ''Whatever, Linda'' is a Canadian web series co-created and co-written by Hannah Cheesman and Julian De Zotti. The series stars Cheesman as Linda Thoroughbred, a woman in the 1970s who gets a job as a secretary for financier Barney Lahnar (inspir ...

'' (Canada) *Best Foreign Series: ''Dynamo'' (USA) *Best Actor: Joe Sofranko, ''Complete Works'' *Best Actress: Hope Lauren, ''Nasty Habits'' *Best Director:

Peter DeLuise Peter John DeLuise (born November 6, 1966) is an American actor, television director, television producer, and screenwriter. He is known for his role as Officer Doug Penhall in the Fox TV series ''21 Jump Street'', and for directing and writing e ...

, ''PARKED'' *Best Screenplay: ''Discrepance'' (France) *Best Cinematography: ''Guidestones: Sunflower Noir'' (Canada) *Best Original Score: ''Whatever, Linda'' (Canada) *Best Special Effects: ''Disrien'' (Canada) *Best Drama Series: ''Whatever, Linda'' (Canada) *Best Comedy Series: '' LARPs'' (Canada) *Best Action/Adventure Series: ''Caper'' (USA) *Best Animation Series: ''Food Flix'' (Canada) *Best Documentary Series: ''Foodists'' (Canada) *Best Family Series: '' Ruby Sky P.I.'' (Canada) *Best Fantasy Series: ''Les Jaunes'' (Canada) *Best Horror Series: ''Stricken'' (Canada) *Best Mystery Series: ''L.A. Macabre'' (USA) *Best Reality Series: ''Dress Up! with George B. Style'' (USA) *Best Science Fiction Series: ''Still'' (USA) *Best Thriller Series: ''Asset'' (Canada)

1st: 2014

*Best Overall Series: ''Libres'' (Spain) *Best Canadian Series: ''The True Heroines'' (Canada) *Best Foreign Series: ''Sin Via Propia'' (UK) *Best Actor: Gil Reiker, ''Libres'' *Best Actress:

Katie Boland Katie Boland (born 1987 or 1988) is a Canadian actress, writer, director, and producer. She began her career as a child actress in film and television and has since branched out into adult roles, in addition to writing, directing, and producing ...

, ''Long Story, Short'' *Best Drama Series: ''Cuckoo'' (Ireland) *Best Comedy Series: ''inSAYSHABLE'' (Canada) *Best Action/Adventure Series: ''Wastelander Panda'' (Australia) *Best Animation Series: ''Under the Hud'' (Canada) *Best Documentary Series: ''Vancouver Cycle Chic'' (Canada) *Best Fantasy/Science Fiction Series: ''Deja Vu'' (Colombia) *Best Horror Series: ''

The Syndicate ''The Syndicate'' is a British television drama series. It was written by Kay Mellor and is broadcast on BBC One. It sees five members of a betting syndicate win the lottery. Each series follows a different syndicate. The first series is set i ...

'' (UK) *Best Musical Series: ''Destroy the Alpha Gammas'' (USA) *Best Mystery/Thriller Series: '' Ruby Sky P.I.'' (Canada) *Best Reality Series: ''Tailgate32'' (USA) *People's Choice: ''Kid's Town'' (Canada)

References

{{reflist Awards established in 2013 Streaming television in Canada Festivals in Vancouver Canadian television awards Web series awards