The Victoria Film Festival (VFF) is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. And there’s no shortage of events for movie lovers to enjoy at the VFF, from the fest’s lineup of movies from all over the globe to events such as chats with filmmakers.
One notable example of the varied movie lineup is Vancouver-based Adrian Buitenhuis’ newest documentary Our Time to Be Kind. The film is based on BC provincial health officer Bonnie Henry and her team as they worked to flatten the curve of the COVID 19 pandemic in BC.
“When the pandemic hit, it was clear that Dr. Bonnie Henry and her team were doing something that was exceptional, and also extremely challenging.” says Buitenhuis. “So, being, like, ‘This is affecting my life and the lives of all other British Columbians and across the world in a major way,’ I thought it was an important story to tell.”
At first, Henry wasn’t sure she wanted to be a part of the documentary, but ultimately decided that the work happening behind closed doors was important enough to share.
“Dr. Henry doesn’t like being in the public eye to begin with, but, you know, this pandemic really forced her into the forefront of that,” says Buitenhuis. “And having to be on television on a daily basis to give updates was something… I don’t think she ever thought she would be in a situation like that. So, to have a film made about her and her team was something that she wasn’t sure of, but she also knew it was important to have a record of it.”
Buitenhuis says that the thing that drew him to this project was the chance to dive deeper into the unfolding story of the pandemic.
“As we were all stuck at home in early 2020, the person that we were seeing the most in front of us on a daily basis, the one who was giving us guidance, was Dr. Henry, and Adrian Dix,” he says. “As a documentary filmmaker, the way that normal media and news cycles work, is it’s all about the soundbite, it’s not about the sort of long-form story or what’s happening. And I just saw there was an opportunity there to tell a bigger story.”
Filming this documentary allowed Buitenhuis to shoot in spaces he normally wouldn’t, allowing for a more in-depth look into Henry and her team’s working process.
“We sort of coordinated as to when there were good opportunities for filmmaking or what the story was,” says Buitenhuis. “And we would sort of plan out times that we would work together and do interviews. They made it possible, they granted us access to be there at the legislature, to film them behind closed doors, so it was great. I interviewed John Horgan and many journalists, as well. I think it was a good relationship and we were really lucky to have the access.”
Our Time to Be Kind offers audiences insight into the inner workings of Henry and her team during some of the most tumultuous days of the pandemic.
“If [audiences] want to understand a little bit more about the bigger story of what was going on and to get a more intimate picture of what was happening to all of us,” says Buitenhuis, “or, you know, [see] the story of what was happening over the last few years from a different perspective than they’ve seen in the news, then this would be a great opportunity to see that.”
Victoria Film Festival
Friday, February 2 to Sunday, February 11
Various times, dates, and venues
victoriafilmfestival.com