IFWC Team
Festival Producer
Adam Bentley
Adam Bentley is a filmmaker, screenwriter, and the face of #yegfilm. His works explore traumatic experiences in spaces we once felt safe, including the body, the home, the land, and the nation. His works have been screened across Canada, the United States, Europe, Air Canada, CBC Television, and online. He is a FAVA Producer member and founder of the International Festival of Winter Cinema. He's also the recipient of the Edmonton Arts Council's Cultural Diversity in the Arts Award, and two-time recipient of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts' Cultural Relations Award. When not working on the film festival, he can be found biking -summer or winter, in Edmonton’s river valley.
Festival Director
Bar Lavy
A former resident of four countries other than Canada, Bar Lavy has seen lots of images all over the world. Bar has nurtured a passion for film and photography since he was a young child glued to the TV screen. Now equipped with a B.A. in Film Studies from the University of Alberta, Bar is looking to share his eclectic vision with the rest of the world. He has worked on multiple short films, web series, music videos, photo shoots, TV pilots, and commercials.
Festival Operations
Kevin Heaman
Over his career, both as an art practitioner and arts manager, Kevin Heaman has taken on various roles and opportunities that challenge him and allow him to create phenomenal experiences for the people he meets. He recently received his MA, where he specialized in Music Management and Digital Storytelling. In his practice, he experiments with various art mediums, from live performance to digital storytelling, and blends them together into his artistic work. In his professional work, he currently works full-time as a grant coordinator in a not-for-profit and works as a freelance consultant with various arts organizations, including music, film, and theater.
Festival Programmer
Pip Pomroy
Pip Pomroy is an undergraduate in the Film Studies program at the University of Alberta that has interned at the festival before, and is now working on the 2023 festival. He grew up moving between Australia and Canada, being a dual-citizen that has learned to love the winters of both climates. In Pip’s personal time, he enjoys watching film, mostly art and indie films, reading historical literature, playing bass guitar, and video games, notably Mario games. His favourite musical artists are Radiohead and Slowthai, and he has a collection of animal and film tattoos.
Festival Assistant
Lucia Ortiz
Lucia Ortiz is a recent grad from the University of Alberta with a degree in Environmental Studies. She is committed to sustainability and environmental education. Throughout her professional experiences, she has focused on community connection, grassroots projects and creative pursuits. As a winter festival adaptation resilience assistant, she will work with the IFWC to find ways to remain resilient to the changing climate. She enjoys seeing the connection between the arts and the environment and using creative platforms to educate about environmental issues. In her free time she enjoys skating and supporting local businesses in Edmonton.
Social Media & Marketing
Natalie Ovics
Natalie Ovics is a local creative with a background in visual, performative and fine arts. After spending 7 years living in Calgary as a Nutritionist, she has recently made her way back to Treaty 6 territory, Edmonton, to dive more into her creative roots. As a previous festival attendee and volunteer, and being a lover of cinema, Natalie decided to join the IFWC team. She enjoys taking on different creative projects within the design, fashion, beauty and content creation spheres. With the hopes of helping others make the most out of winter, Natalie is excited to share IFWC with local and international communities.
Treasurer
Jeffery Nichols
Jeffery Nichols is a long-time supporter of independent stage and screen arts. With a background in Canadian cultural studies and public administration, he has lived and worked from coast to coast and is now based in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Volunteering with IFWC since its debut, he is excited about the continuing exposure the festival gives to northern artists, and the collaboration it can foster across northern cultures.
Board Member
Janita Frantsi
Janita Frantsi is a contemporary dance artist originally from Finland and now based on Treaty 6 territory in Amiskwacîwâskahikan, Edmonton, AB, Canada. She holds a Master of Arts in Dance from the University of Alberta, inspiring her to look at dance from various perspectives and expand her artistic practices. Recently, Janita has explored dance through the lens of film and screendance, and she loves how it takes her to dance in different spaces and environments. Her film projects have been presented at different festivals, with the most recent one winning the Best Edmonton Film award at the International Festival of Winter Cinema. Janita is also a past recipient of the Government of Alberta’s grant for high level of artistic excellence and commitment to creative processes.
Board Member
Niclaus Cheetham
Niclaus “Nick” Cheetham is a filmmaker currently finishing up an undergraduate degree in film studies at the University of Alberta. Originally from Vancouver, he fell in love with cinema by watching Chinese and Korean action films. Cheetham has volunteered for the IFWC in the past, and looks forward to contributing more to the cause. In his spare time, Cheetham loves spending time outdoors, always available for hiking or fishing. His favorite filmmaker is Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles.
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