Everything you need to know about this year's Edmonton International Film Festival

Edmonton International Film Festival launched Thursday, with lots of local flavour hitting the big screen in the city's centre.

Films from across Canada and around the world will come to Landmark Cinemas 9 City Centre, with 130 films playing over 10 days. Two of the movies are screening at the Garneau Theatre for the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation: My Name is Gulpilil and Charlie's Country.

The Edmonton International Film Festival's (EIFF) executive director, Sydney Moule, said the festival will be showing films for all tastes, from big Hollywood features to heartfelt indie movies and local shorts. And, she adds, each night will feature a package of short films from Alberta.

"It's just so great to be able to support our homegrown talents," Moule said. "Typically you'll be seeing films that could be shot in your own neighborhood and in your own city, made by people who could be your neighbours."

Moule said the number of local films have grown substantially over the years, from around six a year to over 30 this year.

One is Edmontonian Nauzanin Knight, who will be debuting two short films this year: Colourblind and Abu & Mo.

Colourblind is the story of a white supremacist who falls in love with a Black woman while temporarily blinded, and it's what Knight calls an inversive romantic comedy.

"That's what I was aiming to do, just to flip those tropes of romantic comedy upside down and really delve into a hard-to-discuss subject with a bit of humour," Knight said. "And I hope it also disarms the audiences and they're more willing to engage in conversations."

Knight said she is driven to create films by the principles of her Baha'i faith, and Abu & Mo is an animated short based on the true story of two men in 1889 in Damascus, one blind and one with dwarfism.

"One was the eyes of the other and one was the legs of the other, and they basically became the best of friends and their friendship inspired a community to come together and pray."

"I tend to promote concepts that support the oneness of humanity . . . So our films tend to grapple with those difficult concepts, but sometimes through a humorous or entertaining lens."

Other Edmonton filmmakers include Eva Colmers, debuting an animated story, Dilly Digger, and Oliver Lessard, with the short film Resting Bike Face.

The EIFF is an Oscar qualifying festival for live action and animated short films, and Moule said the support and feedback from small festivals is an important part of a filmmakers growth. She adds the EIFF is also a chance for the public to see some of these creators before they make it big.

"We get to share voices that you wouldn't normally hear," Moule said. "The filmmakers we're bringing in need to get their start somewhere, and it's often festivals like ours."

"Two years ago we had an Oscar winner here, and we were the festival that gave them their Oscar wings, as they like to say."

The festival opens Thursday with Rosie, and runs until Oct. 1. Tickets are $10 or $15, and a full list of films and times can be found at the EIFF website.