WINTERLIGHT 2 0 1 0Edmonton - adventures of a winter city

photo: Epic Photography

Celebrating winter spirit throughart, recreation and heritage

STEP OUTSIDEWinter Light showcases Edmonton’s natural beauty and lively winter spirit...

FUELLED BY LIGHTWinter Light explores light design, starry night skies, new technology, and the ancient power of fire…

WARM UP TO WINTERWinter Light brings people together, reflects our identity as a northern community, celebrates our story...

photo: Epic Photography

WINTEREXPERIENCEWinter Light 2010 showcased a full season of winter culture and activity in the Edmonton region, involving 10festival events, January through March.

Winter Light’s resources are focused on originality and excellence in outdoor programming. Motivated by the themes, ‘light, fire, action, welcome’, everything is developed to engage - and sometimes surprise - audiences with new and distinctive winter experience.

During the 2010 season, Winter Light created over 86 public performances - fuelled by the creative imagination and energy of 147 artists – and drew record audiences of 120,000+ people.

Winter Light develops festival sites with multiple layers of activity in art, recreation and heritage, including music, dance, theatre, visual art, media, fine craft, drum, storytelling, light design, spectacle and circus.

photo: Epic Photography

Winter Light has been innovative and exciting at venues everywhere.

Fantastic to see a City enjoying winter, getting active outdoors, and making the most of living in the North. Keep going – Viva Winter Light 2010 and for years to come. Put us on the map as a lively city of lights! Tyson O.

NEW

photo: Epic Photography

JOINING EDMONTON’SAMAZING WINTER FESTIVALSWinter Light is honoured to join Edmonton’s wonderful winter festival scene, featuring Silver Skate, Ice on Whyte and Deep Freeze. They generously welcomed a new festival, shared sites, and introduced Winter Light to their audiences.

Silver Skate is Edmonton’s oldest winter festival, and is a quintessential mid-winter celebration with Dutch skate traditions, remarkable snow sculpture, and tonnes of family fun in a picturesque park setting. In the last 5 years, the festival developed a live arts and media component. Silver Skate was the host event for Winter Light’s inaugural Aboriginal Camp and the fire spectacle 24 Hrs to Ignition. www.silverskatefestival.org

Ice on Whyte is Edmonton’s pre-eminent ice festival, with dozens of carvers creating a dazzling installation of frozen sculpture. The atmosphere is family friendly, with an amazing ice castle, and a thrilling ice slide. The festival presents both local and international carvers who compete for prizes. Winter Light helps create light designs for the ice. www.iceonwhyte.ca

Deep Freeze Byzantine Winter Festival ushers in the New Year on historic Alberta Ave. The festival celebrates winter with skating, curling, ice sculpting, street hockey and hay rides. Inside the community hall, there is ethnic food, live music, and an arts market. Winter Light helps present an outdoor theatrical mummery, Aboriginal programming and free hot chocolate. www.artsontheave.org

photo: Epic PhotographyNEW AUDIENCESFRESH WINTER FUN

Wonderful weather, great programming and a terrific marketing campaign helped spur record attendance at all winter festival events in Edmonton, for a combined attendance of 120,700 people. Audience patterns show an influx of new winter festival audiences, a trend that speaks to concerted multicultural outreach and grassroots marketing.

Mispon 625 Deep Freeze 11,000 Ice on Whyte 39,000 Baba Yaga 7,100 Hearts of Fire 875 Family Day 6,900 Silver Skate Festival (& Winter Camp) 31,000 Big Winter 3,800 Star Party 6,200 Illuminations 14,200

“I just wanted to congratulate you and thank you for such a wonderful festival!!! We were able to make it out to 4 of the events and I marveled at the creativity of each different event and also at the enthusiasm of all the people involved with the festival. We loved it all...the lanterns, the hot chocolate, the sleds, the fire monsters, the stories in the teepee, walking through the enchanted Baba Yaga Trail, absolutely everything!Thanks again!!” Toby-Anne

photo: Epic Photography

INNOVATIVEPROGRAMMINGBaba Yaga, Big Winter, Star Walk, & Illuminations - story walks and winter ‘trail adventures’ animated with lanterns, dioramas, fire sculpture and live performance

Flashpoint - an innovative multi-media show combining ‘big air’ freestyle and photography - a physical and visual extravaganza

The world’s largest ‘Dragon Luge’ – a thrilling slide, and the city’s most extravagant snow sculpture

Western Canada’s largest winter Star Party - a spectacular evening of star watching, astronomy & light design that drew over 6,000 people to Elk Island National Park

Dialogue - a media art project where people interacted with light and text, projected on the snowy landscape

Canada’s first Aboriginal Winter Camp - a gathering of elders, artists and heritage presenters, shining light on a rich cultural heritage

‘Rocket Sled Across the North Saskatchewan’ - a loud and fiery spectacle, spoofing the ‘daredevil stunt’ genre

“An amazing spectacle to see! Beautiful Light and absolutely fabulous! We’ll be back.” Hadley J.

“Love it sooooo much ” Michelle

“Your Star Party is stunning! I love it!” Robin W.

“I have never seen Whitemud Creek in such a magical light.“ Stephen

photo: Epic Photography

SHARINGTHE WINTER LANDSCAPE

BUILDINGCOMMUNITY

“One of my best days in Canada. Thank you.” Elham O.

Audience Diversity

Winter Light events are free, multicultural, international, and all-ages.

Winter Light reaches out to 28 community-run agencies, and welcomes thousands of new audience members at the winter festivals.

Rechauffez-Vous Au Divertissement FamilialLes Canadiens adorent l’hiver et celebrent de plusieurs façons. Patin, Luge Dragon et chocolat chaud sont apprecies par tous les âges. Arts et spectacles plein air ajoutent de l’energie dans l’atmosphere!

Pemiyawtamok kawimamowon’toya pipohkih

TansiWinter Light’s programming is characterized by the influence of Aboriginal people – more than 40 elders, artists, and heritage inter-preters contribute to the festivals.

Aboriginal programs have centred on winter encampments, experiences that showcase both contemporary and traditional culture through art & fine craft, dance, song and story.

photo: Epic Photography

SENSE OF PLACE CIVIC ENGAGEMENTEdmonton is Canada’s most northern city of its size - over a million people - and boasts a unique climate, a spectacular quality of light, 150 kilometres of river valley parkland, a lively cultural scene, and an historic winter heritage. Winter Light celebrates these qualities with festival events in a variety of urban landscapes and natural parkland including:

• Sir Winston Churchill Square• Whitemud Park• Snow Valley• Boyle Street Park• Edmonton Ski Club• Jackie Parker Park• William Hawrelak Park• City Hall• Elk Island National Park

Winter Light works closely with a variety of community circles that bring fresh ideas, people, and alliances together to explore Edmonton’s winter city identity and Winter Light programming, including:

• Artist Team• Aboriginal Circle• Marketing Team• Newcomers Circle• Steering Committee• Visioning Group• Community League Links• Winter events peer to peer• Multicultural Networks Circle

“The Winter Light activities make the Edmonton winter a winter to love and brag to other cities about. We thoroughly enjoyed the 2010 season and praise your excellent organization! Thank you again.” Frank and Terri G. and family

photo: Epic Photography

GRASS ROOTSTO MAINSTREAMSUCCESSFUL MARKETING& COMMUNICATIONS

One of the most important and challenging goals for Winter Light was to create a ‘winter positive’ message that would reach a broad audience, motivating public attendance at winter festivals, but just as importantly, creating a civic-wide conversation about the potential of our ‘winter city’.

• The multi-layered campaign had impact in main stream, grassroots, and digital media

• 350+ marketing design documents were disseminated in print, broadcast and outreach publications

• 2 million hits on the website took the Winter Light brand around the world to over 1,000 cities, generating thousands of unique visits, and an exceptional visit average of 5.6 minutes

• 463 mainstream media and verifiable online stories were published about Winter Light and winter festivals in 2010.

“Best winter festival ever. We had a ton of fun! Really well organized. Interesting and awesome entertainment. Thanks!” Shanna A.

Congratulations! … amazing job. If there is any way this business association can get involved with next year‘sevent, please let me know.All the best Ratan L.

POWERFULINVESTMENTFUNDING

ROI: LOCAL ECONOMYAND SOCIAL CAPITAL

SPONSORSHIP

Winter Light festivals are developed with civic funding of $750,000, and $32,000 Family Day budget. Business sponsors and partners contribute $90,200. The Alberta Foundation for the Arts supports artists’ fees with a $27,900 grant.

Over 90% of the Winter Light budget is spent in the Capital Region, with benefits generated for artists, culture and heritage presenters ($212,000), production suppliers ($220,000), event workers ($299,999), web development and marketing ($168,000).

The festivals bring people together, encourage positive winter attitudes, and help create a high quality of life during Edmonton’s winter season.

The sustainability of Winter Light is fostered by a network of generous funders from the business community, led by Canadian Tire, Pattison, Pocobrio, CityTV/OMNI, Snow Valley, Budget Car and Truck Rentals, Edmonton Ski Club, College of EMS, Vue Magazine, Magic 99, Nightlife and SnowSeekers. Thank you!

photo: Epic Photography

“we had soooooooo much fun!”Norten Family

“just amazing!”Christina

photo: Epic Photography

GOOD NEWSTRAVELS!Winter Light welcomes visitors from across Alberta, Canada, North America, and around the world. Some of the wonderful comments in our guest book come from:

Kugluktuk, NVSchefferville, QCWhitehorse, NWTVenezuelaEnglandKelowna, BCBerlin, GermanyChicago, ILLDuluth, MNSurrey, BCHong KongBarcelona, Spain100 Mile House, BCFawn Creek, BCSantiago, ChileJapanEel River, NBAustria

Peace River, High River, Little Smokey, Saddle Lake, Cochrane, Sherwood Park, Beaumont, Leduc, St. Albert, Canmore, Red Deer, Lamont, Lethbridge, Swan Hills, Rocky Mountain House, Fort McMurray, Tomahawk, Brooks, Ft. Assiniboine, Calgary, Lamont County, Paddle Prairie, Metis Nation, Fort Saskatch-ewan, Josephburg, Lacombe, Ponoka, Whitefish Lake, Airdrie, Wetaskiwin, Swan Hills, Ardrossan

ALBERTA LIKESWINTER LIGHT!

LOOKING AHEADWINTER LIGHT PROJECTSJAN - MAR 2011

LIGHT WALKS Story advenutures in nature

FLASHPOINTFreestyle media extravaganza

HEARTS OF FIRE A mid-winter celebration

FAMILY DAY - GLOBAL VILLAGEFamily connections, next door and around the world

ABORIGINAL WINTER CAMPSharing a rich and beautiful culture

ILLUMINATIONS FIRE AND ICEA vision of light in our city

STAR PARTYAstronomy, and the spectacular night sky

INTERESTED IN WINTER LIGHT?info@winterlight.ca 780-760-2229

photo: Epic Photography

WINTERLIGHT