ST. GEORGE — In an effort to help raise funds for a Southern Utah nonprofit that benefits youth, the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour will show Wednesday evening at the Electric Theater.

Founded by Matthew Mizukawa in 2019, the local nonprofit to benefit,  Get Outside, aims to remove financial barriers so more area youth can enjoy outdoor recreation and increase overall well-being. Funds raised by the film festival and other donations will go directly to events and programming for the youth, said Mizukawa, who also serves as president of the nonprofit.

“The festival falls in line with our mission to motivate our community to get outside and engage in outdoor recreation,” he added. “We are so lucky to have a stop on the tour here.”

Through their scholarship program, Get Outside pays for outdoor recreational costs such as a day pass, rentals, instruction and transportation for students who want to go but cannot pay, he said, adding that students who qualify for free/reduced lunch at school could have their fees subsidized.

“We are making great strides to eliminate financial considerations from being a barrier to the outdoors,” Mizukawa said.

Physical activity is vital for young people and contributes to both physical and mental well-being, he said. He then referred to statistics issued by the Centers for Disease Control showing that the incidents of childhood obesity, diabetes, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, mental disorders and various other conditions are rising exponentially.

“While outdoor recreation is not the silver bullet to cure this, I believe it is a vastly underutilized resource to help our youth combat these trends,” Mizukawa said. “Our aim is to help youth integrate outdoor recreation into their lifestyles now and propagate these into adulthood for longitudinal physical and mental health.”

While Get Outside is currently only in Southern Utah, Mizukawa said he has been contacted by other schools in northern Utah who want to start Get Outside clubs.

Local students can get involved through the Get Outside clubs at their high schools. Each club has an adviser they can contact. Students can also follow social media to learn about activities and get involved. Find the club’s social feeds on Facebook and Instagram.

The Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour is held yearly in Banff, Alberta, Canada. After the best in outdoor rock climbing, mountain biking, ski/snowboarding, mountaineering and mountain culture films are submitted to the festival, the top movies are taken on a tour around the world.

Returning to St. George for its third year, there also will be giveaways from sponsors, including Southern Utah University Outdoors, Bike Fix, The Desert Rat and Contact Climbing Gym.

Sabina Litherland, a program coordinator for the World Tour Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, said the festival partners with tour hosts who are passionate about the outdoors and want to bring mountain films to their community.

“We are always looking to build long-term partnerships, and many of our Tour Hosts have been with us over 20 years,” Litherland said. “As the World Tour grows it is more difficult to add locations to our schedule, so those relationships are increasingly important.”

The film festival will be held Wednesday evening at the Electric Theater, located at 68 E. Tabernacle, in St. George. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the show starting at 7 p.m.

Photo Gallery

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.