The Vancouver International Film Festivals [VIFF] is among the largest film Festivals in North America and is one of the largest cultural events in Canada. A fall fixture on the international film Festivals calendar, this outstanding Festivals is a microcosm of its home city: cosmopolitan, innovative, friendly, culturally complex and very accessible. The 2009 Festivals takes place October 1 to 16 and 150,000 people are expected to attend approximately 640 screenings of 360 films from 80 countries. Founded in 1982, the Festivals's mandate is to encourage the understanding of other nations through the art of cinema, to foster the art of cinema, to facilitate the meeting in British Columbia of cinema professionals from around the world, and to stimulate the motion picture industry in British Columbia and Canada.