Film and Video Arts Society

The Film and Video Arts Society (FAVA) provides training, equipment, and networking opportunities for emerging and established filmmakers. Established by independent artists in 1982, FAVA represents one of the oldest artist-run co-ops in Canada and reached its 25th anniversary milestone in 2008. The Society operates out of one of Edmonton, Alberta's historic buildings: the Ortona Armoury, built in 1914 by the Hudson's Bay Company and originally used as a stable. FAVA's successful model is now copied by other non-profit cooperatives; having grown from 16 initial members to today's more than 300. Early years of meager supplies and limited resources helped to nurture a communal sense of sharing and a pooling of equipment that extended even to the National Film Board of Canada who shared office space and an infamous "late-night key" (that provided access to a bounty of top-line equipment) with FAVA in the Ortona Armoury. Today young and emerging artists have access to equipment, expert advice, and an established network of linked-in artists and policy advisers, that enable them to engage in creative and experimental projects that would be nearly impossible to attain on their own.