2019 REEL Thanksgiving Challenge Returns for its Seventh Year!!
September 30th – October 11th

Vancouver, BC – Thanks to a booming film and television industry in BC, productions across the province are set to participate in the seventh annual REEL Thanksgiving Challenge, pitting production teams against one another to see who can raise the most funds and food for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.

Beginning September 30th dozens of productions currently filming in BC will be competing to raise thousands to support the food bank, which provides food support for more than 28,000 individuals and families each week in Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster and the North Shore.

“Tens of thousands of cast and crew members in the film and television industry across the province are grateful to the community that we live and work in, and we wanted to give back as a token of our appreciation,” says Rob Larson, Business Agent at the Directors Guild of Canada, British Columbia. “We’re encouraging all participating productions, and industry organizations to get in the spirit of the competition and contribute in support of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. This is the 7th year of the challenge and we are now the single largest annual contributor to the GVFB.”

Last year, the campaign raised a record-breaking $214,879.70 in support of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, which is able to convert each $1 donated to $3 worth of food, thanks to its purchasing power and industry relationships. The top production last year was Supernatural, which raised record breaking total of $47,822.05 in nutritious food and funds.

In six short years, the REEL Thanksgiving Challenge has raised over $785,835 from the film and television industry, which contributed over $3.6 Billion to the province’s economy last year.

“What is so compelling about REEL Thanksgiving is the motive behind it, the deep desire on behalf of BC’s film and television industry to give back to the communities where they work in such a meaningful and impactful way. This is the largest  fundraising event in support of the GVFB, and in 2019 we expect REEL’s total contributions to hit the $1,000,000 mark! We believe access to healthy food is a basic human right.  We are extremely grateful to the Director’s Guild and all of the participating productions, unions, sponsors and donors for their impact on the daily lives of people experiencing food insecurity in Greater Vancouver.”

FUNDraising starts on September 30th and ends on October 11th.

Participating Productions:

Charmed
Snake Eyes
Virgin River
Arrow
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow
A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting
Bonzo
Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist
The Good Doctor
A Million Little Things
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
The Magicians
Supernatural
Siren
Riverdale
The Haunting of Bly Manor
Supergirl
PROJECT BLUE BOOK
When Calls The Heart

Industry Sponsors:

Martini Film Studios
Sim International
CMPA
Vancouver Film Studios
Sunbelt Rentals
William F. White International
Actsafe Safety Association
North Shore Studios
Canada Wide Communications
Union Sponsors
DGC BC
IATSE 891
ICG 669
UBCP/ACTRA
Teamsters 155

For more information and to get involved visit www.reelthanks.com
You can follow and promote the challenge through social media via #ReelThanks19