NORTH SYRACUSE — Central New York cinephiles rejoice: Banff is back.
The Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour, a midwinter fundraiser for the CanTeen, returns Feb. 9 at North Syracuse Junior High School. The annual film festival, which first launched in Canada in 1976, features short films about sports, the environment and mountain culture. Each year, about 300 films vie for awards and for a spot on the tour, which travels across Canada, the U.S. and nearly 20 other countries.
“We’re really excited about being able to bring it back — and bring Macker back this year,” said CanTeen Director Amy Crowley. “There’s enough room in the theater so people can social distance.”
Banff went virtual in 2021 because of COVID-19. Former CanTeen Director Toni’Lyn Brauchle brought the Banff festival to North Syracuse in 2018.
Brauchle retired at the end of 2021, and Crowley succeeded her as director. The center also welcomed Wesley Sweetman as the new assistant director in October 2021. Previously, Sweetman worked for the Town Shop Youth Center in Camillus, OCM BOCES and a residential program for people transitioning out of mental health care. Sweetman said he finds working with teenagers very rewarding.
“They still have a little bit of the joy and wonderment that adults don’t necessarily have. I found working with adults was a little like putting Band-Aids on chainsaw wounds. It’s important to form good coping skills and boundaries when people are still malleable,” he said. “I have dealt with some of the experiences that they’re going through, so I can point them to the right place to get care.”
Sweetman has been bonding with the teens through tabletop and video games, pool tournaments, and curating the CanTeen Jukebox, a playlist of music requested by CanTeenagers. The center has expanded community service opportunities — the teens recently volunteered at the village of North Syracuse’s holiday parade and the town of Cicero’s holiday drive-thru — and Sweetman is looking to incorporate guest speakers and community events to introduce the students to a diverse range of cuisines and cultures.
“We’re trying to expose them to more cultures and people and experiences that maybe they wouldn’t necessarily seek out on their own or have access to,” Sweetman said.
In addition to fun and games, Sweetman has devoted his time to making area teens’ “home away from home” a safer, more inclusive place. A student who identifies as nonbinary (that is, someone whose gender falls outside the boxes of “male” or “female”) questioned the need for gendered labels on the three single-occupancy restrooms at the CanTeen, so Crowley and Sweetman decided to remove the labels.
“They’re going to be all-gender bathrooms so everyone can feel more welcome. This space is a second home and that’s what were trying to foster here, a place where young people can feel safe,” Sweetman said.
That sense of safety is especially important during the pandemic, and strong attendance at the CanTeen during the fall of 2021 reflected the students’ need for connection and understanding.
“The teens are probably the hardest hit group of the pandemic. They’re trying to figure out what everything looks like. We adults have a fully developed brain and baggage, but these kids don’t,” Crowley said.
North Syracuse Central School District Superintendent Daniel Bowles has met with students at the CanTeen after school.
“The kids really respond to that, and they appreciate that he’s there to listen to them and their concerns whether it’s [COVID or] issues going on in their particular school. He’s very genuine about listening to them,” Crowley said.
As the CanTeen dives into 2022, Crowley and Sweetman’s philosophy is to meet students where they are.
“We may not understand everything teens are going through and talking about from our own personal experience, but I think just meeting them where they’re at and listening to them will give them that sense of inclusion,” Crowley said.
The Syracuse Banff Mountain Film Festival takes place at 7 p.m. at North Syracuse Junior High School, located at 5353 W. Taft Road. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 each and are available on Eventbrite. Call the CanTeen at 315-699-1391 for more information.
If you can’t make the festival, community members can still support the CanTeen by donating at canteencny.com. The organization also has an Amazon wish list for games, snacks and supplies.
