Inaugural Halifax Retro Film Festo showcases Nova Scotia’s cinematic history 

Halifax’s new retro film festival is bringing back forgotten films and giving audiences a chance to rediscover local movies that have faded from view. 

Taking place at Carbon Arc Theatre — located in the Natural History Museum — the first Halifax Retro Film Festo is bringing rare films back to the big screen with the goal of preserving Nova Scotia’s film history.  

The festival was created after conversations with movie lovers, said founder Carsten Knox. Many expressed a desire to revisit local films after their initial runs, as they often become difficult to find. 

“Once they’ve had their festival run and theatrical run, they might pop up on a streaming service or on CBC Gem, but then they just kind of disappear,” Knox said. 

Some of the films being shown at the festival include New Waterford Girl, Touch and Go and Love that Boy. None are currently available for streaming, according to JustWatch.com. 

Sourcing the films proved to be the festival’s biggest challenge. Many of them go as far back as 30 years. Knox said securing public screening rights and obtaining high-quality copies is often difficult, as many films have been lost over time, making the process a “treasure hunt.” 

Knox is also part of the small team behind Carbon Arc Theatre, the only independent cinema in the province. This independence gives them the freedom to curate their programming without focusing on blockbuster releases. 

“It’s the quirkier films, the weirder films, the international films that you would never see otherwise,” Knox said. “That’s why independence is so important. It’s amazing.” 

Knox, despite being a come from away (Ontario), has become increasingly drawn to stories made in Atlantic Canada.

“There’s so many stories of people’s experiences here, and they come in all shapes and sizes, you know, in all tones and genres,” he said. “The wealth of storytelling talent became super clear to me.” 

Public response to the event had been strong. The ticket sales for the weekend event led to the addition of a third screening of Allan Moyle’s 1999 film New Waterford Girl. 

About 70 audience members filed in for the festival’s sold-out opening night Thursday. The concession stand served hot toddys and popcorn so audiences could warm up and enjoy the film.

 “I love a big screen, popcorn, I don’t know, all that. But also, this movie, I don’t think you’re able to get or locate in a lot of places that wouldn’t be without Carbon Arc delivering it to us,” said audience member Taylor Brown. 

The response to the festival’s lineup has also caught the attention of the local film industry. “I’m just excited, this is screening one of three of New Waterford Girl and they’re all sold out. That’s super exciting to me as a local filmmaker myself,” said Tara Thorne. “It’s just nice to see people coming out in this cold snap.” 

“We’ve been so excited by the response to the ticket sales,” Knox said. “If that’s any indication of how people are responding, it’s a good sign.” 

With the festival’s success so far, Knox has no plans to slow down. 

“I would love to see this have a second iteration in 2026 and a third in 2027,” he said. “We want to find more films, films that maybe nobody has seen, and go even further back.” 

Beyond showing older and more obscure films, Knox hopes the festival can act as an archive to preserve Nova Scotia’s film history. 

“I hope they’re reminded of how great these movies are,” he said. “Really important is that the fact that these films are available to people just in general, it would be a huge shame if these films vanished not only from the cultural conversation but literally disappeared.” 

The festival is showing films until Feb. 2.