From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver, November 7-13, 2024. Please note that you can once again get the Scout List – with a few extra pieces of intel included – sent to your inbox every Thursday. Sign up for your subscription here.

WATCH | Looking for some amusing and/or eye-opening entertainment to carry you through the long weekend and beyond (and to help temporarily take your mind off of the devastating American election results)? The Vancouver Asian Film Festival kicks off today, Thursday, November 7th, with in-theatre screenings running through the weekend and resuming again for one-day-only on Sunday, November 16th. (The fest’s virtual edition picks up the baton on the holiday Monday, November 11 and runs until the 17th). The theme of this 28th edition is “Future Voices”, with programming highlighting up-and-coming Asian-Canadian talent, as well as those who already have their footing within the industry. VAFF 2024 features 11 full-length films (including one of our 2024 DOXA faves, Between Pictures: The Lens of Tamio Wakayama), and over 100 shorts, hitting on genres from animation, romance and drama, to horror, dramedy and documentary – i.e. more than enough to keep your eyeballs and brains busy over the mostly rainy days forecast for the near future. General admission for in-theatre screenings is $15-20 per film (cheaper for Seniors and Students), whereas online programs are $12 each (or $50 for the whole shebang). Happy watching! DETAILS

LIGHT | Having a hard time adjusting to the darkness of November? There’s one exceptionally bright event that might (temporarily) help distract you from the always-too-soon reality of winter’s darker days. The Lumiere festival is a celebration of light expressed through various large and small-scale illuminated artworks and light-based projections (accompanied by live performances) slated to brighten up the city from November 7-10. Expect interactive, light-based pieces on display in more than 11 locations across downtown Vancouver (West End, Yaletown, and Gastown neighbourhoods). DETAILS

ENGAGE | Love books, booze, and supporting your local community? Upstart & Crow is throwing a Party in a Bookshop on tonight, and it’s the perfect mix of all three. Sip on wine, beer from Persephone Brewing, or cocktails by Please! Beverage Co. while browsing staff-curated picks and this season’s top releases. Tickets are $50 and include a $20 gift certificate for the bookshop, your first drink, a prize draw entry, and personalized book recommendations. Plus, you’ll be supporting their not-for-profit work, like writer residencies and workshops. DETAILS

BEER + BOOKS | One of our favourite, underrated combinations (reading + drinking / beer + books) is also coming together at Main St. Brewing in Mount Pleasant tonight. That’s when local beer aficionado and author, Noëlle Phillips, will be launching her new book, Brewmasters & Brewery Creek: A History of Craft Beer in Vancouver, Then and Now (Touchwood) in the very building which once housed the historic Vancouver Brewery – how apropos! If you consider yourself a beer-lover and/or have a thing for local history, then Phillips’ book clearly belongs on your bookshelf. Show up to snag a signed copy and chat up / barrage the author with all of your beer history-related questions, all the while, sipping on some solid pints from MSB, natch. RSVP to the Facebook event page HERE. DETAILS

ZINE HARVEST | Winter is coming, which means that now is the time to begin seriously squirrelling away as much reading material as possible for the long grey days ahead when you can’t be bothered to get out. It just so happens that a crop of twenty local zinesters will be in attendance at this year’s Zine Harvest, which goes down in Chinatown this weekend. Bring a (big) tote bag and get ready to fill it up with handmade books. This is alsoa great excuse to get out and meet some artists in-person; and even if you don’t take home anything physical with you, it seems pretty likely you’ll at least pick up some inspiration (perhaps for your own next seasonal DIY project?) It’s also simply nice to show up and support local folks making cool stuff! DETAILS

CRAFT | November marks the beginning of Craft Fair season. Just about every weekend this month sees a different gathering of artisans, craftspeople and artists setting up tables and booths to offer their local, handmade wares to Vancouverites. Even if you don’t buy anything, it’s pretty cool to walk around a room full of people who spend their time making things by hand. This weekend you can check out the annual Circle Craft Holiday Market, complete with hundreds of artists, designers and artisans making everything from everything from jewellery and jam to woodwork and textiles. Always inspiring! DETAILS

REMEMBER | This Remembrance Day, slow down and truly appreciate the gravity of your moment of silence. Services take place at numerous locations around town on Monday morning, but the biggie one will be at Victory Square, where the 100th anniversary of the solemn ceremony starts at 10:30am, with music, prayers, speeches, a moment of silence (at 11am) wreath-laying, and a parade. There’s nothing like a 21-gun salute and some bagpipes to clear the tear ducts! DETAILS

CELEBRATE | Pizza Coming Soon turns four years old this week! We love these guys. If you love them too, Sunday night is the perfect time to head down to Chinatown to celebrate, at their 4-year anniversary party. There will be a magician, some DJs, karaoke, free hors d’oeuvres, cheap drinks on the menu…AND there has even been some hinting of “Keithburgers” (Keith is the chef at Pizza Coming Soon, and if he’s making burgers, you better believe they will be tasty!) From the Pizza Coming Soon crew: “Come party with us this Sunday. It’s a long weekend so you can get long drunk if you want! Please reserve a table today! Please come & celebrate! Please be patient with us – we’re only 4 years old!” DETAILS

LISTEN | Vancouver Art Gallery is hosting Zita Cobb for a free discussion next week, November 12th. The Founder & CEO of charitable organization Shorefast and Innkeeper at Fogo Island Inn will be in conversation with Anthony Kiendl (VAG CEO & Executive Director), talking about the significance of culture in community-building and connection-making between people and specific places. They’ll be broaching big questions like: “How does a person relate to their local environment? How does that local place relate to the region? How does the local belong to the global?” Besides being a savvy businesswoman, hospitality vet and activist, Cobb is also an eighth-generation member of Fogo Island, a remote 400 year-old Canadian Atlantic outport fishing community. As such, we’re expecting her to bring a truly unique perspective to the table. It should be a good’un! And it’s free with registration – so get in your RSVP now, and show up, everybody! DETAILS

RELAX | This is a long weekend, so things can move a little slower than usual. In addition to Rememberance Day observations, there will be some extra time to kick back with family, plan a brunch with friends, clean the garage – whatever it is that you’ve been meaning to get to but can’t manage in a regular two-day weekend. Not sure where to begin? A hike in the forest is always a good idea. Homestead Trail Loop in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve is a good option. Homestead is an easy 45-minute hike (with a few stretches of more challenging elevation) taking you through forest, along the stream and up hills. After you’re done, take yourself to United Strangers to treat yourself to a killer chai latte and a well-deserved doughnut.

COMMUNITY. NOT CLICKBAIT.