Dangerous mother-daughter mountain treks (This Mountain Life). Hidden cities in the Honduras jungle (The Lost City of the Monkey God). Banksy murals stolen in Bethlehem (The Man Who Stole Banksy). These are some of the descriptions from the 2018 Vancouver International Film Festival that got my heart racing.

There are always way more appealing films than can possibly be seen, even if, like some eccentric festival-goers, you dedicate two weeks of your life to it. But this year there are even more than usual that I am anticipating: a documentary about a week-long folk dancing festival in a French village (Le Grand Bal), a Canadian indie film in which a student film about teens joining the army goes awry (Spice it Up), international fare like the one in which Kyrgyz women talk about the inspiring heroine from a 1958 novel (Jamilia), and hypnotic films which can only properly be called visual art (like Peter Bo Rappmund's Communion Los Angeles).

I am also excited to see lost film school footage documentary Shirkers, South Korean slacker film Microhabitat, Swedish comedy Amateurs, people talking about work dreams in Dreaming Under Capitalism and Iranian master Jafar Panahi's latest, 3 Faces.

What you need to know: it all happens in Vancouver from September 27th to October 12th. There are literally hundreds of screenings which include big prize winners (like Cannes winner Shoplifters, from Japan), Canadian faves from Don McKellar, Bruce Sweeney and Patricia Rozema (True North category), and the totally weird and bizarre (try the Altered States listings).

The program is online. Or a big glossy one is free all over town! Stay tuned for reviews.