Our Town Faro

Mitch Miyagawa & David Oppenheim,
2004,
8 min 31 s

Synopsis
Point Of View
Education

This short film is about the small town of Faro located in the Yukon wilderness. In the 1970s, Faro was poised for success as a mining town but when metal prices plummeted and the mine shut down, the place was destined to become a ghost town. But Murray Hampton, a mining engineer who became the mayor, was determined to bring things back to life.

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What do you think of when I say the word Yukon? Snow? Ice? Winter ? Dogsleds? Well, that is what I used to think of until I saw this great short film. The town of Faro was built by a mine that eventually closed, never to re-open. Instead of focusing on this negative, the residents started to talk about the fact that Faro was a great place to live, prosper and raise children. They decided to recruit people to move there and help their community grow. No hard sell, just focusing on the positives. As the main character says, there is no reason for people to live in one place over another. We could all move to Toronto and be done with it. But the residents of Faro love their town because it is unique and has a sense of community. It remains their piece of heaven. This film shows us that sometimes it is the simple things in life that are the most attractive.

— Albert Ohayon

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Comments

“I am an Australian but fell in love with the Yukon and remember Faro well. A well presented film and Murray Hampton - never give up man” — jebboy, 2 Oct 2010
“I visited Faro when the mine was open in the late 1990s. I was wondering what happened to it, so it's nice to see the film. I do remember asking one of the miners "What do you do in Faro?" He talked about many outdoor activities, Then he said "What do you do in Toronto?" and I was stumped.” — dcreelman, 12 Mar 2010