Members of the community, along with many visitors from near and far, gathered at the 27th annual Helper Arts, Music and Film Festival Aug. 20-22. An estimated 5,000 people enjoyed all the festival had to offer.
“All in all, the festival was a success and many turned out to enjoy the art, food, music and, even better, the cooler weather over the weekend,” said Helper City Mayor and event organizer Lenise Peterman.
Vendor booths dotted Helper’s Main Street, spaced out to encourage social distancing. The community stage capped off the south end of Main Street, encouraging attendees to display their talents. On the stage, there was singing, dancing and a visiting juggler. Rudy Castro also offered a graffiti demonstration on two evenings.
Music was plentiful throughout the festival with performers entertaining crowds of all ages. Shuffle and Natural Causes drew many fans to the stage at the Main Street Park with their performances.
For the film component, attendees gathered at the Rio Theater for a midnight showing of “The Canyonlands,” a horror movie filmed in Grand County. On Sunday, a stop motion workshop hosted by the Utah Film Commission got younger attendees involved.
“A large contingent of volunteers made the festival a huge success with their efforts manning different areas of the festival, including the kids’ art yard, film, website, beer and wine gardens and vendor management,” Peterman said.
