B.C. Oscar winners dedicate new film to VGH staff

Film buffs in France will soon be hearing about the life-saving work done by doctors at Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) thanks to two grateful Oscar-winning animators.

Alison Snowden and David Fine weren’t sure they’d even finish their latest animated short. In fact, it should have been ready last year, but the Vancouver couple were blindsided by a near-death experience.

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“I just couldn’t bear the idea that she wouldn’t be there to finish the film together, that we’d worked so hard on together,” Fine said.

His wife fell ill with a persistent lung infection. Her lungs stopped working–even life support wasn’t enough for her.

But an 11th-hour lung transplant saved her life. The couple are forever grateful to the team of doctors, surgeons and nurses at VGH.

“We almost see them like extended family,” Snowden said.

They completed their film, titled Animal Behaviour, and dedicated it to the team at VGH, with a heartfelt note in the closing credits.

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It’s a message thousands will soon see:. The film is now a contender in the Annecy International Film Festival, the world’s biggest festival for animated flicks.

Dr. John Yee, one of Snowden’s surgeons, says her story is nothing short of a miracle.

“We’re very happy we could help her write the next chapter in her life story and bring a work of art to the world that never would have occurred if she had not gone through all that,” Yee said.