Vancouver’s Symphony Of Fire, Ottawa’s Winterlude, Montreal’s Just For Laughs: These are what come to mind when we think about Canada’s famous festivals.

We pay good money to travel to them, we brag on Twitter about going to them, and we post photos to Facebook – all the while seeming to ignore what’s going on in our own back … alley.

If I asked most Calgarians if our city had any festivals worthy of a cross-country trip, a typical reaction would probably be a shrug and a “not really – there’s not much to do around here.”

Admit it: We’ve all provided that answer at least once ourselves, probably as recently as today. For some reason, when it comes to culture in Calgary we tend to focus on the negative. Calgary’s International Film Festival has been struggling for years, so instead of praising our other festivals, it’s much easier to use CIFF as an example of how nothing culturally relevant ever comes out of this city except for Elisha Cuthbert.

The truth is somewhat different.

As someone who writes about Canadian entertainment every day, it’s becoming more and more difficult to ignore an exploding local festival scene that keeps on generating its own momentum.

Today marks the opening of the eighth annual Calgary Underground Film Festival; next month sees the return of the buzz-worthy Fairy Tales Film Festival, and just a few weeks later it’s Sled Island, which CBC just named one of the top 10 festivals in Canada.

Seriously, who knew?

In truth, I’m probably just as guilty as you. I have yet to attend the Sled Island Music Festival, while tonight will mark my first-ever screening at CUFF. It was only last year that I lost my Calgary Folk Music Festival virginity in the soft green grass of Prince’s Island Park.

Like many Calgarians, I was spending way too much time brooding over how little there is going on when, in actuality, things were happening all around me.

My hope is that I don’t sound like an ad for Tourism Calgary. There are lots of things in this city that I’m more than happy to ignore (the Bow River Flow immediately comes to mind).

But if it’s possible to make resolutions four months into the year, then it should be this: Calgary has lots to offer. It may be harder to find, and it might not receive much international press, but it’s worth celebrating nonetheless.