A lack of snow in Wanaka may have helped boost numbers at the ninth annual New Zealand Mountain Film Festival, which finished last night, festival director Mark Sedon said.
"During the day a lot of people were obviously looking for something to do," Mr Sedon said.
"The evenings always fill up, but we had more people using their festival passes during the day and also sold more seats then usual."
He estimated up to 600 people attended the "homegrown" festival this year, including visitors from Australia, Auckland, Wellington and particularly Christchurch and Queenstown.
About half of the festival-goers were from Wanaka.
Highlights from the festival, which featured 65 films and five speakers, included the new secondary schools programme and Saturday night's talk by United States-based climbing "legend" Greg Child, who had significantly raised the festival's profile locally and internationally, Mr Sedon said.
Mr Sedon and wife Jo are already thinking ahead to the 10th festival next year and have no plans to move it out of Wanaka to a bigger centre, despite its growing popularity.
Scott Kennedy, of Queenstown, was last night announced the winner of the festival's film-editing competition, a new category this year.
He was awarded $US1000 for his film OCD.
