Without Precedent: The Supreme Life of Rosalie Abella

Director Barry Avrich
Year 2023
Run Time 80min
Genre Documentary

As a fierce advocate for human rights, Rosalie Abella casts a long shadow. This lively documentary explores her life and career trajectory, including her successes as an attorney and judge, culminating with her historic appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada, which made her both the first refugee and first Jewish person ever to sit on the country’s highest court. With Rosalie already being an icon and inspiration to many, this portrait also places a focus on Rosalie’s unique personality, style and love of life that carries through all that she does.

Featuring interviews with Margaret Atwood, Brian Mulroney, Joe Clark and, of course, Rosalie herself, this critically-acclaimed film from Barry Avrich is the perfect introduction to one of Canada’s most important figures.

Director

Barry Avrich

Prolific producer, director, and writer Avrich has made many acclaimed documentaries including The Last Mogul, Show Stopper: The Theatrical Life of Garth Drabinsky and David Foster: Off the Record, and the recent Oscar Peterson: Black + White. Avrich has also authored three books, and produced and directed several film adaptations of theatrical productions. He is currently working on 2022 doc The Talented Mr. Rosenberg.

Writer

Barry Avrich

Cast

Margaret Atwood, Rosalie Abella, Joe Clark

Producers

Barry Avrich, Mark Selby

Genre

Documentary

Interests

Biography, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English

Bones of Crows

Director Marie Clements (Métis/Dene)
Year 2022
Run Time 124min
Genre Drama

A powerful and moving exploration of the horrors and lasting impact of the Residential School System, Bones of Crows follows Aline Spears (Dove), a Cree musical prodigy forcibly removed from her family as a young girl. Following her traumatic experiences, Aline serves her country as a Cree Code Talker in World War II, and thereafter tries to carve out a life for herself, but the memories of what happened to her and her siblings never leaves her. Finding that her story is one shared by hundreds of thousands displaced Indigenous people, she sets herself on a pursuit of justice for herself and future generations.

This courageous generation-spanning epic premiered at TIFF to rave reviews, and received five nominations at the Canadian Screen Awards including Best Original Screenplay.

“[It] should be required viewing for all Canadians.” – Kim Hughes, Original Cin

 

Director

Marie Clements (Métis/Dene)

Clements works within a variety of mediums including film, television, radio, and live performance. Her work has screened at Cannes, TIFF, MOMA, VIFF, American Indian Film Festival and imagineNATIVE, and has garnered numerous awards. Her films include the musical documentary The Road Forward and Red Snow, her dramatic debut. She is currently directing the TV show Bones of Crows.

Writer

Marie Clements (Métis/Dene)

Cast

Gail Maurice (Cree/Métis), Phillip Lewitski (Mohawk), Grace Dove (Secwépemc), Rémy Girard, Alanis Obomsawin (Abenaki)

Producers

Trish Dolman, Christine Haebler

Genre

Drama

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, History, Indigenous Filmmaker, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads

Original Languages

Cree, English

Arctic Song

Directors Germaine Arnattaujuq, Louise Flaherty (Inuk), Neil Christopher
Year 2021
Run Time 6min
Genre Animation
A traditional song sharing the Inuit creation stories for the land, waters, and sky, set to breathtaking animation.

Directors

Germaine Arnattaujuq, Louise Flaherty (Inuk), Neil Christopher

Genre

Animation

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker

Original Language

Inuktitut

Angel Money

Director Ian Keteku
Year 2022
Run Time 4min
Genre Animation
A black youth shares a heartfelt poem about coming to terms with his father’s death.

Director

Ian Keteku

Genre

Animation

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Black Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Baba (Drama)

Director Jay Kamal
Year 2021
Run Time 14min
Genre Drama
Twelve-year-old Samir struggles to come to terms with his father’s death while participating in the funeral ceremonies that reflect both his family’s Muslim and Christian beliefs.

Director

Jay Kamal

Genre

Drama

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Global Experiences

Original Languages

English, Other Language

N’xaxaitkw

Director Asia Youngman (Cree-Métis)
Year 2022
Run Time 16min
Genre Drama, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
An Indigenous teen gets pressured into a trip to a lake that’s supposedly the home of the legendary Ogopogo, which proves to be more than a myth.

Director

Asia Youngman (Cree-Métis)

Genres

Drama, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English

Imran and Alykhan

Director Shakil Jessa
Year 2022
Run Time 14min
Genre Romance
At a Muslim youth retreat, sparks fly between two teenage boys, Imran and Alykhan, but they’re forced to keep their budding relationship a secret.

Director

Shakil Jessa

Genre

Romance

Interests

BIPOC Stories, LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English

Superhero Inc.

Directors Elizabeth Whitmere, Christine Bélanger
Year 2022
Run Time 5min
Genre Animation
A telekinetic job applicant begins to question the intentions of their prospective employer in this clever commentary on the treatment of neurodivergence in the workplace.

Directors

Elizabeth Whitmere, Christine Bélanger

Genre

Animation

Interest

Discrimination

Original Language

English

Sensei

Director Jill Roberts
Year 2022
Run Time 23min
Genre Documentary
The inspiring story of Natalie Olson, a young woman with Down Syndrome who attained a 2nd degree black belt in karate, as her sensei prepares her for the Parapan American Karate Championship.

Director

Jill Roberts

Genre

Documentary

Interests

Female Filmmaker, Sports, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English

Love, Leymo

Director Randall Lloyd Okita
Year 2023
Run Time 12min
Genre Documentary
Leymo, a charismatic teenager with autism, writes out a loving letter to his recently-deceased mother with updates about his life, experiences, and accomplishments.

Director

Randall Lloyd Okita

Writer

Leymo Mohammed

Genre

Documentary

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships

Original Language

English