imagineNATIVE's Opening and Closing Night Films Announced
The 14th Annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival
Presenting Sponsor: Bell Media
Opening and Closing Night Films Announced
Mystery Road and Uvanga
Spotlight on Māori Nation • Launch of indigiTALKS • A Tribe Called Red to Perform!
October 16 – 20, 2013
The 14th annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival returns October 16-20, 2013 in downtown Toronto with some of the most compelling and distinctive Indigenous works from around the globe.
imagineNATIVE is proud to announce that Mystery Road, directed by Ivan Sen, will open the film portion of the Festival at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema on Wednesday, October 16, presented by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network. Mystery Road tells the story of Indigenous cowboy-detective Jay Swan as he returns to his outback hometown to solve the murder of a teenage girl. The closing night film, presented by Global Toronto, Uvanga, directed by Madeline Piujuq Ivalu & Marie-Hélène Cousineau, will be screened on Sunday, October 20 at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Uvanga is the story of a young man discovering the land and culture of a father he never knew in Igloolik, Nunavut.
Upholding its role as the world’s largest presenter of Indigenous film and media arts, imagineNATIVE uses each annual Festival to shine a spotlight on an Indigenous nation outside of Canada. This year, the Festival will feature works from the Māori nation of New Zealand with groundbreaking feature films, Mana Waka and The Neglected Miracle, two shorts programs, and radio works, to be presented at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
imagineNATIVE will present 101 films including documentaries, feature length movies, and short programs by Indigenous filmmakers including Jeff Barnaby’s debut feature film Rhymes for Young Ghouls; Jennifer Podemski’s indie drama Empire of Dirt, which tells the story of three generations of women unearthing and coping with family drama and past mistakes; comedy shorts program The Pow-Wow Rangers; horror comedy film Fresh Meat about modern-day Māori cannibals; and documentary Brave New River (La Nouvelle Rupert) that examines the effects of hydro electric damming on the James Bay Cree over the past four decades.
The Beat, imagineNATIVE’s popular showcase of Indigenous music presented by Slaight Music with support by Red Bull Canada and co-presented by The Music Gallery’s X Avant Festival, will feature 2013 Polaris Prize short-listers A Tribe Called Red (ATCR) at The BLK BOX Theatre. In addition, ATCR will act as mentor to Nelson Tagoona, a teen-aged beatboxing throat singer from Iqaluit. Tagoona will open for ATCR with his innovative form of beatboxing, which incorporates Inuit throat singing. His guttural and ethereal beats create a new style of hip-hop that is experimental and original.
On Friday, October 18, imagineNATIVE will present the Uncanny Arts Crawl within the 401 Richmond Building. This free, interactive event features co-presentations and artist talks including the premiere of In The Similkameen, a photo installation by Tyler Hagan presented at Gallery 44; Trade Marks featuring new photographic, video, and audio works by Keesic Douglas, Meryl McMaster, Nigit’stil Norbert and Bear Witness presented at Prefix Institute of Contemporary Art; Lovesick Child focusing on the work of Âhasiw Maskêgon-Iskwêw presented at A Space Gallery; and video installation in Pursuit of Venus by Māori artist Lisa Reihana co-presented by Vtape at the VMAC Gallery.
This year, imagineNATIVE will continue its presentation of Radio Works, presented by Bell Media, a unique exhibit of audio art that highlights the role of radio in rural tribes. Community radio remains a fundamental means for communication, education, and language preservation within Indigenous communities. Radio Works will feature six pieces including radio drama Skin Writing, produced by Radio New Zealand, as part of the Māori spotlight.
imagineNATIVE invites Festival goers to explore New Media Works which are collections of online experiences including videos games such as Skahiòn:hati: Rise of the Kanien'kehá:ka Legends based on several traditional Mohawk legends, and online art galleries such as Offerings, a collaborative web-based exhibition that reflects on the complex and diverse practices linked to the gesture of offering and gifting.
All Radio Works and New Media Works are free and will be exhibited at imagineNATIVE’s Radio + New Media Lounge at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and through imagineNATIVE’s Festival iPhone App.
The 2013 Festival will also see the launch of the indigiTALKS Video Essay Project. Taking place at the TIFF Bell Lightbox, indigiTALKS challenges three Ontario-based Indigenous artists to each produce a 10-minute video essay and give a public presentation on a new thesis of artistic discourse in Indigenous-created film and video work. The three selected recipients for 2013 are Wanda Nanibush, Rachelle Dickenson and Ariel Smith.
The 14th Annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival kicks off at 2pm on Wednesday, October 16 with a Welcome Gathering at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, co-presented by Miziwe Biik Aboriginal Training and Education and TD Bank Group, (16 Spadina Rd.). FREE and open to the public, this reception features traditional Indigenous performances, craft vendors, food, and a welcome address from imagineNATIVE and its international delegates in a casual, family-friendly atmosphere.
Visit www.imagineNATIVE.org for the full Festival line-up.
The 14th Annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival
October 16 – 20, 2013
Passes and Tickets for the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival are available starting October 2 by phone, in person, or online at www.imaginenative.org.
Early-Bird Passes are on sale now until October 2.
imagineNATIVE.org · facebook.com/imaginenative · @imagineNATIVE
Media Contact: FLIP Publicity & Promotions Inc., @flip_publicity
Michelle McTeague, 416.533.7710 X 253, michelle@flip-publicity.com
Damien Nelson, 416.533.7710 X 221, damien@flip-publicity.com
imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival 2013 Sponsors
Presenting Sponsor: Bell Media
Platinum: NBC Universal
Gold: Bell Media • Aboriginal Peoples Television Network • Slaight Music • Deluxe
Silver: Global Toronto • RBC Royal Bank • Canada Media Fund • Harold Greenberg Fund • Casino Rama
Bronze: TD Bank • CBC • TVO • Super Channel • Nunavut Film Development Corporation • Canadian Media Production Association
Media: NOW Magazine • Vision Maker Media • Urban Native Magazine • POV
Public Funders: Ontario Arts Council • Canada Council for the Arts • Canadian Heritage • Miziwe Biik Aboriginal Employment and Training • Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport • Toronto Arts Council • Telefilm
Community Partners: ACTRA Toronto • A Space Gallery • Beehive Design • Charles Street Video • Gallery 44 • Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto • National Film Board of Canada • New Brunswick Film Cooperative • Newfoundland Independent Filmmakers Coop • No'kmaq Village • Vtape • William F. White • WIFT-Toronto •
Festival Hotel: Hilton Garden Inn
Festival Restaurant: The Charlotte Room
Hospitality Partners: Super 8 • Global Village Backpackers • Tea-N-Bannock • Pancho y Emiliano • The Eaton Centre • Entertainment District BIA •
Friends: SABAR • Technicolor • Niagara Custom Lab • DHL
Foundations: The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation • Ontario Trillium Foundation • Inspirit Foundation
