Films & Schedules - BRITISH COLUMBIA

(DOC) From the mid-1960s through the 1970s, Vancouver, BC, was an international hub for experimental film and the source of an enduring body of work that resonates today. Martin’s documentary examines some of the key works of the era, offering perspective on the social and cultural context of the time and the varied influences of psychedelic pop, structuralism, experimental drama, and poetic cinema. Featuring interviews from members of Vancouver’s cultural community—including the artists themselves—the film offers a primer for appreciating a program of key works curated by Martin, all of which reveal vibrant visions. Martin’s BACKBONE (2013) (60 mins.) will...

(DOC) From the mid-1960s through the 1970s, Vancouver, BC, was an international hub for experimental film and the source of an enduring body of work that resonates today. Martin’s documentary examines some of the key works of the era, offering perspective on the social and cultural context of the time and the varied influences of psychedelic pop, structuralism, experimental drama, and poetic cinema. Featuring interviews from members of Vancouver’s cultural community—including the artists themselves—the film offers a primer for appreciating a program of key works curated by Martin, all of which reveal vibrant visions. Martin’s BACKBONE (2013) (60 mins.) will be followed by Gary Lee-Nova’s STEEL MUSHROOMS (1967), Al Razutis’s LUMIÈRE’S TRAIN (ARRIVING AT THE STATION) (1979), Sturla Gunnarsson’s A DAY MUCH LIKE THE OTHERS (1977), Chris Gallagher’s SEEING IN THE RAIN (1981), Patricia Gruben’s THE CENTRAL CHARACTER (1977), David Rimmer’s CANADIAN PACIFIC 1 (1974), Tom Braidwood’s BACKBONE (1972), Peter Lipskis’s ECLIPSE (1979), Kirk Tougas’s FAR FROM QUEBEC (LOIN DU QUÉBEC) (1971), and Michael McGarry’s IN BLACK AND WHITE (1979). (Total program running time: 156 mins.)

Whitsell Auditorium    

Interests: Documentary Views.

(NAR) Larry (Nicolas Wright) is an unprincipled city councilman who doesn’t mind a little fraud and infidelity if it advances his political career and strokes his ego. Soon, however, he notices an uncanny cameraman documenting his every move and misdeed. Larry’s psychiatrist suggests that the cameraman is a manifestation of his subconscious, whose purpose is to make Larry own up to his bad behavior and change his ways. But owning up to the truth of his life, which now includes not only a broken marriage but an accidental homicide, proves too much for Larry’s ego to handle. He comes to...

(NAR) Larry (Nicolas Wright) is an unprincipled city councilman who doesn’t mind a little fraud and infidelity if it advances his political career and strokes his ego. Soon, however, he notices an uncanny cameraman documenting his every move and misdeed. Larry’s psychiatrist suggests that the cameraman is a manifestation of his subconscious, whose purpose is to make Larry own up to his bad behavior and change his ways. But owning up to the truth of his life, which now includes not only a broken marriage but an accidental homicide, proves too much for Larry’s ego to handle. He comes to the only other conclusion he can live with—that he’s a character in a movie. Now if only he can find an ending that works…. “A low-budget wonder that’s inventive and very funny.”—The Vancouver Observer. (91 mins.)

Mission Theater    

Interests: Narrative Feature.

(DOC) In 2006, Pamela Masik began to paint massive, gruesome portraits based on a police poster of 69 missing women—many of them Aboriginal—from the streets of Vancouver. Twenty-six of her subjects were murdered on Robert Pickton’s farm. She wanted the paintings to bear witness to the crimes and accuse a systemically racist and sexist society that minimizes violence against women. Instead, activist groups are outraged, accusing her of exploiting women’s suffering to further her career. The film follows Masik as, with an energy that is often disturbing in its own way to watch, she works to finish the paintings. Interviews...

(DOC) In 2006, Pamela Masik began to paint massive, gruesome portraits based on a police poster of 69 missing women—many of them Aboriginal—from the streets of Vancouver. Twenty-six of her subjects were murdered on Robert Pickton’s farm. She wanted the paintings to bear witness to the crimes and accuse a systemically racist and sexist society that minimizes violence against women. Instead, activist groups are outraged, accusing her of exploiting women’s suffering to further her career. The film follows Masik as, with an energy that is often disturbing in its own way to watch, she works to finish the paintings. Interviews with families and friends of the women, outreach workers, Memorial March Committee members, journalists, former police officers, former sex workers, and activists provide both support for and criticism of her work and motives. “Shown within the context of the Pickton inquiry, including heartbreaking footage of some of the young women when they were alive, the film raises important contemporary debates about race, privilege, art, and responsibility.”—Hot Docs Festival. (93 mins.)

Whitsell Auditorium    

Interests: Documentary Views.

(DOC) Here we have a sure sign of progress: the psychedelic insights of the ’60s counterculture, intact and now bolstered by decades of study. Drawing on an exemplary range of interviews and visualizations, Oliver Hockenhull’s film examines the effects of ayahuasca, MDMA, LSD, and psilocybin. We learn about their mind-expanding properties, their potential to generate revelation, and their possible and documented medical uses. Why are these substances illegal? Several reasons are posited, including their dubious association with lethal drugs like cocaine and heroin and their open-patent status, which renders them unexploitable by Big Pharma—and a potential threat to the corporate...

(DOC) Here we have a sure sign of progress: the psychedelic insights of the ’60s counterculture, intact and now bolstered by decades of study. Drawing on an exemplary range of interviews and visualizations, Oliver Hockenhull’s film examines the effects of ayahuasca, MDMA, LSD, and psilocybin. We learn about their mind-expanding properties, their potential to generate revelation, and their possible and documented medical uses. Why are these substances illegal? Several reasons are posited, including their dubious association with lethal drugs like cocaine and heroin and their open-patent status, which renders them unexploitable by Big Pharma—and a potential threat to the corporate world. Like the drugs themselves, Hockenhull’s film is a challenge for the mind and a treat for the senses. (69 mins.)

Whitsell Auditorium    

Interests: Documentary Views.