Montreal – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
Three National Film Board of Canada produced and co-produced short films are being featured at the Edmonton International Film Festival (EIFF), with in-person screenings October 1 through 10, and virtual screenings available across Alberta from October 4 at 9 a.m. to October 31 at 9 p.m.
Mary Two-Axe Earley: I Am Indian Again by Courtney Montour (34 min)
Sunday, October 3, 3:15 p.m. | Landmark Cinemas 9 City Centre (Studio A 5.0: Reality Bytes)
Wednesday, October 6, 1:30 p.m. | Landmark Cinemas 9 City Centre (Short Stop: EIFF U)
Mary Two-Axe Earley: I Am Indian Again shares the powerful story of Mary Two-Axe Earley, who fought for more than two decades to challenge sex discrimination against First Nations women embedded in Canada’s Indian Act, and became a key figure in Canada’s women’s rights movement. Using never-before-seen archival footage and audio recordings, Mohawk filmmaker Courtney Montour engages in a deeply personal conversation with the late Mohawk woman, who challenged sexist and genocidal government policies that stripped First Nations women and children of their Indian status when they married non-Indian men.
Montour speaks with the late Cree activist Nellie Carlson, Mary’s lifelong friend and co-founder of Indian Rights for Indian Women, and meets with Edmonton’s Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse and her daughter Isabella in Mary’s kitchen in Kahnawà:ke to honour the legacy of a woman who galvanized a national network of allies to help restore Indian status to thousands of First Nations women and children.
Award: Best Director, 2021 Weengushk International Film Festival
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/mary-two-axe-earley-i-am-indian-again
Into Light by Sheona McDonald (19 min)
Friday, October 8, 3:30 p.m. at Landmark Cinemas 9 City Centre (Short Stop: Queer Eye 2.0)
When a child reveals who they truly are on the inside, how does a parent set aside their own expectations to help them become their most authentic self? Set against the northern landscape of Yellowknife, Sheona McDonald’s new documentary captures a season of change as a mother and child navigate the complexities of gender identity together.
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/into-light-short-film
Affairs of the Art by Joanna Quinn and Les Mills (16 min)
Co-produced by Beryl Productions International and NFB
Saturday, October 9, 8:30 p.m. | Landmark Cinemas 9 City Centre (Short Stop: The Naughty Bits)
The first co-production between Beryl Productions International and the NFB, Affairs of the Art features Quinn’s signature hand-drawn animation with attitude and Mills’ raucously humorous scenarios, in an endearing romp through one family’s eccentric addictions.
The film comes to Edmonton after a tour of some of the world’s major festivals, garnering distinguished honours: Special Jury Distinction for Direction – Short Film, 2021 Annecy International Animation Film Festival; Award for Best Animation – International Competition, 2021 Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival; Jury Award in the Comedy category, 2021 Aspen Shortsfest; Award for Best Short Film, 2021 Kaboom Animation Festival, Amsterdam.
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/affairs-of-the-art
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Curator’s perspective | Director’s notes
About the NFB
Lily Robert
Director, Communications and Public Affairs, NFB
C.: 514-296-8261
l.robert@nfb.ca