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Reflecting Lives - New Works from Aboriginal Women
A film screening partnership between imagineNATIVE Film + Media Art Festival, Cinematheque – Winnipeg Film Group , and Urban Shaman Contemporary Aboriginal Art. A series of short film works by Canadian Aboriginal women artists, guest curated by Michelle Latimer.

Location: Cinematheque - Winnipeg Film Group, 100 Arthur Street, Winnipeg, MB
Guest Curated by Michelle Latimer
Artists: Terril Calder, Cara Mumford, Lisa Jackson, Caroline Monnet, Delia Gunn, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril
Film Screening, March 16, 2012 at 7pm
Phone: (204) 925-3457 or (204) 942-2674
www.winnipegcinematheque.com

Curatorial Statement: "Now, more than ever before, Indigenous, female filmmaker worldwide are reclaiming the medium of film as an essential storytelling tool. In the past decade alone, great strides have been made in contemporary, Aboriginal cinema, creating opportunities for emerging women directors to realize their vision. Their work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, critically lauded for its undeniable authenticity: remarkable stories being told from the inside out. And, yet it remains a tenuous path that female filmmakers must forge. The presence of Aboriginal women directors within the film industry is still disproportionately small, and it can be exceptionally challenging for those rising within the craft. For this reason, it's important to celebrate the emerging women who persevere with tremendous vision to enrich the creative renaissance that is Aboriginal cinema. In this spirit of celebration, all of the films you will see within this program have been directed, written and /or produced by emerging, Aboriginal Women."

Curator's Biography: Michelle Latimer (Métis) is an award-winning filmmaker, producer and actor. Most recently she produced the documentary Jackpot, which premiered at the International Hot Docs Festival and garnered two Yorkton Festival Golden Sheaf Awards for Best POV Documentary and Best Emerging Filmmakers. She is currently co-creating and producing a dramatic series in development with HBO Canada/TMN and Movie Central, directing an animated short film for Bravo, and developing her first feature film. Latimer is the Director of Programming at the ImagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival, and has also programmed for the Hot Docs International Film Festival. She is a graduate of Concordia University's BFA program.

Sponsors:

In the Main Gallery

Elk Dreamers Dream
Linus Woods
Friday, January 27 – Saturday, March 10, 2012
Artist Talk at 7pm
Opening Reception at 8pm, Friday January 27, 2012

Elk dreamers dream of how things are going to be coming up in the future. 500 years ago we didn’t know the future unless we listened to the visions and dreams. I’ve painted some subjects that I’ve always wanted to paint and I’ve always wanted to paint for this show. Things I paint on my cave wall. What would compel me to paint this on my cave wall?

Biography: Linus Woods is a Dakota/Ojibway Indian artist from the Long Plain First Nation in Southern Manitoba where he born June 3, 1967. While he has taken a few art and Native studies courses at Brandon University, and has studied with artists such as Jane Ash Poitras, he is largely self-taught. Linus sees his paintings as expressions and extensions of his spiritual journey. His art: acrylic, oil and collage on canvas are subtle works featuring pastel pallets and geometric shapes, and often including collaged images.

Linus Woods is a winner of a the Peace Hills Trust Company Art Competition and his work is in the Peace Hills Trust Collection and in a number of other collections including Winnipeg Children's Hospital, Long Plain First Nation, Curtis Joony Productions, Brandon University and Mae Moore.

In the Media Gallery

Title: Woodcarver
Artist: Bear Witness
Dates: Dec 2, 2011 – March 10, 2012

This project was made in response to the murder of John T. Williams by a Seattle police officer. We decided to make this piece when we first heard the news reports that the officer who shot Williams four times was not being criminally charged. The idea was to produce an audio-visual work that could be used to create awareness for people and communities who otherwise would never have been exposed to Williams’ death as well as to the ongoing violence against Aboriginal peoples in North America.

Biography: Bear Witness is an Ottawa-based media artist who has been producing short experimental videos for over eight years. His award-winning works that have been exhibited nationally and internationally include The Story of Apinachie and her Redheaded Wrestler, BrokeDickDog, Drive By: A Road Trip with Jeff Thomas, In the Cut: A Video Mix-Tape. Bear also produces live audio-visual performances and co-founded A Tribe Called Red, a native DJ collective who produce music internationally known as Pow Wow-step, and hosts a monthly event called Electric Pow Wow.