Systems Of Kindred
Who are our kindred and how do we choose them? Sometimes family comes in unexpected moments, a simple act or shared peace of mind. When our identities are as complex as our relationships, the task of seeking out acceptance becomes mired in relational mystery. How many of us cannot describe where home is or how to find it? We only know when we know, a moment in time, a feeling of comfort and acceptance that resonates outward. The films in this series explore the intricacies of belonging and the intersecting familial identities that often define our lives, whether we are born with them or we discover them along the way.
Program curated by Maya Bastian
Maya Bastian is an award winning filmmaker and artist with roots in conflict journalism. Her most recent film “Tigress” was produced by Blackout Media and India’s JAR Pictures and was supported by CBC, Netflix and the Canadian Film Center. It recently participated in Cannes Court Metrage 2021. She is in development on her first feature The Devil’s Tears with Karma Films and Fae Pictures, and is currently co-writing and directing a paranormal mystery series set in 1970’s Southeast Asia with Reflector Entertainment. She is a producer on the BIPOC women-led development team at CineFAM, is the founder of the X-Wave Mentorship series for BIPOC creators at Trinity Square Video and is lead producer for The Big Pitch competition in partnership with TIFF and the Canada Media Fund. She has sat on juries for Warner Media Access & Art With Impact, and programs for various film festivals around the world.
Our Partners:
Films
Hoa
Before developing her memory disorders,Trâm Anh Nguyễn’s grandmother wrote an autobiographical book about her life and its events. She now reads this book everyday
in her Hanoi home. In the form of a poetic letter, Hoa is a powerful meditation on ancestry and longing from one family member to another.
Trâm Anh Nguyễn is a visual artist specialising in experimental and documentary
filmmaking based in Vietnam and Toronto. As a Southeast Asian trans person, he
wishes to continue in creating more projects that reflect on gender and cultural identity,
and in portraying themes of vulnerability and memory into his work.
Bellydance Vogue
What does freedom look like during a Covid lockdown? An analog mix of family home movies and evocative, real-time dance scenes, Hadi celebrates his birthday alone and discovers his own sense of freedom.
Hadi Moussally is a Lebanese-French filmmaker, photographer & performer. He acquired a first master’s degree in “Fiction Cinema” then a second one in “Documentary” in Paris. In 2015, he co-founded the production company “h7o7” whose main objective is to enable the making and promotion of films with “hybrid” vocation.
The Resemblance
At once dreamy and devastating, this story about a grieving couple who go to a “rental family” agency to hire an actor to role-play their dead son is a haunting take on an age-old story about love and acceptance.
Derek Nguyen is a screenwriter, director, and producer. His feature debut The Housemaid (2018) was released by IFC Films. He was a Sundance Screenwriters Lab fellow and his production company The Population has produced films for IFC and Sony Pictures Classics. His film “The Resemblance” won the Future Gold Film Fellowship presented by Tribeca Studios, Netflix, and GoldHouse.
Forged in Chaos
An intimate glimpse into the relationship between a voguing ballroom ‘mother’ and ‘son’, this playful dive into the power of love and community is a tender joyride.
Patricia Gloum is a filmmaker & creative director expressing many different ethereal urban influences. Based in New York City, and raised in Paris by Greek and Spanish parents, her passion and vision with film gradually manifested in pushing the envelope with non-linear forms of storytelling. Gloum co-founded Braw Haus and is currently working on projects surrounding digital art for a progressive vision.
13 eggs
Grieving people who never were is harder than it seems. TJ Cuthand’s experimental video diary documents his efforts to have artificial insemination, while struggling with his own feelings about fertility, ancestry and failure.
TJ Cuthand (b. 1978 Regina SK) is an experimental/narrative filmmaker working with topics of sexuality, madness, Indigiqueer/2S identity and Indigeneity, which have screened in festivals and galleries internationally. He is Plains Cree/Scotts, a member of Little Pine First Nation, residing in Toronto, Canada.
Alexa, Xander and the Universe
A sweet and silly comedy about a closeted boy and his sister, who annually decorate their room into a Miss Universe arena, and secretly dress up as the contestants.
Vahn Leinard C. Pascual is a student from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde,
currently taking his Bachelor of Arts in Digital Filmmaking. He is very passionate
when it comes to filmmaking. If he is not acting, you’ll see him directing or producing
short films and so far, most of them have been officially selected and won several
awards in different film festivals.