Latest posts from National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI)

A young boy must choose between parents as his family breaks apart.

Creative team

Writer/director/producer: Samuel Dayomi

Filmmaker’s statement

I’ve always felt that the basis of any art form lives and dies by its ability to effectively communicate a theme. In a very similar way, I’ve been able to see just how important it is in developing proper relationships that have a solid foundation in understanding.

The focus of this short film was to depict three unique deficiencies in communication within a family unit, and how a lack of proper communication can so quickly break down and destroy whatever bonds might have formed.

Each character represents one of these aspects, whether it be an inability to voice or act on one’s thoughts, an unwillingness to listen, or an inability to understand. Hopefully those aspects came through.

About Samuel Dayomi

Samuel Dayomi is an independent Brampton filmmaker and graduate from both York University and Sheridan College. He specializes in writing and editing mainly for narrative fiction.

The post A Family appeared first on National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).

A woman, forced to leave her home in Syria, contemplates a new life in Canada.

Creative team

Writer/director/producer: Rami Katz

Filmmaker’s statement

I believe this is a timely film to screen because we need to continue the important dialogue regarding the Syrian refugee crisis, and create a sense of awareness and understanding for the new Syrian families who are living here in Canada and starting new lives.

About Rami Katz

Rami Katz is a Canadian filmmaker based in Vancouver, BC.

He is currently pursuing his MFA in film production at the University of British Columbia and, for his thesis project, is making a documentary on the life and work of Jack O’Dell, an influential figure within the African-American Civil Rights Movement.

Rami was selected to participate at the 2015 RIDM Talent Lab, and received the H. Norman Lidster Prize in documentary filmmaking from UBC in addition to scholarships from the BC Arts Council and Creative BC.

His short documentary Fish Soup recently screened at the 2016 Toronto Jewish Film Festival and is being distributed by the Winnipeg Film Group.

An Exploration of Light, his previous film, won the Reel 13 Short Film Competition in 2016 and subsequently aired on THIRTEEN, PBS’ flagship station in New York.

Rami holds a BFA in film from Simon Fraser University.

The post Home appeared first on National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).

A couple confront their uncertainty and fears about being together … while on a designer psychedelic drug.

Creative team

Writer/director: Aris Athanasopoulos
Producers: Tamara Almeida, Kevin Walker, Michael Lazarovitch, Aris Athanasopoulos

Filmmaker’s statement

Growing up, it was easier for me to put other peoples’ feelings before my own. That was my constitution. Or perhaps a mechanism that helped me survive bullying at school and the tribulations of my suburban Toronto upbringing.

Presenting the ‘nice guy’ front was a non-confrontational way to get through early life and curb conflict before it could start.

This created a problem. By my early twenties, I had an inability to express myself in the face of any conflict. It wasn’t a viable way to live. Life is, after all, about living it … not just getting through it.

When I set out to write and direct my first film, I asked the question: what if there was a pill to help my 20-year-old self overcome his non-confrontational nature so he could fully express himself? That’s how this short was born.

A.O.K is an offbeat countercultural romantic comedy that raises questions about love and security, and the lengths human beings will go to to have and hold onto both.

About Aris Athanasopoulos

Aris is an actor, producer and filmmaker based in Toronto. He founded Goodnight Porter Pictures in 2015.

He began his professional acting career working in the theatre, developing new plays and landing roles in independent and large-scale theatre productions. Aris was nominated for best actor (My Theatre World) for his role in New Jerusalem with the Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company.

He’s acted in a number of critically acclaimed film and television productions including FX’s The Strain, ABC’s Rookie Blue and CTV’s Saving Hope.

A.O.K is Aris’s directorial debut and had its world premiere at the Canadian Film Fest in March 2017. Parkdale is his second short film (co-written with Kevin Walker) and is due to hit the festival circuit next year.

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