Tag: Vancouver

Racism and Cultural Appropriation in the Arts: Screening, Workshop, and Panel with Simone Blais

On March 24-25 2021, Vancouver Short Film Festival is partnering with the CineVic Society of Independent Filmmakers for our first event in the VSFF On The Road series:

Racism and Cultural Appropriation in the Arts: Screening, Workshop, and Panel with Simone Blais

~ ~ ~

Wednesday March 24th / 6:30pm via ZOOM
Short Documentary Screening and Discussion with Simone Blais
In this workshop, watch the 30 minute film Dance Like Everybody’s Watching, which explores the lives of Black dancers in Victoria, BC (Songhees, Esquimalt, W̱SÁNEĆ territories). After this private viewing, participate in a facilitated discussion with the director and other participants. This is the perfect opportunity for people looking to work though themes of cultural appropriation and inclusion in the dance community and is ideal for artists and non-artists of any background. If you are interested in community-building and anti-racism, this workshop is for you!

REGISTER VIA GOOGLE FORMS: https://forms.gle/V89FDvUwyrxsR8cE9

~ ~ ~

Thursday March 25th / 6:30pm via Facebook Live
Filmmaker Panel featuring Peruzzo, Andy Hodgson, Adhel Arop
Moderated by Simone Blais, this panel will further the conversation begun in the screening and workshop, and explore the intersection of these themes with the work and career of local filmmakers.

ACCESS ON MARCH 25TH VIA FACEBOOK LIVE: https://www.facebook.com/events/2632082723748643/

~ ~ ~

Simone Blais is a dancer, doula, director and aspiring midwife. She is a recent UVic Gender Studies graduate whose work focuses on decolonizing the dance community and reproductive justice for marginalized communities. In the past 5 years, she has worked with the Nesting Doula Collective, and the Native Youth Sexual Health Network, delivering workshops about reproductive justice. She is also the director and producer of the documentary Dance Like Everybody’s Watching, which highlights the experiences of Black dancers in ‘Victoria’. Find about more at simone-blais.com About Dance Like Everybody’s Watching: Dance Like Everybody’s Watching follows three Black dancers in Victoria, BC as they expose their worlds of flamenco, hip hop, and dancehall. While the dancers grapple with racism, tokenism, and stereotypes, we are reminded that dance is always political. This short film deals with themes of cultural appropriation in dance and is uniquely a BC production. 100% of the production, cast and crew are based in Victoria, BC. Dance Like Everybody’s Watching is funded by Storyhive and Creative BC.

About VSFF On The Road: The Vancouver Short Film Festival is excited to announce VSFF ON THE ROAD: an online event series connecting filmmakers across the province while staying apart. Sponsored by Creative BC. VSFF is proud to partner with film organizations province-wide and connect with communities outside of Vancouver as we create unique educational and professional development opportunities for filmmaking in British Columbia.

Zaac Pick presents: Passages Unplugged — a virtual performance

Presenting ‘Passages, Unplugged’ — a virtual performance of my latest album ‘Passages’, from front to back, accompanied sparsely by a few dear friends on backing vocals, piano, cello, and violin. Recorded in an empty and soon-to-be-demolished church hall in Vancouver, BC, this is the first (and likely only) time this album will be performed performed live in full.

I’ll be hanging out on the chat afterwards to say hello, answer questions, trade music recommendations or favorite recipes, etc. as well.

–

Based in Vancouver, BC singer-songwriter Zaac Pick’s brand of confessional folk-pop has slowly been earning acclaim since 2010, with a string of EPs and an LP having garnered him a handful of regional songwriting awards, nominations, CBC and college radio play, and opening slots for The Civil Wars, Noah Gundersen, and Bahamas. Numerous songs have also been featured on major network television shows.

Noble Oak – Live Stream Virtual Tour

Noble Oak performs 4 live-streamed concerts from October 6th – 9th, hosted on Facebook Live by 4 different venues across Canada.
October 6: Victoria – Capital Ballroom @capitalballrm
October 7: Vancouver – Biltmore @biltmorecabaret
October 8: Winnipeg – The Garrick @thegarrickwinnipeg
October 9: Toronto – Adelaide Hall @adelaidehallTO

couchwalker on film by Jenny Banai

“couchwalker on film” is a short film experiment, imagined and created by Jenny Banai; a visual representation of her sophomore album “couchwalker”.

“couchwalker on film” premieres Monday, December 14 on Audiofemme. Read full conversation Jenny Banai had with them about the story behind the film here – https://www.audiofemme.com/jenny-bana…

Inspired, in part, and due to the limited ways live music can be shared in our current world environment, Banai envisioned a multi-medium digital concept performance to clarify “couchwalker” on another level, so as to invite viewers in as close as one can to the music and to her particular creative character.

Starring Banai, the film features long single-shot segments in a warehouse fashioned to look like a living room set, with a couch—and her interactions with said couch—as the centrepiece. She is accompanied by two dancers, who appear throughout the film and represent the emotional pulls within her humanity as she sorts through her convictions and feelings regarding relationship choices and her faith.

Pulling on her novice dance and theatre background, and audio editing skills, the creation of “couchwalker on film” both challenged and unveiled Banai’s abilities. She first edited her album down to twenty minutes of audio; a mix of full album production, lo-fi live takes and voice memos, to create an audio narrative. She then brought on film director, Matej Balaz of Colla Films and choreographers and dancers, Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen, as her collaborating partners on the project.

Over weeks of meetings, a handful of rehearsals and two postponements, couchwalker on film became the intricate and nuanced piece that it is. Expressing the wrestling match between the conscious and subconscious, reason and intuition, convictions and feelings, Banai invites the viewer into a world where moving through various emotions is both an invitation and a necessity, and how we move through them is the choice we are gifted with.

“The [Hebrew] word, the word timshel—’Thou mayest’—that gives choice. It might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open”
– Lee (Character in John Steinbeck’s “East of Eden”).

Credits:

Concept and creation by Jenny Banai and her collabs: Matej Balaz, Joanna Noelle, and Kezia Rosen
Directed by Jenny Banai and Matej Balaz
Produced by Colla Films
Cinematography: Nate J Slaco
Editing: Daša Netíková and Matej Balaz
Choreography: Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen
Costume Design: Jenny Banai, Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen
Artistic Direction: Camille Candia
Music: Jenny Banai
Live Take Edits: Scott Currie
Production Assistant: Michal Slako

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
We thank Creative BC for their Showcase grant helping us out during the strangest of times for artists (and all people of course!).

website: https://jennybanai.com
spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3dUsj…
instagram: https://instagram.com/jennybanai
facebook: https://facebook.com/jenny.banai
bandcamp: https://jennybanai.bandcamp.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/BanaiJenny
soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jennybanai

Martha | Canadian Premiere

The NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA proudly presents the Canadian premiere of Martha, a film by Vancouver director Daniel Schubert.

Watch starting January 27, 2021, for free on NFB.ca and the NFB’s YouTube channel.

Filmmaker Daniel Schubert visits his grandmother, Martha, in this warm, intimate portrait of an unrelenting survivor.

Martha is produced by Teri Snelgrove and Shirley Vercruysse at the National Film Board of Canada’s BC & Yukon Studio in Vancouver, BC.

DAVE HARTNEY – Pandemic Home Live with Creative BC!

A quarantine basement performance by Dave of some original songs and covers, sponsored by Creative BC

1) You Don’t Know How It Feels (Tom Petty)
2) Party Lights (Original) @ 5:45
3) Slide (Goo Goo Dolls) @ 9:05
4) If It Makes You Happy (Sheryl Crow) @ 12:05
5) Always Chasing Something (Original) @ 16:45
6) Hand In My Pocket (Alanis Morissette) @ 20:35
7) The Middle (Jimmy Eat World) @25:35
8) Everything Girl (Original) 28:35