October 19, 2018
The world’s largest presenter of Indigenous screen content is getting a dose of the NWT.
Kicking off this Wednesday in Toronto ImagineNative will include works by film and media artists from the Northwest Territories:
- DÈNĮ (Be Sharp), by Casey Koyczan and Tanya Snow – Music Video
- Fireweed, directed by Mason Mantla, score by Casey Koyczan - Film
- Within the Stars, directed by Amos Scott and Mandee MacDonald - Film
- Both Fireweed and Within the Stars were created as part of the 2018 Dead North Film Festival.
Above: Casey Koyczan takes part in a panel discussion during ImagineNative
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And the first-ever NWT Film Best Location Award Goes to….Fireweed!
New NWT Film Commission Award to Celebrate Remote NWT Locations
Mantla won two awards at the Dead North Film Festival including: Best NWT Film Location and the Zombear for Best Director. Jessica Pacunayen also won best actress for her role in Fireweed. His film beautifully showcases the amazing backdrops available to filmmakers in the NWT. Mantla recently received funding from NWT Film through the Support for Entrepreneurs and Economic Development’s NWT Film Industry Funding Contributions to be able to attend ImagineNative in Toronto.
Pictured: NWT filmmaker Mason Mantla at ImagineNative
Mantla has been quoted by local media as saying “…finally having a film worthy enough to be entered feels pretty good”. He plans to pitch a feature length film while in Toronto. Casey Koyzcan wrote the score for Mantla’s Fireweed and will also be attending the festival to promote his collaborative piece DÈNĮ (Be Sharp) with Tanya Snow.
Koyczan and Snow’s DÈNĮ (Be Sharp) will make its worldwide debut this week after a teaser was released on Koyczan’s Youtube channel and features northern animals superimposed over images of the artists.
ITI's Film Commission is proud to support artists in this industry as part of our efforts to advance the territory’s film industry, as envisioned in Take One: Northwest Territories Film Strategy and Action Plan.
