TKARONTO is Hitting the Theatres!!!! Very, very, very, very exciting news: TKARONTO will be touring art house cinemas in Canada starting in August. The film "tour" will be co-presented by KINOSMITH FILMS (our distributor in Canada) and imagineNATIVE FILM FESTIVAL.
Ottawa was a HUGE success and we thank everyone for coming out to the ByTowne, and particularly those that shared some time with us during the Q and A's. Now we're getting ready for the Toronto run starting this friday (the 15th of August). Find show times here >>>
A Remedy for the Mix-Up at the August 21st screening for Tkaronto in Toronto - a FREE SCREENING ADDED! Due to unintended events many people were turned away from the Thursday, August 21st 7p.m. screening of Tkaronto. (This was not the result of our distributor, KINOSMITH, as has been rumored.) Although the film was shown, the evening was spoiled for many. We sincerely apologize to those who were turned away or otherwise inconvenienced.
It is our sincerest desire to remedy this unfortunate happening by offering a free screening of the film on Wednesday, September 3rd. That’s right, FREE! The Royal theatre has graciously offered a free screening! We at The Breath are extremely pleased to have our film play one more time in this fantastic venue. Read the complete release here >>>
Tkaronto receives rave review in Canada's Globe and Mail KAMAL AL-SOLAYLEE -
From Friday's Globe and Mail Tkaronto, Métis director Shane Belcourt's debut feature, is a film about what it means to experience a profound sense of loss.
Loss is there in the title, the original, long-gone Mohawk word for Toronto. It continues in the central stories of two urban natives whose sense of loss is both real and metaphysical. It resurfaces in an ending where love loses out to prior emotional commitments. If there was a contest to determine who is psychically “The Biggest Loser,” our two leads would win hands-down.
Read complete review here >>>
Pressed for time, director Shane Belcourt found his voice with Tkaronto BY JASON ANDERSON, EYE WEEKLY *** (three stars out of five) - Adapted by French explorers and mapmakers from a Mohawk phrase that translates as “where there are trees standing in the water,” this city’s original name is unknown to most of those who now dwell here. But chances are the places, people and feelings captured in a new film that bears this moniker will not be so unfamiliar, even to viewers who might think the movie’s central questions about Aboriginal identity have no impact on their own lives.Read complete review here >>>
A Métis filmmaker reveals the inspiration for his impressive debut feature JENNIE PUNTER, From Thursday's Globe and Mail There's nothing like the impending birth of a first child to inspire one to complete sensible things like home renovations or financial planning. But for Shane Belcourt it was time to throw caution to the wind and finally write and direct that feature film he had always talked about. Read complete article here >>>
Tkaronto -
SHANE SHINES From Thursday's NOW Magazine NNN (out of five) -
Ray (Duane Murray) is a disgruntled half-Metis Vancouver writer who looks and feels plain white. He cringes when yuppies claim native heritage just because they had some ancient Cherokee grandma, while he barely feels justified in doing so with a Metis father ... a film that feels at once so deeply personal and so universal. Read complete review here >>>
Tkaronto gets a rave review in the Sun! Tkaronto has been called an Aboriginal version of Before Sunrise, and it's not a bad description. The film is smart and sexy and arresting, and the performances (especially from Melanie McLaren as Jolene) are terrific ... This is a worthwhile indie feature attracting a lot of deserved buzz, so catch it while you can.
Tkaronto's Director Shane Belcourt gets some hometown exposure in the Ottawa Citizen Caught between 'two worlds':
Tkaronto: Shane Belcourt, a Métis leader's son who turned his life into onscreen art. As high school students growing up in Ottawa, Shane Belcourt and Duane Murray went to theatres once a week, dreaming of the day their films would be on the big screen. In their spare time, they spent hours filming and then editing amateur comedies with a video camera and an off-line editing suite in the TV room of Belcourt's Westboro home. This included making little movies for Belcourt's theatre class at Notre Dame High School. Read complete article here >>>
Shane Belcourt was on CBC's Radio One program Q Shane had the great pleasure of being interviewed by CBC's Amanda Putz for the radio one program Q on Tuesday August 12th (interview starts at 16:40 mins). You can listen to the interview as a podcast at this link.
Tkaronto gets the front page of the Ottawa Citizen! On Friday August 8th, to kick off the Ottawa run of Tkaronto at the Bytowne Cinema, the Ottawa Citizen ran their film review headline on the front page of the Ottawa Citizen. VERY cool exposure. See it here and read their review.
MÉTIS FILMMAKER SHANE BELCOURT MAKES FEATURE FILM DEBUT WITH TKARONTO (Toronto – July 22, 2008) KinoSmith is pleased to announce the release of writer-director Shane Belcourt’s feature length film, TKARONTO. This stunning and poignant debut feature film will be opening in Ottawa on Aug 8th and in Toronto on August 15th, as a co-presentation with the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. READ FULL PRESS RELEASE HERE >>>
Tkaronto Wins Best Director and Best Actress Award at the Talking Stick Film Festival. Writer-Director Shane Belcout won the 2008 Best Director Award for his work on Tkaronto and Melanie McLaren won the Best Actress Prize for her protrayal of "Jolene". The award was given out at the 1st Annual Talking Stick International Film Festival, June 26th, 2008. (Sante Fe, New Mexico, USA).
For more information visit the festival website here >>>
Tkaronto Wins Best Director Award at Dreamspeakers Film Festival 2008 Writer-Director Shane Belcout won the 2008 Best Director Award for his work on Tkaronto. The award was given out at the 13th Annual Dreamspeakers International Aboriginal Film & Television Festival, June 5th, 2008. (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada). For more information visit the festival website here >>>
THE BREATH FILMS PRESENTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH BRAINCLOUD FILMS A BREATH FILMS PRODUCTION “TKARONTO” STARRING MELANIE McLAREN DUANE MURRAY LORNE CARDINAL CHERI MARACLE CASTING DIRECTOR DUANE MURRAY SOUND DESIGN AND ORIGINAL MUSIC BY JORDAN O’CONNOR EDITED BY JORDAN O’CONNOR PRODUCTION DESIGNER DAVID HANNAN DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY SHANE BELCOURT EXECUTIVE PRODUCER MICHAEL CORBIÈRE PRODUCED BY SHANE BELCOURT DUANE MURRAY JORDAN O’CONNOR WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY SHANE BELCOURT
