After the elation of having Clouds of Autumn selected for showing this fall at the Toronto and Vancouver international film festivals, director Trevor Mack is thrilled that the film has won an award at the imagineNATIVE film festival.
“Aye!,” exclaimed Mack in an e-mail to the Tribune/Advisor today. “Just wanted to say my film won Best Canadian Short Drama at imagineNATIVE.”
Clouds of Autumn, which he co-wrote and directed with Matthew Taylor Blais of Kelowna, follows William and his older sister Shayl through three summers in the 1970s, exploring the impact Canadian residential schools had on the relationships First Nations children had with themselves, their heritage, and nature itself.
The short film was shot over four, 15-hour shooting days at Tl’etinqox (Anaham) reserve in August 2014 and stars non-actors from the area including Elias Stump, Trinity Stump, and Edmond Lulua.
The imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival took place Oct. 14-18 in Toronto.
Mack was thrilled earlier this summer when Clouds of Autumn was selected to show at the Toronto International Film Festival Sept. 10 to 20 and at the Vancouver International Film Festival Sept. 24 to Oct. 9; the 40th American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco in Nov. 6-14; the Ottawa International Film Festival Oct. 16 to 18; Edmonton International Film Festival Oct. 1-10; and the Tacoma Film Festival Oct. 8 to 15.
More than 500 short films were submitted to the Toronto International Film Festival and only 30 to 40 of them were chosen for screening, said Mack who was there for the event with Blais.
Mack said the screenings in Toronto went extremely well but it was hard to concentrate on the screenings when they were so busy trying to see A-list celebrities and recovering from the nightly events which took place almost every single night for 10 days.
“I was able to start talking with several producers on a feature film that I want to start developing, so the trip was definitely worthwhile,” Mack said.
Mack received congratulations from his home community of Tl’etinqox (Anaham) Community in the Chilcotin, and from Chief Joe Alphonse, Tribal Chairman of the Tsilhqot’in National Government and Chief of Tl’etinqox.
“Not only is Trevor Mack a member of my community, he also chose to feature our people, community and history within his films,” Alphonse said.
“Mack’s ability to navigate the film making world while still holding his culture and traditions close is a great accomplishment. Here at TNG, we wish Mack all the success in the coming years.”
Mack debuted his first short The Blanketing, in 2013 which was screened across North America and in New Zealand.