It may have been planned in one week and shot in one day, but the significance of a short film had an impact on the local indigenous artists who participated.
The fourteen hours of filming will be made into a seven-minute short film called Fall’s Wind that pays tribute to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. It was the brainchild of Quebec filmmaker Isabelle Perron Blanchette.
She produced the film as part of a French film competition called Course de Regions.
Perron Blanchette said she was aware of the issue of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls, but wanted to learn more. She believes it is something every Canadian needs to be educated about.
She decided to create something that would reflect how it impacts Saskatchewan people by using all local talent.
Perron Blanchette made contact with Erroll Kinistino, Danna Henderson and Candy Fox and with the help of the Standing Buffalo Dakota Nation, they were able to pull it off.
Perron Blanchett (right) Henderson (centre) Fox (right)
Kinistino, a local independent artist, was hired as an assistant director to help organize the settings and prep the actors and extras.
He immediately wanted to be a part of the film after reading the script.
For years, Kinistino wanted to do something to draw attention to the issue, but was not sure how to do it.
“I attended Amber Redmen’s funeral awhile back and it had an impact, it was like, ‘Wow this thing is happening in our community,’ ” he said. “I also have a niece, who I never met, who was murdered out on the Pickton farm in Abbotsford, B.C. And when I travelled out there I had this eerie feeling like, ‘Gosh this stuff is happening to women, families, communities and something has to be done about it whether it’s through art, documentaries or through the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women’s inquiry.”
He hopes once the film competition is wrapped up it will reach a broader audience.
“On my end as an artist, I feel really great about this team effort to do something,” said Kinistino. “Even if it’s a small seven minutes, it’s going to be an important seven minutes.”
Danna Henderson, who played the lead in the film, said it felt good to be back in front of the camera after a 10-year hiatus.
The actress turned nurse and now mother of three said she was surprised at how emotional the experience was for her as an actress.
Although she was always aware of the issue, she feels more compassion for the families that have lost a loved one.
“It was very mentally and emotionally draining,” said Henderson.
Her character loses a child and as a result is so devastated that she can’t deal with it and ultimately leaves her family.
“Thinking back I want to cry,” said Henderson. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to feel like that, for years and years just wondering, ‘What happened to my child?’ ”
Henderson, Kinistino and Perron Blanchette all say they learned a lot more about the issue and the resilience of families and are grateful for the community for helping them make the movie a reality.
