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From a spoken-word stage piece to an amusing animation starring a parrot, this eclectic compilation spotlights an array of artistic voices.
In Andrew Hamilton's Purge, a writer stifled by anxiety and depression finds a miracle cure in an experimental drug, but it comes with monstrous side effects. Louise Thomas's debut documentary, Honour of the Paintbrush, explores how she found the strength to move forward after the death of her husband, Roy Thomas, one of Canada's most influential Anishinaabe painters. In Kent Donguines' Four Four, a Filipino-Canadian performer pushes himself to his physical and emotional limits to secure a coveted spot on a dance team. Born out of a close collaboration between director Leah Doz and writer/performer Thomas Antony Olajide, Fine Black Frame is a manifesto on being a Black man in a White world. Emmanuel Teji's Shelf Life examines the pressure to get at a "real job" while wrestling with a musical ambition that refuses to be silenced. Finally, Anthony Lee's amusing Frankie Wants Applause follows a mediocre musician whose flaws take centre stage when he loses a rival's prized pet parrot.
Programmer, Richard Pierre
Purge
Andrew Hamilton
15:00
Canada
Ontario
Ontario Premiere
Unable to cope with her depression, Gee takes an experimental drug called BriteNol, which makes her violently expel a black substance. With a new outlook, she's the person she always wished she could be, but this clarity might be short-lived, as Gee discovers a darker outcome of her medication.
Frankie Wants Applause
Anthony Lee
12:28
Canada
British Columbia
World Premiere
Frankie, an envious but mediocre musician, is asked by his talented rival Alex to look after his home. In the process, Frankie accidentally loses Alex's prized parrot, Stronzo. When Stronzo mysteriously returns, Frankie sees a chance to redeem himself—by impressing the bird with his musical talent. But the more he tries to control and outshine Stronzo, the more he reveals his own flaws, until Stronzo's final escape leaves Frankie alone, confronting the applause he craves but cannot earn.
Shelf Life
Emmanuel Teji
20:00
Canada
Ontario
Ontario Premiere
A man abandons his dream of music for a sales job, where he finds unexpected companionship in an eccentric co-worker. After hours, he is drawn to the warmth of a kind cashier at an Indian grocery store. But when the co-worker is dismissed and the cashier must leave the country, he is left alone with the silence of his forgotten ambitions.
Honour of the Paintbrush
Louise Thomas
8:10
Canada
Alberta
World Premiere
Louise, an Anicinabe woman, found the strength to move on after the loss of her husband by devoting herself to the art gallery she opened in his honour. Through this process, she shows how healing can bring positivity and renewal.
Four Four
Kent Donguines
16:50
Canada
British Columbia
World Premiere
Lucas, a Filipino-Canadian dancer, is vying for a spot on a dance team that will soon be heading to nationals. Estranged from his disapproving grandfather and alienated from his culture, Lucas pushes his body to the breaking point to master Tinikling, a physically demanding Filipino folk dance, to gain the respect of his talented but demanding dance captain. It soon becomes clear, however, that he's exchanged one complicated relationship for another.
Fine Black Frame
Leah Doz
7:11
Canada
Ontario
Ontario Premiere
One man explores and defies the definitions of Blackness, queerness, and masculinity in a kinetic self-portrait.
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