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ImagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival

IMAGINENATIVE FILM + MEDIA ARTS FESTIVAL from Wednesday (October 22) to October 26 at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema (506 Bloor West) and TIFF Bell Lightbox (350 King West). See Indie & Rep Film. imaginenative.org


ImagineNATIVE returns this week, celebrating its 15th anniversary with a particularly broad selection of programming. But it’s also taking advantage of its proximity to Halloween to line up some season-appropriate material.

This year’s opener, for example, is Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement’s delightful vampire comedy What We Do In The Shadows (Wednesday, 7 pm, Bloor rating: NNNN). The movie won the Midnight Madness People’s Choice Award at TIFF last month, so a lot of people will be happy to catch up to it.

A largely improvised mockumentary about the subculture of vampires in Wellington, New Zealand, What We Do stars Waititi (whose delicate character study Boy opened the fest in 2010) and Clement as long-term housemates who feed on humans while trying to play down their petty personal tics and egotistical attempts to out-cool one another. It’s a great deal of fun, and manages to squeeze in a couple of decent shocks as well.

Another TIFF title is Alanis Obomsawin’s new documentary Trick Or Treaty? (October 25, 5:30 pm, Lightbox rating: NNNN), about the rise of the Idle No More movement in response to the Canadian government’s ongoing mendacity and bad faith regarding native issues. Even in an age of advocacy docs, it’s rare to see a project that radiates anger and dismay the way this one does.

I’d also recommend Cinema Sisters: Women’s Program (October 23, 7:30 pm, Lightbox rating: NNNN), which features Shane Belcourt’s Kaha:Wi: The Cycle Of Life, a study of choreographer Santee Smith’s 2004 debut dance production that explores both the artist’s perspective and the Iroquois legends she drew upon to create it.

And as part of its Australian spotlight, imagineNATIVE honours the unjustly forgotten Aboriginal filmmaker Tracey Moffatt, including her 1989 short Night Cries: A Rural Tragedy in an Australian shorts program (October 23, 3 pm, Lightbox) and screening her only feature, Bedevil (October 24, 2 pm, Lightbox rating: NNNN).

Moffatt makes horror movies disguised as intense emotional dramas. Some moments in Bedevil have stayed with me ever since I saw it at TIFF in 1993. I can think of no higher endorsement.

normw@nowtoronto.com | @normwilner

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