October 25, 2016 – Toronto – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival announced on October 22 that the interactive project Red Card by Cara Mumford is the 2016 winner of the NFB/imagineNATIVE Interactive Partnership program, which aims to support new forms of Indigenous artistic expression and offers Canadian Aboriginal artists an opportunity to create audacious, innovative and socially relevant new media works.
Set 150 years in the future, Red Card will immerse viewers in a time when the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg people have regained a large portion of their territory while much of world outside is in turmoil, leading many non-Indigenous people to apply for their “Red Card” and seek a life in the territory. This project will combine animation, film, concept art, and interactive elements to explore “Indigenous futurisms”―an optimistic envisioning of an insecure future through an Indigenous lens.
Chosen by an NFB and imagineNATIVE selection committee, Red Card will now be developed by Cara with the NFB’s acclaimed Digital Studio in Vancouver, though an intensive year-long program that will include a two-day DigiLab bringing together a team of key creative thinkers. She’ll also have a chance to observe and liaise with the NFB’s digital team on other ongoing projects.
“imagineNATIVE and the NFB enjoyed the diversity of applications received from across the country. It is clear that there is a passion to explore new storytelling mediums and expressions from the Indigenous arts community. We’re eager to continue to provide opportunities to explore, play and develop interactive-minded realizations with this dedicated stream of support,” said Daniel Northway-Frank, imagineNATIVE’s industry director.
“Cara Mumford’s Red Card imagines the Michi Saagiig Nation in a world that turns Canada’s history upside down. Our selection committee was impressed by the reflective and positive concepts of past and present and future, deeply rooted in Indigenous knowledge and forward-thinking in the realization for both physical and digital public interaction. We’re excited to work with Mumford and her collaborators on this project,” said Robert McLaughlin, executive producer of the NFB’s Digital Studio.
Living in Peterborough, Ontario, and a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta, Cara Mumford is a freelance director, cinematographer and editor, as well as a dramaturg and instructor of Indigenous dance at Trent University. She first worked with imagineNATIVE in 2014 when the Festival commissioned her to create the short When It Rains for their Stolen Sisters Digital Initiative, and most recently in 2015, when she was selected for the inaugural Producer Mini-Lab at imagineNATIVE. Cara’s awards include Best Short Script for Ask Alice at the 2011 LA Women’s International Film Festival, a nomination at the 2011 Alberta Film & Television Awards for December 6, as well as the prize for Best Underground Film for echoes at New York’s chashama Film Festival in 2009.
The NFB and imagineNATIVE Interactive Partnership has to date led to the production and completion of three interactive projects that demonstrate the spirit and heart of Indigenous experiences in Canada: De Nort (2012) by the ITWE Collective, Similkameen Crossroads (2013) by Tyler Hagan, and the 2015 Venice Biennale-selected Ice Fishing (2014) by Jordan Bennett.
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Associated Links
imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival
NFB/imagineNATIVE Interactive Partnership program
Digital Studio in Vancouver – NFB
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About imagineNATIVE
Founded in 1999, imagineNATIVE is the international centre for Indigenous-made media arts. Its annual Festival celebrates 17 years from 19-23 October 2016 and is the world’s largest showcase of film, video, audio, and digital media works created by Indigenous directors, producers, and screenwriters. Year-round imagineNATIVE presents a national tour, screenings across Canada and internationally, and a community screening series based in the Greater Toronto Area. imagineNATIVE is committed to the professional development of Indigenous artists through its numerous workshops, labs, and panels through its Industry Series and through strategic partnerships internationally. imagineNATIVE showcases, promotes, and celebrates Canadian and international Indigenous filmmakers and media artists and is committed to a greater understanding by audiences of Indigenous peoples, cultures, and artistic expressions.
About the NFB
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is one of the world’s leading digital content hubs, creating groundbreaking interactive documentaries and animation, mobile content, installations and participatory experiences. NFB interactive productions and digital platforms have won 100 awards, including 17 Webbys. To access acclaimed NFB content, visit NFB.ca or download its apps for smartphones, tablets and connected TV.