Join us for the dynamic Opening Night Film Screenings With Post Show Wine and Cheese Reception with two film screenings on World Premiere: Halifax Explosion: The Deaf Experience & TIDFAF Premiere: Wild Prairie Rose to kick off 2017 Film Festival of Toronto International Deaf Film and Arts Festival!
*** Filmmakers in Attendance: Jim McDermott and Linda Campbell, CANADA (Halifax Explosion: The Deaf Experience) ***
*** Cast in attendance: Troy Kotsur, USA and Tara Samuel, CANADA (Wild Prairie Rose) ***
EVENT DETAILS:
- Date: Friday May 26, 2017
- Time: 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM.
Al Green Theatre, Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre, 750 Spadina Ave
TICKET OPTIONS:
- Adult Festival VIP Pass: $40 early / $60 late
- Student, Youth and Senior Pass: $25
- CHS CUPE 2073 Special Rate: $25
- Individual Ticket: Film Screenings & Post Reception (Evening Rate) $25
ACCESSIBILITY:
- ASL-English Interpretation
- International Signs (IS)
- Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ)
- Wheelchair Accessible
PROGRAM:
- Door Opens: 6:15 PM
- Remarks & Introduction of Master of Ceremony: Sheena McFeely of ASL Nook: 7:00 PM
- Film Screenings: 7:15 PM
- Q’s & A’s with filmmakers in attendance: 9:30 PM to 10:00 PM
- Post Wine and Cheese Reception: 10:00 PM to 11:00 PM
- Filmmakers will be in attendance: Jim McDermott and Linda Campbell, CANADA
TIDFAF WORLD PREMIERE:
Halifax Explosion: The Deaf Experience
Directors: Jim McDermott and Linda Campbell, CANADA
RT: 45 minutes
Genre: Documentary
On December 6, 1917, the collision of two ships in the Halifax Harbour ended up creating one the biggest explosions in human history. The City of Halifax was immediately devastated with 1,600 people killed almost instantly and over 9,000 injured. The very next day, powerful blizzards sweeping through the region deposited deep snow, and leaving many survivors exposed to extreme cold.
The Halifax School for the Deaf was in the path of the explosion. Yet unlike many buildings that were flattened in the blast, the School was left standing. Despite windows being blown out and doors flying through the air, all the people inside the school survived. Despite the extreme cold and high snowfalls the next day, all the people still survived.
There have been many books written and movies made about the 1917 Halifax Explosion and its aftermath. But what about the Deaf community and the School for the Deaf? This is an amazing story that remains largely untold, until now.
Jim McDermott leads us through the tragic impact of the devastating 1917 Halifax Explosion, the importance of the Halifax School of the Deaf, and how everyone in the school survived the Explosion. Amazing stories of family, community, survival and heroism will be shared in American Sign Language and Maritimes Sign Language.
It is now time to share those stories with everyone.
TIDFAF PREMIERE:
WILD PRAIRIE ROSE
Directed by: Deborah LaVine
Cast in attendance: Troy Kotsur (USA) and Tara Samuel (CANADA)
RT: 90 minutes
Genre: Drama & Family
Film Synopsis:
In 1952 Rose Miller returns to her rural hometown of Beresford, South Dakota to care for her ailing mother. Once there, she falls in love with a deaf man and must decide if she has the courage to follow her heart. Wild Prairie Rose is an examination of the changing roles of women in 1950s America and in the ways that people who have great differences can learn to communicate with one another. It is a film that focuses on one woman’s story, and yet challenges the audience to examine their own assumptions about what makes a good life.
Film Trailer: