Film festivals love premieres—showing a movie for the first time. But in Canada, they also tend to love premiers, the politicians whose provincial government pays some of the fest’s bills. The Atlantic Film Festival is no exception on the premier front, and Nova Scotia’s top dog always gets their face on a welcome letter in […]
Atlantic Film Festival
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AFF Review: Hyena Road
This week, Paul Gross (Due South, Passchendaele) premiered Hyena Road, the first Canadian contemporary war film, which he wrote and directed, at TIFF and last night at the Atlantic Film Festival. The Afghanistan-based, Jordan-shot film also stars Allan Hawco (The Republic of Doyle) and Rossif Sutherland (son of Donald Sutherland). And, just like the film, I’m conflicted. It […]
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Retro vibes: the 2015 Atlantic Film Fest full program announced
The 35th Atlantic Film Festival announced the full program this morning at The Lord Nelson Hotel. There was cake, popcorn and coffee and I also met my childhood hero, CTV‘s Liz Rigney. Along with the earlier-announced Atlantic Canadian selections, AFF 2015 offers an exciting lineup of award-winning domestic and international features and shorts hitting Halifax theatres from […]
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North Mountain goes in a new direction
North Mountain Premiere Wednesday, September 23, 9:15pm Park Lane Cinema, 5657 Spring Garden Road $11.25 Bretten Hannam shot his first feature film, North Mountain, over 13 days in January down near Kejimkujik—the Mersey River and Caledonia area, not too far from where he grew up in the Annapolis Valley. It was brutally cold. “We finished […]
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Money Talks: local features at the Atlantic Film Fest
Tonight, the 35th Atlantic Film Festival kicks off with the premiere of Hyena Road, the new Paul Gross–Allan Hawco joint about Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan (7pm, Rebecca Cohn). There are a number of internationally acclaimed films and shorts screening in the next eight days, but there are also great batch of Atlantic-made features that show just how skilled […]
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Atlantic Film Festival announces Summer of Superheroes
It’s a cape escape every weekend from June 26 to August 21. Instead of focusing on an actor or director, The Atlantic Film Festival‘s Outdoor Film Experience is going broad with a genre: superheroes. Costumes encouraged, but I doubt you needed any encouraging, really. Now in Bedford and Dartmouth as well as on that big […]
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Summer of Sandra!
It was a happy day at the Coast offices, let me tell you. This year, for the 14th annual AFF Outdoor Film Experience (formerly alFresco filmFesto), the free series on the waterfront chose to focus on the oeuvre d’Bullock. We chose to rejoice (the reign of dudes has been interrupted!) From July 18 to August […]
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Monster energy
Jay Dahl says the idea for There Are Monsters came from a very simple exchange. He was strolling past someone on the sidewalk, and the guy gave him a strange look. Really strange. “I got this chill,” says Dahl, who started to think about how maybe some people can seem like… something else. Dahl ran […]
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Ghost story
The past comes back to haunt you. In America, the spectre of slavery is often the underlying theme of that country’s gothic stories. Canada, though we’re not as likely to admit it, has its own cultural genocide to reckon with. Rhymes for Young Ghouls, the debut feature from acclaimed Mi’kmaq director Jeff Barnaby, picks up […]
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Secretariat’s Jockey: Ron Turcotte
Director Phil Comeau had some trouble keeping up with 71-year-old retired jockey Ron Turcotte. “He would call me at midnight with ideas on where we should go the next day for filming,” says Comeau. “We had to get up at five in the morning to shoot. He has incredible energy.” Secretariat’s Jockey: Ron Turcotte is […]
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All The Wrong Reasons
Emily Hampshire’s character in director Gia Milani’s debut film, the Halifax-shot All The Wrong Reasons isn’t the most endearing person in the world, which speaks volumes about Hampshire’s acting ability. Enthusiastic and open, even after a day full of interviews (“I just get the phone passed to me, then taken away,” she says, laughing), Hampshire […]
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Stray
“I’m living,” says Ashley McKenzie, in response to the question, “What are you doing in Cape Breton?” Last year the award-winning filmmaker–her short drama Rhonda’s Party received a host of accolades, including the CBC Short Film Faceoff in 2011–moved from Halifax back to her hometown of New Waterford in order to complete a new short, […]