Opening Night: Wildhood

Wednesday, March 9 / 8:45pm / Ottawa art gallery

Girls Shouldn’t Walk Alone at Night / Wildhood / Q&A with Joshua Odjick

Walk the IFFO red carpet before the screening!

This program is presented by Andrex Holdings.

Feature presentation \

hopeful \ homecoming \ road movie

Link is in denial. Denying his Mi’kmaw heritage by dying his hair blond. Denying his gender and sexuality by putting up a tough facade. And denying the extent of his father’s abuse and tyranny in their small household that includes his younger half-brother, Travis. The discovery of hidden letters from his mother that he thought to be dead is the last straw for Link. Setting fire to their father’s truck on their way out, the brothers set off to find Link’s mom and, they can only hope, a better life. When Link and Travis are offered a ride by a Mi’kmaw two-spirit teenager, they get more than just a faster mode of transportation. Pasmay, the kind nomadic stranger, is an example of who Link could be, if he could only stop denying himself. Creating a cautious yet hopeful new family, the trio have hope given and taken away as they follow the trail of breadcrumbs to Link’s mother. With the help of Pasmay, Link learns to accept himself, his heritage, and his mother’s mistakes. Connecting the angst of being a queer teen with the land, ancestry, and found family, Wildhood tells a story at once so singular yet universal. This exquisitely filmed story, held up strongly by the young actors, is a triumph of spirit and filmmaking.

- Tish Chambers

Short film \

This program is presented by Andrex Holdings.