Skip to main content
Angela's Shadow film image; woman standing in front of a tree

Angela's Shadow

Panorama

This event has passed

World Premiere

Angela (Sera-Lys McArthur) and Henry (Matthew Kevin Anderson), a young Ottawa couple with a baby on the way, embark on a short trip north to the Cree community of KiiWeeTin to visit Angela’s beloved childhood nanny, Mary (Renae Morriseau). When Angela is harassed by a menacing shadow figure, Mary moves to bless and protect Angela and her unborn child with illegal Cree ceremonies and medicine. And as Angela discovers the truth about both her ancestry and the spectral figure’s identity, she must delve into her newfound spiritual traditions in order to defend herself from her husband’s escalating purity-obsessed racism.

Balancing darkness and light to dramatic effect, Jules Arita Koostachin (WaaPaKe) crafts a ghost story rich in narrative traditions, period details, and uncanny allure.

 

Oct 2: Q&A with director Jules Koostachin and actors Asivak Koostachin, Rita Koostachin & Renae Morriseau

Oct 5: Q&A with director Jules Koostachin and actors Asivak Koostachin & Rita Koostachin

 

Community Partner

     

Director
Cast

Sera-Lys McArthur, Matthew Kevin Anderson, Renae Morriseau, Asivak Koostachin, Mahiigan Koostachin, David H. Lyle

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada

Year

2024

Language

English

18+
93 min
BC Spotlight Drama Indigenous Cinema Q&As at VIFF Women Directors
ChaKaSteTin Productions Inc.

Book Tickets

This event has passed.

Credits & Director

Executive Producer

Patti Poskitt

Producer

Jules Arita Koostachin

Screenwriter

Jules Arita Koostachin, Steve Neufeld

Cinematography

Mike Bourquin

Editor

Lara Mazur

Production Design

Cheryl Marion

Original Music

Justin Delorme

Jules Arita Koostachin headshot; Angela's Shadow director

Jules Arita Koostachin

Born in Moose Factory, Ontario, Dr. Jules Arita Koostachin was raised by her Cree-speaking grandparents in Moosonee and her mother in Ottawa. Jules is a member of the Attawapiskat First Nation, the Ancestral lands of the MoshKeKo AsKi InNiNeWak. She earned a PhD in Indigenous documentary methodologies from UBC and a master’s in documentary media from TMU. Jules’ acclaimed works include Remembering Inninimowin (2010), Broken Angel (2023), and WaaPaKe (2023). Through VisJuelles Productions, she’s developing projects like KaTaWaSiSin and Truth in Toronto.

Filmography: Remembering Inninimowin (2010); Broken Angel (2023); WaaPaKe (2023)

Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre

How Deep Is Your Love

Dir. Eleanor Mortimer
100 min

Filmmaker Eleanor Mortimer tags along with a team of oceanographers and marine biologists as they survey the Clarion-Clipperton fracture, one of the most remote spots on Earth, home to a dazzling array of unknown creatures.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Omaha

Dir. Cole Webley
84 min

Cole Webley's road movie about a single dad taking off with his two young kids is really just a fragment of a story, yet it unfolds with such authentic lyricism it lands with a heartbreaking emotional wallop.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Blue Heron

Dir. Sophy Romvari
90 min

In the late 1990s, eight-year-old Sasha and her Hungarian immigrant family relocate to a new home on Vancouver Island. Their fresh start is interrupted by increasingly dangerous behaviour from Jeremy, the family’s oldest child.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

The Last One for the Road

Dir. Francesco Sossai
100 min

Two middle-aged drunkards drive across the Veneto region on a freewheeling bender, taking a young college student along for the ride. A celebration of the spirit of drink and the kinds of stories told around a table of old friends and too much wine.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

The Art of Adventure

Dir. Alison Reid
90 min

The unbelievable adventure story of how painter Robert Bateman and ecologist Bristol Foster drove a Land Rover from Africa to Australia in 1957, developing a love of nature to last a lifetime. An inspirational love letter to the adventure of life itself.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Holy Days

Dir. Nat Boltt
95 min

After his mom passes, Brian (Elijah Tamati) is comforted by Sisters Agnes, Luke and Mary Clare (Judy Davis, Miriam Margolyes and Jacki Weaver, respectively). The quirky quartet hit the road to save their convent from being sold to a property developer.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema