Created by young filmmakers from across Haida Gwaii through VIMFF’s youth filmmaking initiative, What You Want to Be and Atticus, The Cowboy are two short films that grew out of hands-on workshops led by local filmmaker Gaëtan Lamarre. Seven youth, ages 9 to 21, completed the program, learning to use documentary filmmaking to explore the people, stories and experiences within their own communities.
These films represent more than the finished work. They are the result of young people learning to tell stories through their own lens, from picking up a camera and capturing the footage to helping shape how their stories are ultimately shared with an audience.
Gaëtan Lamarre is the filmmaker at the heart of Silent Rapids Productions. His film In The Shadows of Everest screened at VIMFF in 2018, which was filmed with the Sherpas living in the mountain-side village of Phortse, in Nepal.
His films tell stories of resilience, profound human connection, and celebrating culture rooted in the natural world. Gaëtan now calls Haida Gwaii home, and is filled with gratitude to be helping to tell the rich stories of the Haida, who have stewarded and inhabited their lands and waters since time immemorial. His work is multifaceted and includes sharing stories of Haida artists, Haida language preservation, and documentation of Potlatches, Pole Raisings and other cultural celebrations.
He was also part of the team behind Saints and Warriors, a feature-length documentary that captures a story of resilience, brotherhood, and the unbreakable spirit of Haida Gwaii. These themes continue on a film he is currently working on, about Haida weavers reviving their ancient tradition of making cedar sails for their legendary ocean-going canoes.
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