βShortly after coming out, a gay person said bluntly and directly that I had blood on my hands,β says Randy Thomas in the documentary Pray Away. βHe said, βWhat do you think about the blood on your hands?β I said, βRight now, all I know is that Iβm afraid to look down at my hands.ββ
As part of the 2021 festival, Cannes dedicated a sidebar to βCinema for the climate.β This group of mostly non-fiction films tackled various storylines that somehow relate to environmental causes. This, combined with a 20β¬ charge for each attendee meant to offset our carbon footprint, was but one message drowned out during these COVID-sensitive times.
The power of the people resonates strongly in We Are Many. This long gestatingβand long shelvedβdoc from director Amir Amirani chronicles the global protests against the USAβs invasion of Iraq. We Are Many chronicles the lead-up to the fateful day of February 15, 2003 when approximately 30 million people worldwide joined their voices in a
Haynesβ film is quite simply one of the best of the breed. This is easily a definitive portrait of the band that feels like the Velvetsβ last testament.
The Mirror Mountain Film Festival, a new event based in Ottawa, showcases Indie, alternative and underground cinema, including some great short documentaries. The selected short docs explore such themes as family, belonging, resilience, and migration. Anne Koizumi touches on all of these subjects in her short film In the Shadow of the Pines (Canada, 2020).