Extra, Extra! Amanda Strong’s Latest Animagic Show is about to Go!
– The stop-motion prodigy, Amanda Strong, will premiere her latest project Inkwo for When the Starving Return at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
– The film is an adaptation of Richard Van Camp’s short story Wheetago War, brought to life in 3D animated glory.
– This captivating piece of stop-motion artistry is a co-production between Strong’s Spotted Fawn Productions and the National Film Board of Canada.
– Strong, a nominee for both the Canadian Screen Award and Emmy, shows no sign of slowing her animation momentum with this latest work.
A Feast of Film from the Famed Amanda Strong
Amanda Strong is cooking up a spectacle at this year’s TIFF buffet with nothing less than a premiere of her latest serving of stop-motion deliciousness. Her new dish, ‘Inkwo for When the Starving Return,’ is not your everyday vanilla pudding. It’s more like the forbidden fruit pie, you really can’t resist but would definitely have you pondering its layers. Adapted from the staggeringly thrilling short story ‘Wheetago War’ by Richard Van Camp, this film is an infectious blend of rich Canadian folklore, oozes creativity, and sprouts technical genius.
Amanda Strong’s ‘Inkwo for When the Starving Return’: From Canvas to Cinema
So, what’s my hot take? Well, for starters, anyone who can turn a Richard Van Camp short story into a stop-motion smorgasbord deserves a toast (or maybe an animated one). But this isn’t just any filmmaker. This is Amanda Strong, a woman who’s wrangled both the Canadian Screen Award AND an Emmy nomination. So, grab the popcorn, folks, because this one’s set to be more explosive than a pack of popping candy. If this premiere at TIFF is anything to go by, Strong’s cinematic future looks brighter than a supernova, and for the world of 3D animation, well that’s just rocking the Milky Way!
Unveiling Inkwo: When the Starving Return (Image sourced from the movie, courtesy of the National Film Board of Canada and Spotted Fawn Productions)
Award-nominated Michif/Métis filmmaker Amanda Strong ‘s fresh release, Inkwo: When the Starving Return is set to have its grand debut at the famed Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) this year. Based on Richard Van Camp’s riveting short story, Wheetago War, this stop-motion spectacle is a masterpiece collaboration between Strong’s Spotted Fawn Productions and the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), starring voice talents Paulina Alexis, Tantoo Cardinal, and Art Napoleon.
In a dystopian future, the very existence of our planet is threatened. Dove, an intrepid warrior, receives and starts to unravel the secrets of their Inkwo (medicine), a sole defense against a horde of famished creatures. Their courage, grit, and alliance with the Earth climax in an epic battle against these monsters growing stronger with each human they devour. Inkwo: When the Starving Return serves as a compelling call to arms against the self-destructive forces of greed and consumption.
With her cinematic aesthetic uniquely fusing Indigenous storytelling methodologies with stop-motion animation, the esteemed Strong has directed films such as Biidaaban (The Dawn Comes) for CBC Arts and Four Faces of the Moon for CBC Docs, displayed at globally acclaimed venues that include TIFF, the Cannes film market, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, and the American Museum of Natural History.
Alongside Strong’s film, TIFF will also showcase two other standout productions from NFB, featuring the world premiere of the real-life feature documentary Living Together (directed by Halima Elkhatabi) and the North American debut of the newest animated short from acclaimed Oscar winner Torill Kove, Maybe Elephants.
Originally from Norway but presently based in Canada, Kove’s renowned body of work includes the Oscar-winning The Danish Poet and Oscar nominee My Grandmother Ironed the King’s Shirts and Me and My Moulton. Her latest creation, Maybe Elephants, explores themes of family, memory, and their inherent imperfections. The narrative follows the experiences of three sisters uprooted from their Norwegian home to Nairobi due to their parents’ relocation.
Oscar winner Torill Kove narrates her adolescent experiences navigating individual needs amidst a loving family. Trading the safety and predictability of life in Norway for the dynamic uncertainties of 1970s Nairobi, Kenya, her family and three sisters are featured in the returning cast of Me and My Moulton. Maybe Elephants explores the many repercussions of a mother’s discontentment and the effects it has on her family.
Mark your calendars for this year’s TIFF, scheduled for September 5 to 15. For more details, visit the official site tiff.net
Original article: https://www.skwigly.co.uk/inkwo-for-when-the-starving-return-premiere/