Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

BIGGER THAN TRAUMA
Vedrana Pribacic | 2022 | Croatia | 90 minutes | Croatian with English subtitles

Rendezvous With Madness is pleased to present the extraordinary documentary film Bigger Than Trauma directed by Vedrana Pribacic available for streaming across Canada from October 27th to November 6th 

The brutal Croatian War of Independence came to an end in 1995, but survivors of the conflict continue to feel its devastating effects almost 30 years later. Justice has been slow in coming–if it comes at all–and institutional supports are few and far between, particularly for women who continue to live side-by-side with the very men who captured, tortured and raped them. 

Vedrana Pribacic’s Bigger Than Trauma is an intimate portrait of a group of Serbian and Croatian women who join a groundbreaking and unconventional therapy group to break their long-held silences, share their individual experiences and empower them to begin the long road to healing. However, their journey is not without its fair share of obstacles of pain revisited, cultural friction and resentment. In this tender setting, his documentary gives voice to the oft-forgotten and ignored victims of war for their own self-determination after trauma. 

Screening with
Yaren and the Sun | 2021 | Joren Slaets, Renate Raman | Belgium | 19 minutes | Dutch with English subtitles 

Yaren’s mother died when she was six. Her friend Kato’s father died a year ago. Yet the atmosphere in a therapeutic summer camp is far from mournful when one of the supervisors dances with a girl to the lively song “La Bamba.” It’s fine to have fun, the children learn—it can coexist with sadness.

Keywords: Women’s Issues | Trauma | War | Mutual Aid | Healing
Genre: Documentary (feature) Documentary (short)
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

In person screening — Saturday, November 5th at 7 PM
Camh Auditorium 
1025 Queen Street West, Toronto

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

WHEN WE REACH OUT, WHO SHOULD RESPOND?

Luke Galati | 2022 | Canada | 57 Minutes | English | 

Saturday, November 5th at Rendezvous With Madness come enjoy an in-person screening of the film When We Reach Out, Who Will Respond directed by Luke Galati.

After the film, stay for a dynamic conversation about police brutality and mental health crisis response as it relates to the city of Toronto and its community.

Featured speakers: Luke Galati, activist Desmond Cole, Director & Principal Consultant at Policing-Free Schools Andrea Vásquez Jiménez and the manager of the Toronto Community Crisis Service pilot at Gerstein Crisis Centre Andrea Westbrook; conversation moderated by Asante Haughton.

Toronto filmmaker Luke Galati’s documentary When We Reach Out, Who Should Respond? was born out of a tense interaction he had with police during a bipolar episode. In the documentary, he follows his own mental health journey in an effort to change emergency response and to end mental illness stigma.  

The film spotlights the Toronto Community Crisis Service, a pilot service responding to mental health-related calls with nurses and crisis workers, rather than police officers. When We Reach Out, Who Should Respond?  examines the need for alternative crisis response models through a series of interviews with politicians, activists, and crisis workers advocating for change. Galati’s thoughtful documentary invites audiences to engage in a necessary conversation about compassionate alternatives to police intervention during a mental health crisis.

Screening with
Hanging On | Alfie Barker | 2021 | United Kingdom | 16 minutes | English
A creative documentary spotlighting the strength of a community united when faced with eviction.

For accessibility When We Reach Out, Who Will Respond is also available online via Workman Arts & Cinesend from October 27th to November 6th 2022

Keywords: Police Violence | Bipolar Disorder | Systemic Racism | Class
Genre: Documentary (feature) Documentary (short)
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

In person screening — Saturday, November 5th at 4 PM
Camh Auditorium 
1025 Queen Street West, Toronto

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

IF YOU ASK ME

Sameena Anis, Mikaela Cordero, Shian Grace, Corinne Langmuir, Gladys Lou, Sanskruti Marathe, Lee Nisar, Esteban Powell, Roberto Santaguida, Agnes Wong |  2022 | Canada | 60 minutes | World Premiere | English 

November 5th at Rendezvous With Madness enjoy an in person screening of recent short films by This year’s If You Ask Me cohort.

For the sixth consecutive year, If You Ask Me (IYAM) has supported emerging filmmakers with lived mental health and/or addiction experiences to create new short works. This year’s program features shorts by filmmakers from across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

These new films were developed from August – October 2022 under the guidance of Roberto Santaguida, along with IYAM alumni Angela Feng, Maud Mostly and Vyom Malhotra serving as mentors. Over the course of three months, filmmakers strengthened their film production skills in the company of peers and industry guests. Rendezvous With Madness is excited to support the production and exhibition of these distinctly personal creative works. 

Equipment rentals and facilities were generously provided by our community sponsor, Trinity Square Video.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION: FILMMAKING NOW

The world has changed substantially since If You Ask Me 2021. This year’s cohort of filmmakers adapted their practices to ever-changing social realities. Join the in-person panel discussion to learn how each artist developed their films. 

For accessibility the If You Ask Me shorts program is also available online via Workman Arts & Cinesend from October 27th to November 6th 2022

Keywords: Addiction | Trauma | Mental Health | Youth
Genre: Shorts
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

Black swirls and its reflections on a maroon background. The highlighted text in the centre reads "Trigger warning."
Image Design: Dorothy Ogda Laxton “Trigger Warning”

In person screening — Sunday, October 30th at 5pm

Camh Auditorium 
1025 Queen Street West, Toronto

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

UPON, REFLECTION: RECENT SHORT FILMS BY WORKMAN ARTS AND SATELLITE MEMBERS

W.I PISTOLARY | Conilyn Herrera | Canada | 2022 | 4 minutes
EXPRESS YOURSELF | Sirene Qureshi & Luis Estores | Canada | 2018 | 4 minutes
THE HALLWAY | Zan Redcrow | Canada | 2022 | 3 minutes 
HYPOTHETICALLY FEBRUARY 15 | Jasmine Vanstone | Canada | 2022 | 4 minutes
TORONTO INTERLUDE | Christine Waloszczyk | Canada | 2022 | 5 minutes
TRIGGER WARNING | Dorothy Ogda Laxton | Canada | 2022 | 36 minutes

October 30th at Rendezvous With Madness enjoy an in person screening of recent short films by Workman Arts and Satellite members. Post-film screening talk with filmmakers moderated by James Buffin

Upon, Reflection is an anthology of recent short films by Workman Arts members and Satellite program artists. Filmmaking is a medium that allows us to tell stories and reflect on our own personal journeys. Each film presented in this series speaks to the vastness of storytelling and how it can transform us to make lasting and meaningful connections.

For accessibility Upon, Reflection: Recent Short Films By Workman Arts And Satellite Members is also available online via Workman Arts & Cinesend from October 27th to November 6th 2022  

For accessibility Mis Dos Voces / My Two Voices and Under the Full Moon are also available online via Workman Arts & Cinesend from October 27th to November 6th, 2022 

Keywords: Artists | Experimentation | Healing | Resilience
Genre: Shorts
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

Films from Workman Arts’ Satellite program were made possible thanks to generous support from The Slaight Family Foundation.

A black and white photo ID of a fem presenting person staring into the camera with no smile. On the right, written name "Roberts Elizabeth" in Patient field, signatures and birthdate with a New York address in black typed text at the top right corner.

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

MIDWASTE
2021 | Liz Roberts | USA | 23 Minutes | English

Artist spotlight

Rendezvous With Madness is pleased to present the short film Midwaste directed by Liz Roberts available for streaming across Canada from October 27th to November 6th 

Midwaste addresses the Midwest region, midlife, and various notions of wasted. Roberts’ connection to drug subculture is inextricable from her relationship to the camera. She started making Super 8 films as a teen, shooting friends she became intimate with in circles of drug use. Her methods are palpable and relational; retracing her steps, interviewing friends about their memories of the past, and revisiting footage taken at various stages of her youth.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Liz Roberts is running a virtual workshop on Tuesday, November 1 on creating autobiographical films please visit workmanarts.com for more details.

Keywords: Artist | Healing | Addiction | Autobiography
Genre: Short
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

VIVRE EN GRAND | BIGGER THAN US
Flore Vasseur | 2021 | France | 95 minutes | English 

How does one keep it together in a world coming apart at the seams? Climate change ravages the planet as greedy corporations keep polluting the environment at an unsustainable rate. With much of the global population living like there’s no tomorrow, fighting for change can feel pointless. Writer-director Flore Vasseur’s documentary, Bigger Than Us, offers viewers reason to remain hopeful.

Bigger Than Us follows 18-year-old Indonesian activist Melati Wijsen on her quest to meet with the 18 to 25-year-olds fighting for change. Melati heads to Lebanon, Malawi, Greece, the United States, Brazil and Uganda, to celebrate the activists fighting for free speech, food security and equal rights. These defiant young people refuse to let soulless corporations and self-interested politicians dictate their future. This beautifully shot documentary will shock, inspire and most importantly, leave viewers hopeful about the future. 

Yaren’s mother died when she was six. Her friend Kato’s father died a year ago. Yet the atmosphere in a therapeutic summer camp is far from mournful when one of the supervisors dances with a girl to the lively song “La Bamba.” It’s fine to have fun, the children learn—it can coexist with sadness.

Keywords: Climate Change | Women’s Rights | Refugee Crisis
Genre: Documentary (feature) Documentary (short)
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

Streaming across Canada October 27th to November 6th

MI VACÍO Y YO | MY EMPTINESS AND I | Adrián Silvestre | 2022 | Spain | 98 minutes | Toronto Premiere | French and Spanish with English Subtitles

Rendezvous With Madness is pleased to present the fabulous fiction film Mi Vacío Y Yo / My Emptiness And I directed by  Adrián Silvestre available for streaming across Canada from October 27th to November 6th. With the film, there is a prerecorded talk about the film with the d moderated by Anna Daliza to enjoy.

“Raphi, young and naive, enjoys writing love poems and dreams about falling in love. She leaves her native France and moves to Barcelona, where she works in a call centre. She struggles with maintaining relationships with boys and what it means to be diagnosed with gender dysphoria.  As a trans woman, Raphi feels the pressure to define and defend herself to anyone who asks but also deals with the social pressures to move forward with irreversible reassignment surgery. Even among her trans support group, Raphi receives mixed messages about needing to love herself exactly as she is … or instead, change her body in order for someone to love her in return. The brutal dating scene is no help as she’s matched with men who see her as more of a sexual novelty than a human being searching for love and connection. Wading through serious doubts and an array of intimate encounters of varying pleasure, Raphi must learn to trust herself and her newfound opportunity of the arts as a means of healing and empowerment. Raw, honest, and thought-provoking, Mi vacío y yo is an intensely intimate journey of self-discovery and acceptance.” —Cleveland International Film Festival

Anna Daliza is an emerging writer, artist and educator, was born in Southwestern Ontario to an Anglo-Canadian father and a Lebanese immigrant mother. She describes her cultural upbringing as a marriage between oil and water. 

Screening with 

The Spiral | María Silvia Esteve | 2022 | Argentina | Spanish with English subtitles 

The Spiral is a dive into a lonely ride, an hypnotic escalation towards childhood, family, and the loneliness of “home”.

Keywords: Dating | Gender Dysphoria | Family | Anxiety | Youth
Genre: Fiction (Feature) Fiction (Short)
#RWMFEST #MoreThanRebellion

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THIRZA CUTHAND: ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

THIRZA CUTHAND: ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

THIRZA CUTHAND / Canada / total run time 67 mins

Rendezvous is thrilled to be presenting a spotlight on Thirza Cuthand, a prolific artist who works
across multiple disciplines to explore interconnected issues related to madness, queer identities,
Indigeneity, and oh yes, sex and sexuality.

 

EXTRACTIONS (2020 | 15 min) A personal film about so-called Canada’s extraction industries and
the detrimental effects on the land and Indigenous peoples.

ANHEDONIA (2001 | 9 min) Depression and suicide are met head on in this confessional piece.
Anhedonia urges the viewer to open their eyes to the source of illness in Indigenous communities.

SIGHT (2012 | 3 min) Super 8 footage layered with Sharpie marker lines and circles obscuring the
image illustrates the filmmaker’s experiences with temporary episodes of migraine-related blindness
and her cousin’s self-induced blindness..

LOVE & NUMBERS (2004 | 8 min) A Two Spirited woman surrounded by spy signals and psychiatric
walls attempts to make sense of love, global paranoia and her place in the history of colonialism.

LESS LETHAL FETISHES (2019 | 9 min) “Not a sex video. Maybe a sexy video? About a latent gas
mask fetish, but maybe actually about a certain art world tear gas controversy the filmmaker was
involved in.” – T.C.

MEDICINE BUNDLE (2020 | 9 min) “A film about a bundle that was used in my family to heal by Great
Great Grandfather from a smallpox epidemic and a life threatening wound from a gun used against
him during the Battle of Cutknife Hill in 1885.” – T.C.

WOMAN DRESS (2019 | 6 min) A montage of archival images and dramatized re-enactments, this
film shares a Cuthand family oral story, honouring and respecting Woman Dress without imposing
colonial binaries on them.

NEUROTRANSMITTING (2021 | 8 min) In her most recent piece to date, Cuthand and her mother,
Ruth, explore wellness as it connects to mental health, psychiatric institutions, family and the medical
industrial complex. The intimate conversation is held over a backdrop of Ruth’s beaded scans of brains
affected by mental illness.

 

Keywords: Class | Environmental extraction | Gender | Indigeneity | Trauma

IN PERSON SCREENING
Wed, Nov 3, 6:30 PM

WATCH ONLINE
Oct 29 – Nov 7 available across Canada

IN PERSON + VIRTUAL
Q&A WITH ARTIST
Wed, Nov 3, 7:45 PM ET

ACCESSIBILITY
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Canadian Filmmakers Distribution Centre
Toronto Queer Film Festival

JOIN THE CONVERSATION:
Q&A WITH THIRZA CUTHAND

Please join artist Thirza Cuthand for a live
and virtual Q&A to discuss their film and art practices. The discussion will be moderated by local Indigenous media artist and cultural worker Ariel Smith.

PROCESSING DURATION: RECENT SHORT FILMS BY WORKMAN ARTS MEMBERS

PROCESSING DURATION: RECENT SHORT FILMS BY WORKMAN ARTS MEMBERS

IN PERSON SCREENING
Sat, Nov 6, 3 PM ET

WATCH ONLINE
Oct 29 – Nov 7 available across Canada

IN PERSON + VIRTUAL
PANEL DISCUSSION
Sat, Nov 6, 4 PM ET

ACCESSIBILITY

Various artists / 2018-2021 / Canada / 60 Mins+

Processing Duration is an anthology of recent short films by Workman Arts member artists that contemplate subjects of service, restriction, healing and embodied time. Through movement, ritual,
montage and song, these short films highlight nuance and storytelling. Ice On The Window Like A
Thousand Small Bees, Troubled Amplitude and Ice Into Fire experiment with urban and natural environments as a way to work through layered feelings. Looking inwards, the films Therapy Fragments Body Language, Fuck, Romberg’s Sign and The Space Without use self-documentation to explore vulnerability, growth, and resilience. While, the films Disability Video, The Beats, and Melody prove
the power of nature, music and narrative.

 

BODY LANGUAGE (Tara Clews | 2019 | 2 min)

DISABILITY VIDEO (Sirene Koser Qureshi | 2021 | 2 min)

FUCK (Emily Schooley | 2021 | 3 min)

ICE INTO FIRE (Anja Sagan | 2020 | 12 min)

ICE ON THE WINDOW LIKE A THOUSAND SMALL BEES (Catherine Jones | 2020 | 3 min)

MELODY (John Perera | 2021 | 3 min)

ROMBERG’S SIGN (Laura Shintani | 2021 | 2 min)

THE BEAST (Amy Ness | 2021 | 10 min)

THERAPY FRAGMENTS (Blanca Lopez | 2021 | 13 min)

THE SPACE WITHOUT (Emily Sweet | 2019 | 3 min)

TROUBLED AMPLITUDE (Jan Swinburne | 2018 | 9 min)

 

Keywords: Artists | Experimentation | Healing | Music | Resilience
COMMUNITY PARTNER
Vucavu
CO-PRESENTERS

JOIN THE CONVERSATION:
FILMMAKERS Q&A
Join the filmmakers for an in-person and virtual Q&A ; moderated by filmmaker James Buffin