From Marie Clements Media, Screen Siren Pictures and Grana Productions, and created by Marie Clements, the 5-part, hour-long drama and feature film follows Cree Matriarch Aline Spears, who is confronted by her traumatic past as she embarks on a classified mission in World War II, where she realizes the devastating secrets long buried in her are shared
BONES OF CROWS is told by Marie Clements, a female Indigenous writer, director and lead producer and reveals a female Indigenous perspective through a narrative that is multi-generational, national in scope, and spans over one hundred years
The ensemble cast includes: Grace Dove (Monkey Beach), Phillip Forest Lewitski (Wildhood), Glen Gould (Cold Pursuit), Michelle Thrush (Pathfinder), Gail Maurice (Night Raiders), Cara Gee (The Expanse), Karine Vanasse (Cardinal), Angus Macfadyen (Robert The Bruce), Rémy Girard (District 31), Graham Greene (Molly’s Game), and Lorne Cardinal (Corner Gas)
BONES OF CROWS is produced by Ayasew Ooskana Pictures in association with CBC/Radio-Canada, APTN, Telefilm Canada, the Canada Media Fund, Shaw Rocket Fund, Bell Fund, IPF, The Indigenous Screen Office and Elevation Pictures
Ayasew Ooskana Pictures announced today production is underway on the new original five-part psychological drama (5X60) and feature film BONES OF CROWS, commissioned by CBC/Radio-Canada in association with APTN. Created by Marie Clements, the character-driven series features an ensemble cast of talent including Grace Dove (Monkey Beach), Phillip Forest Lewitski (Wildhood), Glen Gould (Cold Pursuit), Michelle Thrush (Pathfinder), Gail Maurice (Night Raiders), Cara Gee (The Expanse), Karine Vanasse (Cardinal), Angus Macfadyen (Robert The Bruce), Rémy Girard (District 31), Graham Greene (Molly’s Game) and Lorne Cardinal (Corner Gas).
BONES OF CROWS is told through the eyes of Cree Matriarch Aline Spears as she survives a childhood in Canada’s residential school system to continue her family’s generational fight in the face of systemic starvation, racism, and sexual abuse. She uses her uncanny ability to understand and translate codes into working for a special division of the Canadian Air Force as a Cree code talker in World War II. The story unfolds over 100 years with a cumulative force that propels us into the future.
“Both myself and my producing partners are committed to bringing together the brightest minds and strongest hearts — leading Indigenous artists and actors, with leading non-Indigenous artists and actors, to tell a shared story that is uniquely Canadian, undeniably Indigenous and universally human. The intent is to execute an unapologetic vision and cinematic experience that gives voice to the residential school experience which is still being recovered, while also celebrating the resilience and hope that has always been us,“ says Marie Clements.
“As executive producers, we are honoured to work with someone as talented as Marie Clements to bring the story of Bones of Crows to the screen. She is one of the most gifted visionaries we have worked with in our careers and is undaunted and unflinching in her portrayal of the history and legacy of Canada’s residential schools,” said executive producers Trish Dolman, Christine Haebler and Sam Grana. “We are working with the Indigenous Screen Office and adhering to the On Screen Protocols and Pathways to bring Marie’s scripts to the screen and we are thankful to our funders and partners for their support in this endeavour.”
The project will be shot originally in English, with Cree and Ayajuthem spoken in key scenes and there will be both Cree and French-language versions for broadcast. Filming locations include: the Thompson-Nicola Region (Kamloops, Vernon, Quilchena), Greater Victoria Area, and Greater Vancouver Area in British Columbia, and Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Winnipeg portion of production will be produced by Eagle Vision.
"It is vital to share Indigenous history, perspectives and storytelling with authenticity of voice, and we are honoured to partner with Marie Clements and this outstanding cast and creative team to bring Bones of Crows to audiences across the land. Alongside our colleagues at Radio-Canada, we will offer this powerful, layered story in English, French and Cree, and in both limited series and feature film formats,” said Sally Catto, General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports, CBC.
ʺOffering high-quality stories immersed in the culture and experience of Canada’s First Nations is a continued priority for Radio-Canada and the CBC. We are proud to be associated with Marie Clements Media and its partners to bring about this fascinating limited series and feature film to audiences,ʺ added Dany Meloul, General Manager, Radio-Canada Television.
“For over 21 years, APTN has been providing a platform for Indigenous Peoples to share their stories in their voices,” says APTN CEO Monika Ille. “Bones of Crows shows us the beauty of our stories, even as it tells of our struggles. Our hope is that this production will give audiences the opportunity to reflect on the way that our histories of trauma have made us who we are today, and advance meaningful conversations about reconciliation.”
BONES OF CROWS is a CBC/Radio-Canada original production, produced with the financial participation of Telefilm Canada, Canada Media Fund, APTN , Independent Production Fund, Shaw Rocket Fund, Bell Fund, ISO (Indigenous Screen Office), FIBC, CAVCO, and First Peoples' Heritage, Language and Cultural Council and Indigenous Arts Program.
BONES OF CROWS is produced, written and directed by Marie Clements (Red Snow, The Road Forward), executive produced by Trish Dolman & Christine Haebler (French Exit, Indian Horse) and Sam Grana (The Boys of St. Vincent) with Executive Producers Lisa Meeches and Kyle Irving from Eagle Vision and the DOP is Vince Arvidson (The Magnitude of All Things).
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MARIE CLEMENTS MEDIA
Marie Clements Media (MCM) is an independent media production company based in Vancouver, owned and operated by award-winning writer, director, and producer Marie Clements. The company specializes in the creation, development, and production of innovative works of media that ignite an Indigenous and intercultural reality.
Marie Clements is an award-winning writer, director and producer who has carved her brand of independent story-making in a variety of mediums including film, TV, radio, new media and live performance. As a writer/director/producer her films have showcased at prestigious film festivals including: Cannes, TIFF, Hot Docs, MOMA, ImagineNATIVE and VIFF. Marie and MCM’s 2019 feature drama debut, RED SNOW, won the WIDC Feature Film Award and was nominated for ten 2019 Leo Awards. Marie was nominated for a DGC Best Director Award for the film and was also named a 2019 Telefilm Canada Birks Diamond Tribute to Women in Film recipient. In 2018, she received the WFF Women on Top Award and WIFTTV Spotlight Impact Award. Her documentary THE ROAD FORWARD was produced by the NFB and premiered at Hot Docs, opened the 2017 DOXA Documentary Film Festival, closed the 2018 ImagineNATIVE Film Festival, and received a Best Director Award and Best Film nomination at the American Indian Film Festival. It also received a Writers Guild of Canada nomination for Best Documentary script as well as five Leo Awards including Best Production, Best Director, and Best Screenwriter. Marie’s fifteen plays have been presented on some of the most prestigious stages for Canadian and international work, garnering numerous awards including the 2004 Canada-Japan Literary Award, and two prestigious Governor General’s Literary Award nominations.
SCREEN SIREN PICTURES
In 2021, Screen Siren Pictures celebrates 24 years in business as an active, independent production company based in Vancouver, Canada. President and founder Trish Dolman established herself as an award-winning producer and documentary director before joining forces with producer Christine Haebler in 2009. Collectively, our productions have screened at Cannes, Berlin, Sundance, TIFF and many other international festivals. Together, our motto is making media that “changes the conversation.”
Screen Siren’s latest feature film, FRENCH EXIT, an Ireland-Canada co-production with Elevation Pictures and Blinder Films, is an adaptation of Canadian author Patrick DeWitt’s award-winning novel and stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges. The film closed NYFF 2020, and garnered Pfeiffer both a Golden Globe award nomination and a Canadian Screen Award win for best performance by an actress in a leading role. They also launched the long-awaited feature documentary THE NEW CORPORATION: THE UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY SEQUEL at TIFF 2020. Their previous feature INDIAN HORSE, an adaptation of the award-winning novel by Ojibway author Richard Wagamese was the highest-grossing English-Canadian theatrical release of 2018 after a lengthy festival run where the film won 24 awards following a world premiere at TIFF. The company recently launched the multi-narrative 4-part documentary history series BRITISH COLUMBIA: AN UNTOLD HISTORY for Knowledge Network. Screen Siren continues to build its operation and strengthen its reputation as a leader in the production of high-calibre, Canadian film, television and digital media.
GRANA PRODUCTIONS
Sam Grana is an award-winning film and television producer, screenwriter, and actor. Earlier in his career, he helped pioneer the National Film Board of Canada’s foray into ‘alternative drama’ documentary fiction filmmaking. He was nominated for Genie Awards (Canada’s Oscars) for his supporting performance in 90 DAYS (1985) and for writing and producing TRAIN OF DREAMS (1987). His 1992 mini-series, THE BOYS OF ST. VINCENT, was nominated for 9 Gemini Awards (Canada’s Emmys) and won 7, including Best Dramatic Mini-Series, and Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series, for which Sam shared the honours. The Boys of St. Vincent also won the Grand Prize at the then Banff Television Festival, as well as a prestigious Peabody Award. He has continued producing compelling and acclaimed film and television for both the English and French markets in Canada since through his production company Grana Productions.
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada’s trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also deliver content in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi and Tagalog, as well as both official languages, through Radio Canada International (RCI). We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.
About APTN
APTN launched in 1999 as the world’s first national Indigenous broadcaster, creating a window into the remarkably diverse mosaic of Indigenous Peoples. A respected non-profit and charitable broadcaster, it’s the only one of its kind in North America. The network is Sharing Our Stories of authenticity in English, French and a variety of Indigenous languages to over 10 million Canadian subscribers. With over 80% Canadian content, APTN connects with its audiences through genuine, inspiring and engaging entertainment on multiple platforms.
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Ayasew Ooskana Pictures Press Contacts:
Nicola Pender, Pender PR
604.617.4807 nicola@penderpr.com
CBC Press Contact:
Teaghan Hawke teaghan.hawke@cbc.ca
APTN Press Contact:
Jacqueline Jubinville 204-990-3562 jjubinville@aptn.ca
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