Image Credit: Karolina Turek
Vancouver, B.C., — AaSheNii Productions Inc. announced today that the new dramatic thriller Broken Angel / MaaShwaKan MaNiTo has begun filming in and around the lower mainland of Vancouver, including locations in Maple Ridge and Langley.
This new film stars Sera-Lys McArthur (Outlander) as Angel, Carlo Marks (Pretty Little Liars) as Earl, Asivak Koostachin (Red Snow) as Joshua, David Lyle (Arrow) as Frankie and Brooklyn Letexier-Hart (Night Raiders) as Tania. Broken Angel follows Angel, an Indigenous woman and mother who escapes with her daughter Tanis from her abusive alcoholic partner to a women’s shelter on the reservation. As the prospect of a new beginning takes shape, her abusive partner tracks her down and Angel is forced to flee or fight.
The film also features performances by Malcolm Sparrow-Crawford (Snowpiercer), filmmaker Jessie Anthony (Brother, I Cry), Renae Morriseau (The X-Files) as well as writer/director Dr. Jules Arita Koostachin (Molly of Denali) and three generations from her family including her mom Rita Okimawininew and her son Asivak Koostachin.
“I feel a great responsibility to make a film that is sensitive to the integrity of the lived experience of Indigenous women,” says Koostachin. “Broken Angel is a story full of resilient narratives and the testimonies of women I had the honour of sharing space with during my time as the director of a women’s shelter. There lies an incredible resiliency, power and strength within each Indigenous character in this story because they all come from a place of truth,” says Koostachin.
Broken Angel will include both English and Cree dialogue. The film is written, directed and produced by Dr. Jules Arita Koostachin (AskiBOYZ), executive produced and co-produced by Patti Poskitt (Monkey Beach) and Anne Wheeler (Firefly Lane). The film’s composer is Wayne Lavallee (Red Snow) and Sarah Thomas Moffat (Frankie Drake Mysteries) is the director of photography.
Broken Angel was selected by the Toronto International Film Festival Filmmakers Lab in 2018 and the Whistler Screenwriting Lab in 2019. The film was made possible through the support of APTN, Telefilm Canada, Creative BC, Indigenous Screen Office (ISO) and William F. White.
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ABOUT JULES KOOSTACHIN
Born in Moose Factory, Ont., Dr. Jules Arita Koostachin was raised by her Cree speaking grandparents in Moosonee, and also with her mother in Ottawa, a warrior of the Canadian residential school system. Jules is a band member of Attawapiskat First Nation, the Ancestral lands of the MoshKek AsKi InNiNeWak. In 2010, she completed her masters at Ryerson University in documentary media where she was awarded the Award of Distinction for her thesis work, as well as the Graduate Ryerson Gold Medal for highest academic achievement. While in graduate school, she produced her first feature documentary Remembering Inninimowin about her journey of remembering InNiNiMoWin (Cree). After graduation, Jules was one of six women selected for the Women in the Director’s Chair program at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, where she directed a scene from her feature script Broken Angel. Jules’ popular television series AskiBOYZ (2016), which was co-produced with Big Soul Production, is now being aired on APTN in both English and Cree. Jules is currently shooting Broken Angel and is in development on her NFB documentary feature WaaPiiKee. She was also recently selected for the Directors Program for Women (2021/22) with the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. https://juleskoostachin.com/
ABOUT AASHENII PRODUCTIONS INC.
AaSheNii Productions Inc. is a production company fully owned by filmmaker Dr. Jules Koostachin, formed with a passion for achieving equity through their work. AaSheNii Productions is dedicated to creating opportunities for Indigenous peoples and marginalized women who are interested in a career in film and television. AaSheNii translates to “Good Spirit” in Swampy Cree from northern Ontario.
Koostachin’s primary company, VisJuelles Productions Inc., was founded in 2010 and currently has a number of films and other media works in development.
ABOUT SECOND SON PRODUCTIONS INC.
Second Son Productions Inc. (SSSPI) is a British Columbia-based company, solely owned by Patti Poskitt. From its inception in 1999, the goal has always been to service independent producers in all genres of media and to maintain a boutique presence to give personal attention for the facilitation of projects from their inception to final delivery. Patti Poskitt and business partner, production accountant Darlene Lofgren, in addition to the variety of projects we service , are especially proud of our extensive work within the Indigenous film community. We are honoured to be learning first-hand of the many traditional ways of Indigenous Peoples in Canada as we witness meaningful and exceptional Indigenous storytelling. Our continued relationships within the community greatly enriches our working lives. http://www.secondson.tv/
