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Four teenage filmmakers can’t stop giggling as they recount the making of their film No Hope.
In the opening scenes, zombies flood the band office of Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation.
This is the creative vision of a group of high school students in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., who will screen their film at the Yellowknife International Film Festival this November.
Young filmmaker Charlene Tale said her family was proud and “awestruck” to see her work, and she’d like to make more films with the mentorship from professionals.
“I thought it was pretty cool to feel what it’s like behind the camera,” said Tale. “It was really fun and it opened up a lot of doors for the future.”
Tale, who takes inspiration from comedy shows, plays a cop in No Hope.
“I was running in these halls, cuz I’m just a bad kid like that,” Tale jokes.
Lucia Nakehk’o helped the youth with the workshop run by the Road to Freedom Tour, which brings photography and filmmaking workshops to First Nations communities. It’s toured more than 80 communities so far.
The children learn photography skills, studios, props, and lighting. They also get a crash course in acting and performance. The workshop teaches youth to write scripts, read their lines, learn special effects and put together a production schedule.
The first time a group of Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ High School students screened their zombie film, Nakehk’o said aunties and grandmas were peering over the glass, in awe of the trailer that was put together.
“All these aunties and grannies were watching from the window,” she said. “It was really fun to watch them watch it … some of them were surprised at the gore and all the fake blood.”
Filmmaking builds confidence
Nakehk’o saw the youth shake off their camera shyness.
As someone who has worked in the film industry, Nakehk’o sees some bright acting potential among the youth.
“When were running lines it was cool to see them start off really shy and they started having a lot more fun and joking around with it,” she said.
Serenity Gargan said making a film with her friends gave her more confidence.
“The hardest part about acting is keeping it together when there’s a lot of fake blood,” Gargan said.
Cash Froehlich plays a civilian with one arm.
“I turned into a zombie and I got my head crushed,” said Froehlich.
Nakehk’o said working with the kids brought a sense of “whimsy” into film for her.
She said one kid wanted to have exploding heads, so the crew picked up a watermelon and used graphic effects to make it realistic.
“We accidentally got a bunch of fake blood everywhere,” she laughs. “It was just so fun. It wasn’t stressful … It was like exploding heads and kids laughing all the time.”
She said these types of workshops are important for youth. She heard some of them say they want to make longer films or do another similar workshop.
Nakehk’o said this opens up the door to future creative endeavours.
“There was a lot of heat coming off this trailer and excitement, just pure excitement,” she said.
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