Human Rights on Screen: Sugarcane
The Commission is pleased to partner with the Atlantic International Film Festival to provide Nova Scotians the opportunity to engage with human rights topics through film. The acclaimed documentary Sugarcane will be available to view online for free from December 3 - 10 as part of Nova Scotia Human Rights Week
Sugarcane, the debut feature documentary from Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie - is an epic cinematic portrait of a community during a moment of international reckoning.
Set amidst a ground-breaking investigation into abuse and death at an Indian residential school, the film empowers participants to break cycles of intergenerational trauma by bearing witness to painful, long-ignored truths – and the love that endures within their families.
In 2021, evidence of unmarked graves near an Indian residential school run by the Catholic Church in Canada sparked a national outcry about the forced separation, assimilation, and abuse many children experienced at this network of segregated boarding schools designed to slowly destroy the culture and social fabric of Indigenous communities.
- Report says at least 55 children died or disappeared at B.C. residential school
- Sugarcane documentary explores residential school intergenerational trauma and resilience
When Kassie - a journalist and filmmaker - asked her old friend and colleague, NoiseCat, to direct a film documenting the Williams Lake First Nation investigation of St Joseph’s Mission, she never imagined just how close this story was to his own family. As the investigation continued, Emily and Julian traveled back to the rivers, forests and mountains of his homelands to hear the myriad stories of survivors.
During production, Julian’s own story became an integral part of this beautiful multi-stranded portrait of a community. By offering space, time, and profound empathy the directors unearthed what was hidden. Kassie and NoiseCat encountered both the extraordinary pain these individuals had to suppress as a tool for survival and the unique beauty of a group of people finding the strength to persevere.
The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it received the jury prize in directing in the U.S. documentary category.
“Delicately infuriating documentary Sugarcane digs deep into pain of Canada’s residential school system” - Globe and Mail
“sears the mind and haunts the soul” - Toronto Star
This special free screening is presented by the Atlantic International Film Festival and the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission as part of the Human Rights on Screen series.
Content advisory: mature themes, discussion of abuse and sexual violence
A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line is available to provide support for survivors and those affected. People can access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-hour service at 1-866-925-4419.
Mental health counselling and crisis support are also available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the Hope for Wellness hotline at 1-855-242-3310 or by online chat.
- Get your free tickets now!
- For more information, including a written Q&A with the directors, please see these Press Notes.