Moose Factory, Ontario….The Sixth Annual Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival will be celebrated in Moose Factory Island, a community located in Northern Ontario along the James Bay coast. The festival is a grassroots community cultural event, which presents works by new, emerging and established filmmakers with featured school and community events. Our annual program showcases stories that resonate with issues and perspectives relative to the James Bay people. The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival and Video Festival 2008 will be showcasing a program that will focus on language and culture in First Nations.

‘Weeneebeg’ is the traditional Cree word referring to the waters of James Bay. The island community is situated on the Moose River that flows into James Bay. The area is called the Mushkegowuk territory populated mainly by the First Cree nations of Moose, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat and Weenusk. Moose Factory is located approximately three miles from the mainland town of Moosonee and is accessible via an ice road during the festival in March.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival partners with local organizations, co-presenting screenings, traditional Cree feasts and festival activities at various venues throughout the community such as the Elder’s Centre, the Cree Village Ecolodge and local schools. This year’s partnership continues with imagineNATIVE Film + Media Festival to include a youth program with a selection of short films being programmed by both festivals. The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival showcases shorts, animation, documentaries and feature films as well as hands-on youth workshops with guest artists. Audience members are mainly from the Moose Factory and Moosonee area and many others who travel down the ice road along the coast from Fort Albany, Kashechewan and Attawapiskat. Guest filmmakers are invited to present their works, artists’ talks and facilitate workshops while experiencing a unique northern life with the Cree Nation.

One highlight for the 2008 festival is presenting works about First Nations languages and cultures. Some of this year’s program presents the short film Wabak by Kevin and Gilles Pensoway (CAN) from Quebec, Nkiwmowin (My Song) by Kevin L. Burton (CAN), and the premieres of Kanien’keha:ka-Living the Language by Paul M. Rickard (CAN), an established filmmaker originally from Moose Factory, Weaving Worlds by Bennie Klein (USA), Miss Navajo by Billy Luther (USA).

Another highlight will be two films that deal with teen suicide, an issue that has plagued First Nations communities for decades. Seeking Bimmaadiziwin by Kelly Saxberg (CAN), a dramatization of a young girl struggling to find herself, culture and the hope to carry on. Le Pacte (The Pact) by Yvon Dube (CAN) and Erica Pomerance (CAN), a documentary about the Atikamekw First Nation looking for new ways to solve the problems of youth suicides using their community’s own resources.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival has continued to present important films that address issues that all First Nation peoples deal and face in their everyday lives and we also present works that entertain our audience.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival is a free festival and provides unlimited access to all screenings, events and workshops. The festival is an artist and community run festival led by Executive Director/Programmer, Paul M. Rickard and Co-Executive Producer/Special Events Coordinator/Programmer, Fred D. Rickard and Consultant/Programmer, Shirley Cheechoo.

The 2008 website has been launched with the full program. Further details of screenings, visiting artists and special activities will be posted.

For updates, we invite you to please visit www.weeneebeg.ca

For media information, please contact:

Fred Rickard
Tel: 705-658-6987
Email: fredrickard@mac.com