Director Banchi Hanuse’s Ceremony examines the cultural and traditional importance of ooligan to British Columbia’s Nuxalk First Nations, probing the connection between colonialism and the ooligan’s mysterious disappearance. We posed our Qs à la mode to Banchi, and here’s what she shared!
If I had to describe my film using only three adjectives, they would be: Lyrical, redemptive, revenant.
I wanted to make this film because: I felt a responsibility to tell this story to not only to reflect on what happened, but to capture what it was like before everything changed and to ask how do we move forward.
The thing that surprised me most while making my film was: How quickly those 12 years went by.
My favorite moment/scene/sequence in my film is: When Tom Swanky shares unbelievable truths about a late-1800s tragedy and we see the ancestors who lived through it.
My most invaluable piece of doc-making equipment was/is: The spiritual people who guided throughout the process.
My must-have snack to get me through hours in the editing room is: Chocolate cake with buttercream frosting.
One piece of documentary-filmmaking advice I’d like to share with aspiring documentarians is: To tell stories that resonate with your heart.
Want to check out Banchi’s film, or just learn more about it?
Get the scoop, and your tickets, here!
