Lost local treasures Edmonds, Squires on screen at this year’s Nickel Film Fest
In what will no doubt be a particularly poignant screening, movie-goers will be able to see celebrated local actress Janet Edmonds on the big screen at next month’s Nickel Independent Film Festival.
Edmonds stars as a physician in Andrea Dunne’s short film “Malignant,” about a young woman who finds a lump in her breast.
Edmonds, 50, died last Saturday after a battle with breast cancer.
The film is one of a host of local — and national and international — films on the bill for the annual film festival, which will happen at the LSPU Hall in St. John’s June 17-24.
Edmonds isn’t the only lost treasure in the festival, either: “I Heard the Birch Tree Whisper in the Night” by filmmaker Kenneth J. Harvey is a featurelength documentary on visual artist Gerry Squires, who died in 2015 at age 77.
The Nickel will host a total of nine film screenings, with a range of features, documentaries and shorts, including Justin Oakey’s “Riverhead,” which earned actors Lawrence Barry and Evan Mercer Canadian Screen Award nominations; “Away From Everywhere,” the screen adaptation of Chad Pelley’s novel, starring Jason Priestley and Shawn Doyle; and “Atlantic,” Risteard O’domhnaill’s documentary on fish and oil in the Atlantic, and the impact of their exploitation on both sides of the ocean.
The Nickel festival will also hold its popular Horror Movie Night, a family matinée and a series of workshops that are open to the public. Topics include vlogging, video journalism, editing and short filmmaking on a tight deadline. There will also be a “Film School in a Day” crash course in filmmaking.
“The film industry has been robust in this province in recent years and we can strengthen our economy with even more production,” Nickel director Ruth Lawrence said in a written statement. “The Nickel has been gaining strength each year as we showcase our talent in an international context.”
Tickets for individual screenings, registration for workshops and festival passes are on sale now at www.nickelfestival.com.
The Nickel will host a total of nine film screenings, with a range of features, documentaries and shorts, including Justin Oakey’s “Riverhead,” which earned actors Lawrence Barry and Evan Mercer Canadian Screen Award nominations; “Away From Everywhere,” the screen adaptation of Chad Pelley’s novel, starring Jason Priestley and Shawn Doyle; and “Atlantic,” Risteard O’domhnaill’s documentary on fish and oil in the Atlantic, and the impact of their exploitation on both sides of the ocean.