Blue Ant International acquires rights to Tanya Talaga’s documentary

Blue Ant International has acquired the international licensing rights to "Spirit to Soar" (1x60’; HD), a documentary that follows prolific Anishinaabe storyteller and journalist Tanya Talaga, as she explores the systemic racism facing Indigenous peoples in the Northern Canadian town of Thunder Bay, Ontario.

The documentary continues the story of her award-winning, non-fiction book "Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death and Hard Truths in a Northern City", now available in Canada, the U.S., Japan, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Poland, which brought international attention to the tragic deaths of seven Indigenous high school students that went uninvestigated between the years of 2000 and 2011.

Produced by Makwa Creative in association with Antica Productions the film premiered at Hot Docs International Documentary Festival this past spring and is slated to broadcast and stream on CBC and CBC Gem in Canada in Fall 2021. "Spirit to Soar" is now available for worldwide distribution, including French speaking Canada, with Blue Ant International.

“This documentary sheds light on a story that is based in Canada, but that has universal significance, as audiences around the globe reckon with systemic racism and cultural inequity,” says Solange Attwood, EVP, Blue Ant International. “Sharing Tanya’s personal journey as she explores the stories of the Seven Fallen Feathers from Thunder Bay adds to an incredibly crucial movement for reconciliation and change, especially given the discovery of thousands of unmarked graves of Indigenous children found at residential schools.”

"We created this film because we love our children, families and our communities. We are connected to the land and to each other. Every child taken from us is a blow to us all. We hope that by telling our stories, Canada will realize how resilient we are and how this country's oppressive, colonial laws caused a legacy of harm. We must all work together to change that, for the good of all our children," says Tanya Talaga, Director and Executive Producer, Makwa Creative.