Seas of Stories: A night of films, discussion & performance!

*please note this event is in person only, the films cannot be livestreamed, thanks for understanding*

We could not be more thrilled to collaborate with the fabulous humans at Queer Film Night to bring you an evening of original films, discussion and performance!

Seas of stories is a film night with a difference, exploring the relationships between humans and non-human creatures as they encounter each other in water and on land and show us how the two worlds are always connected.

With a strong Indigenous focus, this programme curated by Jules Lacave-Fontourcy showcases stories from Canada, Australia, and the Pacific alongside Scottish and Nordic folklore.

There will be a screening of several short films followed by a discussion with storyteller Niall Moorjani and friends, and we'll close the event with an open mic, inviting you to share poetry and stories that touch on all these themes, water and queerness and connection.

The bar will be open on arrival (doors at 6:30 for a 7pm start) but feel free to bring any movie snacks you like (avoiding nuts, for any with allergies!)

We are immensely grateful to Film Hub for the financial support in putting this on!

The Films:

Seals’kin

Hanna Tuulikki | Scotland 2022 | 19 | At the mouth of the Scottish river Ythan, where hundreds of seals haul out on the estuary banks, Tuulikki explores with her body what it might mean to become-with-seal, drawing on myths of human-seal hybridity and folkloric musical practices to offer alternative forms of mourning through sensuous identification with more-than-human kin.

The Montain of SGaana

Christopher Auchter (Haida) | Canada 2017 | 10 | The magical tale of a young man who is stolen away to the spirit world, and the young woman who rescues him. Christopher Auchter’s dream-like gem brilliantly entwines traditional animation with formal elements of Haida art, which are brought to life by a rich, evocative palette and stylized effects.

The Selkie

Monade Li | France 2019 | 8 | Selkies are mythological beings capable of therianthropy, changing from seal to human form by shedding their skin. Faroese folklore tells us of a vengeful Selkie who woved to drown as many men from the island Kalsoy so that people could link arms around the whole island.

Lumaajuq

Alethea Arnaquq-Baril (Inuk) | Canada 2010 | 7 | A cruel mother mistreats her son. A loon, who tells the boy that his mother blinded him, helps the child regain his eyesight. Then the boy seeks revenge, releasing his mother’s lifeline as she harpoons a whale. Based on a portion of the epic Inuit legend “The Blind Boy and the Loon.”

Naji

Terry Hunter (Bardi/Goolarabooloo/Yindjibarndi) & Kimberley West (Noongar)| Australia 2015 | 10 | The Naji story from the Bugarregarre recalls a land that was silent until Naji spirit beings emerge from the oceans to awaken life and break the silence.

Aikane

Daniel Sousa, Dean Hamer & Joe Wilson | Hawai’i 2023 | 14 | A valiant island warrior, wounded in battle against foreign invaders, falls into a mysterious underwater world. Everything changes when the octopus who rescues him transforms into a handsome young man.