AX Film Series: Nate Gaffney
Details
National Truth and Reconciliation Day: Saturday, September 30, 2023
Time: 3:00 PM
Films being Screened: My Name is Wolastoq and Indian Braves
AX is pleased to welcome Nate Gaffney, a Wolastoqiyik First Nations filmmaker and photographer from the East Coast of Canada. Nate began his career as a fashion photographer before falling in love with filmmaking. His desire to be a storyteller stems from a desire to preserve and explore his culture. Nate has completed two films featured on CBC Gem’s Absolutely Canadian Program, Indian Braves and My Name is Wolastoq.
Indian Braves tells the story of Indigenous veterans of the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War and how historians are actively trying to find the lost information of Indigenous veterans across Canada.
My Name Is Wolastoq follows a young Wolastoqew man, Riley Gaffney, who undertakes a journey to explore and claim his Indigenous cultural identity, while also following the efforts of Wolastoq elders who work to create awareness and momentum for efforts to reclaim the original Indigenous name of the Wolastoq (Saint John) River.
Join us on Saturday, September 30, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. with Nate Gaffney for a film screening and artist talk of Indian Braves and My Name is Wolastoq.
About the Artist
Ntoliwis nil Nate Gaffney, a Wolastoqiyik First Nations, is a filmmaker and photographer from the East Coast of Canada.
Nate began his career as a fashion photographer before falling in love with filmmaking. His desire to be a storyteller stems from a desire to preserve and explore his culture.
Nate’s most recent documentary is called My Name is Wolastoq, a film about identity and efforts to reclaim the original Indigenous name of the Wolastoq (Saint John) River. The film was selected to be screened at The Atlantic Film Festival (FIN). Nate has made documentaries for The Government of New Brunswick and Ulnooweg Education, among others. He currently resides in Fredericton, NB, and works for Wabanaki Media, a company Nate co-founded with his business partner.
Indian Braves
Indian Braves, a documentary by New Brunswick Indigenous filmmakers Nate Gaffney and Desmon Simon, tells the story of Indigenous veterans of the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War and how historians are actively trying to find the lost information of Indigenous veterans across Canada.
The program is presented by CBC’s Absolutely Canadian. After both World Wars, the Canadian Armed Forces ignored the official documentation of many Indigenous soldiers. As a result, many Indigenous veterans did not receive the land, headstones, and military ceremonies guaranteed to all Canadian veterans via The Last Post Fund. Combined with a wealth of archival material, Indian Braves presents shows how storytelling, new grave installations, and ceremonies for Indigenous families to finally see their loved ones who served the country receive proper headstones on their unmarked graves.
The fascinating history and the powerful contemporary moments of the film will give the nation insight into how Indigenous soldiers were treated and shed light on how Canada’s military system failed the Indigenous people. A showcase of the impactful work Indigenous researchers are doing is memorializing their ancestors and what it means for their communities. In addition to its August release, the film will be rebroadcast nationally on CBC on Remembrance Day.
My Name is Wolastoq
My Name Is Wolastoq follows a young Wolastoqew man, Riley Gaffney, who undertakes a journey to explore and claim his Indigenous cultural identity, while also following the efforts of Wolastoqi elders who work to create awareness and momentum for efforts to reclaim the original Indigenous name of the Wolastoq (Saint John) River.
The film was shot across New Brunswick in the Fall of 2021 and was the first film I had ever directed.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to the Town of Sussex for supporting this film screening. NB Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture for supporting this exhibition. This project is also funded in part by the Government of Canada.
