Screening of the film Soul of the Fraser: An exploration of issues at play in Canada’s Fraser Estuary Key Biodiversity Area

About the Event

The Fraser River forms the largest estuary along the Pacific Coast of North America, is home to over 400 species of vertebrates, thousands of plants and a myriad of small invertebrates.

In this documentary screening, follow an ensemble cast ranging from a former government fisheries biologist turned activist to a boat captain with an Indigenous family history long forgotten, as they search for a way to save what's left of the Fraser Estuary.

Date: Sunday December 11, 2022 from 1:00-3:00 pm

Time: Doors open at 1:00 pm, screening starts at 1:30pm

Location: Agora du Coeur des sciences (CO-R500), pavillon Cœur des sciences. 175, avenue du Président-Kennedy Montréal (Québec) H2X3P2

Presented in partnership with: Birds Canada, Reel BCIT – Rivers Institute, NERV Productions, and Reel Green™.

About the Film

The Soul of The Fraser (2022) (80 min)

In beautiful British Columbia, Canada, follow an ensemble cast ranging from a former government fish habitat biologist turned activist to a boat captain with an Indigenous family history long forgotten, as they search for a way to save what's left of the Fraser River Estuary. This documentary feature uses the estuary as a case study, proving a lack of environmental stewardship as a result of Indigenous suppression and bureaucratic mis-management.

Watch the Trailer (below or at this link): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGiWCnMH_tc

About the Filmmakers

The filmmakers at NERV Productions Inc. began producing feature length documentaries immediately after graduating from Capilano University. Over the past 5 years they have produced movies, shorts, PSAs, music videos, and commercials for a variety of clients. Particularly focusing on environmental stewardship, the filmmakers Brendan, Chris and Jakob believe in educating the public of the injustices on the local environment.

Read more about NERV Productions: https://www.nervproductions.com

About the Partners

Reel Green™:

Sustainable production efforts in British Columbia were formalized 10 years ago through the Reel Green initiative, a resource centre with a collection of best practices to help productions reduce their environmental impacts and improve their overall environmental footprint.

The Reel Green™ initiative is a mainstay at Creative BC and we are looking ahead to the next decade and how we can empower and inspire productions to innovate and implement sustainable production practices, and industry stakeholders to collectively support this effort. We are prioritizing education, engagement, communications, and resources as we develop a platform for the reduction of environmental impacts and stakeholder engagement at the local level to set an example for other jurisdictions globally.

Learn more about Reel Green™: https://www.reelgreen.ca

Birds Canada:

Birds Canada is a non-profit, charitable organization built on the enthusiastic contributions of thousands of caring members and volunteer Citizen Scientists. Together we are Canada’s voice for birds! Our mission is to drive action to increase the understanding, appreciation, and conservation of birds in Canada. Birds Canada is partnering in the promotion of the Soul of the Fraser as it highlights some of the key threats facing the Fraser River Estuary Key Biodiversity Area.

Learn more about Birds Canada at: https://www.birdscanada.org/

BCIT Rivers Institute

The BCIT Rivers Institute was created to provide an important place for non-profit agencies, other post-secondary institutions, government bodies and international partners to “plug-in” to BCIT’s expertise, resulting in a united community with the shared mission of restoring endangered rivers, streams, lakes, estuaries and wetland ecosystems in British Columbia and beyond. This outreach capability will expand the scope of public awareness activities and provide more leverage to attract funding and create positive change in protecting and restoring our important aquatic environments.

Information about the Rivers Institute Team: https://www.bcit.ca/rivers-institute/about/our-team/