Arts
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From combines to CDs
From early on in her life, Janelle Nadeau knew exactly what she wanted to do.
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Ducking out for some docs
The Best of Hot Docs, happening Oct. 3 to 5 at Cinematheque, features the Winnipeg premiere of five new documentaries chosen from the line-up of the largest annual documentary festival in North America.
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The Equalizer
The Equalizer is based on a TV show from the ‘80s starring Edward Woodward. I’ve never seen that show, so I can’t vouch for how faithful the new film adaptation is to the series. All I can attest to is how well 2014’s The Equalizer works as a film. That is to say, not very well at all.
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The Boxtrolls
For animation junkies like myself, it’s encouraging any time a stop motion film makes its way to multiplexes. When it’s the new film from Laika, the animation studio behind the excellent Coraline and Paranorman, it’s grounds for genuine excitement. While the company’s newest feature, The Boxtrolls, isn’t anywhere near the fun labyrinth that Coraline was, it’s still a fun and gorgeous stop frame animated movie that never feels rote or derivative.
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Addictive art
Even though Diana Thorneycroft and Michael Boss are a wife-husband duo, Hogs and Horses - their fifth collaborative exhibit - might not initially seem like a totally natural fit: sketches and paintings of motorbikes serve as Boss’ contribution, while Thorneycroft is responsible for the creation of an assortment of disfigured and reconstructed model horses.
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A walk in the woods
Nature’s long been a great source of inspiration for visuals arts, and not only in the annoyingly overt terms of Thomas Kinkade. Take Winnipeg artist Ingrid McMillan as a most excellent example: Dream Home, her most recent exhibit, was birthed from many years of walking in St. Vital Park. But the 15 original works certainly aren’t sketches of squirrels.
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Breakout West takes over Winnipeg
Break out your earplugs one more time, Winnipeg. Things are about to get loud as our city wraps up the Year of Music with BreakOut West, the third and final music awards event of 2014.
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Pop pop perfection
When Winnipeg pop duo We Won the War formed last year, Tyler Del Pino, 27, and Ryan Cheung, 28, had already been making music together for years - they just had to give it a name. The partnership between the Fort Richmond Collegiate grads, both actively working behind the scenes in music production, writing and publishing, quickly turned into something serious, resulting in them placing other projects on the back burner.
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The grand optimist
Winnipeg’s Nic Dyson first picked up a guitar when he was eight. While in high school he was inspired by his friends to start singing, and 2012 saw the release of the Dreaming Under a Broken Tree EP. This past August, the 20-year-old Dyson self-released his debut full-length record, This One’s For You.
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Rich Aucoin
You can’t just listen to Rich Aucoin, you have to experience Rich Aucoin.
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North Atlantic Explorers
This whimsical concept album from members of Destroyer and Belle & Sebastian is super atmospheric, lush and beautiful.
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The Rural Alberta Advantage
Bookended by the infectious team of “Our Love…” and “…On the Run,” this third LP finds Nils, Amy and Paul in superfine form.
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Caribou
Man, this thing is a trip. I haven’t ever properly digested a Caribou record before, just the odd free download here and there, so hi.
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Homestar dancer
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet is opening its 2014/15 season by focusing on a subject that might seem an unlikely choice to aficionados of the dance form. Going Home Star - Truth and Reconciliation, the new work developed by artistic director André Lewis, examines the untold aftershocks of the Indian residential school system.
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Pelts, powwows & projection art
Rest assured: Artsfest is a far more exciting event than what the rather underwhelming name might suggest. The gargantuan festival, now entering its second year, features everything from Ancient Roman artifacts to oral history workshops, powwow presentations and a life-sized fully functioning catapult. Check out these artists and more at the University of Winnipeg’s Artsfest.
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The Guest
The Guest is the new feature from director Adam Wingard, whose horror deconstruction You’re Next was a critical hit last year. At first glance, The Guest seems like a very dumb movie. It isn’t. It’s incredibly smart. One of the smartest things it does is tricking you into thinking it’s dumb.
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A Walk Among the Tombstones
A Walk Among the Tombstones is the new film from writer-director Scott Frank. Despite a 25-year career as a screenwriter for such blockbusters as Get Shorty and Minority Report, he only has one previous directing credit, the excellent 2007 crime thriller The Lookout (lensed in Winnipeg).
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In the clouds
Local experimental musicians and filmmakers are about to take over Manitoba Hydro Place for Suspended Animation, an event that will feature the screening of local experimental films alongside a live soundtrack.
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Viva Mexico!
Outside the West End Cultural Centre, a cool breeze announces the impending arrival of fall.
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Whose House? Jeremy’s House
Although hardcore punk quintet Comeback Kid was formed in Winnipeg in 2000, only guitarist Jeremy Hiebert and bassist Ron Friesen continue to call the city home. The band, which released its fifth full-length record Die Knowing in March, only features two original band members in Hiebert, and vocalist Andrew Neufeld.