The New Brunswick Arts Board is an arm’s length arts funding agency with a legislated mandate to facilitate and promote the creation of art as well as administering funding programs for professional artists in the province.
Mark Ennis
Hello everyone!
My name is Mark Ennis. I have roots in Tobique First Nation, New Brunswick, a wonderful place to escape the trappings of the big cities in which I often find myself working and dwelling. I’m not here to sell you anything, or preach on any given topic. I’m here to share a few aspects of my story. I’m a filmmaker but it took me some time to embrace that description.
In 2012, after a very difficult 2011, I decided to embark full-time on a journey towards becoming a filmmaker. I always psyched myself out, telling myself that I was crazy to consider such a notion, that taking such a risk would be tantamount to financial ruin. Once I realized I was fine with the craziness of it all as well as the risk, I knew I could push forward. Not everyone is predisposed to these tendencies and nor should they be…it can be quite a challenging lifestyle. But I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
So I finished RED CLAY in 2013, a sample TV pilot which inspired ROAD OF INIQUITY, a feature film that I wrote and directed two years later. RED CLAY did well and was accepted at a number of festivals. It helped pave the way in all aspects for the feature, which has been the hardest thing I’ve done career-wise. I’ve learned a lot, swore a lot more than I’d like to admit, but came out on the other side.
And while everyone thinks their “baby” is the prettiest, I really am fortunate for the work I’ve been able to create. I was one of three in the country to be granted a 2014 Telefilm Aboriginal Microbudget Production Grant, which was the first year of the program. I also told a contemporary Aboriginal story with a largely Aboriginal cast filmed on a First Nation. There’s some action, humour, and a good amount of pathos without the sanctimony. You won’t find Native stereotypes in this film and that alone makes me proud to say that I tried something a bit different.
What have I learned? Tell the stories you want. Tell them well. Tell them with heart and grace and truth. Use negativity as a galvanizing force, a weapon against any built-in inclination to stay on the safe path. If you’re an artist, you won’t have much of a choice in the matter. Creating is like eating…you do it to survive.
To donate to the ROAD OF INIQUITY fundraiser:
Media coverage:
http://aptn.ca/news/2015/06/05/aboriginal-crime-thriller-film-wraps-shooting-winnipeg/
https://soundcloud.com/680cjob/road-of-iniquity
