The filmmaker Sheona McDonald discusses her NFB short film Into Light that is currently screening at the Hot Docs festival and from 06-16 May 2021 at Vancouver’s DOXA: Documentary Film Festival, with Joseph Planta.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

The filmmaker Sheona McDonald joins me now. Her short film Into Light is currently playing as part of the Hot Docs festival out of Toronto, and will be screened shortly as part of the DOXA: Documentary Film Festival from here in Vancouver. As we’re living in the midst of a pandemic, wherever you are in the country, you’ll be able to see the film now, with DOXA starting this Thursday, May 6^th (through to 16 May 2021). Ms. McDonald also has the distinction of having not only Into Light, but her feature length documentary Dead Man’s Switch: a crypto mystery, playing both festivals. Visit www.doxafestival.ca for information on how to screen both films. As for Into Light, I ask Sheona what it was like filming in the Yukon. Yellowknife looks cold, but it also feels vast as well as small. The concerns of a parent and their child are front and centre in the documentary. They seem isolated as they navigate through the complexities of gender identity. It’s frank and honest, as mother and child express their individual fears and worries, as well as their hopes. The filmmaker though is skillful in preserving privacy as it might not always be easy in such a remote place to encounter guaranteed positivity at each corner or playdate. Sheona McDonald has worked in the film and television industry for two decades, producing, directing, and writing documentary features, limited series and narrative shorts. Her credits include A Short Essay on Men, Candice, Inside Her Sex, When Dreams Take Flight, Capturing a Short Life, and the second season of the Knowledge Network’s Emergency Room: Life and Death at VGH. Into Light is a National Film Board of Canada production produced by Teri Snelgrove and Shirley Vercruysse. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Sheona McDonald; Ms. McDonald, good morning.

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