B次元官网网址淚magine a world without art. Now imagine if you were the one to help bring it back.B次元官网网址�

These two lines, delivered by an animated Haida Spirit in the Haida language, capture the essence of Christopher AuchterB次元官网网址檚 new documentary film Now Is The Time, which was recently selected for viewing at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

In the 16-minute short documentary, Auchter revisits Old Massett on the day of Aug. 22, 1969, when the first totem pole raising in more than a century on Haida Gwaii took place. Both Eagle and Raven clan members worked together to accomplish the task.

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Auchter was introduced to the idea while in discussions with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) about an upcoming project. The NFB informed him that Haida Nation member Barbara Wilson had an idea for the 50th anniversary of the pole raising.

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 this documentary that was done 50 years, and Barbara asked if something could be done in terms of re-editing,B次元官网网址� Auchter explained. B次元官网网址淚t looked like it had a profound effect on our culture and the generation to follow, so those kind of things really grabbed me. But I needed to do a lot of research to tell it in an effective way, so that was a big journey for me.B次元官网网址�

The NFBB次元官网网址檚 Indian Film Crew, as they were known at the time, had filmed the pole raising process, following famed Haida carver Robert Davidson and the Old Massett community as they undertook the task. Auchter felt there were strong aspects to the film, but that it needed a much deeper dive to tell the full story.

B次元官网网址淚 was really taken by the imagery and seeing what Massett was like then, and all the people of the time,B次元官网网址� Auchter said. B次元官网网址淏ut I just didnB次元官网网址檛 feel like I got any information from it. It was all very poetic in the way it was told, but I felt like a lot was missing.B次元官网网址�

Auchter said the story needed a B次元官网网址淗aida perspective,B次元官网网址� and began to embark on the research necessary to properly tell it.

B次元官网网址淚 talked to Barbara Wilson first,B次元官网网址� Auchter said. Wilson was present at the pole raising ceremony that day. She has been a prominent academic in the Haida community, and this summer received her graduate degree in curriculum and instructional foundation from Simon Fraser University.

B次元官网网址淪he gave me the first anecdotes. I talked to Robert [Davidson] and got a lot of really great information from him.B次元官网网址� Both Wilson and Davidson provide their insights throughout the course of Now Is The Time, and Auchter credits both for sparking creative ideas to pursue in the film.

Auchter and his team were able to process the original 35 and 16mm footage into 4K resolution, but ran into a roadblock when they discovered that despite possessing all the archival footage from 50 years ago, the accompanying audio had been lost. This created the task of searching for ways to recreate it.

B次元官网网址淲hat were they saying? What was the feel like? What happened to all the totem poles?B次元官网网址� The answers would lie at the BC Archives in Victoria.

B次元官网网址淚t was a big eureka moment when I actually heard first hand accounts from the audio recordings at the archives,B次元官网网址� Auchter said. He proceeded to weave these accounts into the film to transport viewers back to the day.

B次元官网网址淚 wanted to capture what it was like on Aug. 22, 1969. I wanted to convey planting the audience there, like theyB次元官网网址檙e in and amongst it, so that they could hear the sounds and the first hand accounts,B次元官网网址� Auchter said.

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The relationship turned out to be beneficial for both sides. Margaret Blackman, a well known anthropologist who has worked extensively on Haida Gwaii, and now mayor of Brockport, NY, was a key source of information for Auchter. She assisted him with a number of tapes and interviews during his research, which were then added to the BC Archives to enhance their collection.

AuchterB次元官网网址檚 main goal with the documentary was to show what a momentous occasion this day was for the Haida Nation, serving as a spiritual reawakening after the devastation incurred by the removal of their totem poles after pressure by missionaries.

B次元官网网址淚 hope that they take away that it was a big moment in our history,B次元官网网址� Auchter said. B次元官网网址淭here was no real art being created, and it looked like it was a dying race.B次元官网网址� A 1964 clip included in the film speculates (erroneously, as we now know,) that Davidson may be the last Haida carver.

The effect the pole raising had at the time though was anything but certain. Despite the gravity of the occasion, it had been so long that many wondered if one pole could spark a robust renewal of Haida art.

B次元官网网址淭here are some beautiful statements from Barbara Wilson that day accounting how much of a dire straight it was with our art form in our culture,B次元官网网址� Auchter said. B次元官网网址淪heB次元官网网址檚 very proud about the pole going up, but she didnB次元官网网址檛 know if it was going to be enough.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淲hen you look at it today, Haida art is thriving with the dancing, the singing, the potlatches and the art thatB次元官网网址檚 been done. It was very different Aug. 22, 1969,B次元官网网址� Auchter said.

B次元官网网址淚t became a starting point again, and the wave that came from that day, itB次元官网网址檚 pushed to shore all this new art from the new generation.B次元官网网址�

AuchterB次元官网网址檚 animation roots B次元官网网址� his directorial debut came with the animated short film Mountain of S骋瘫aana in 2017 B次元官网网址� are revisited through a number of scenes, including those with the Haida Spirit. He says this was important to engage a younger audience.

B次元官网网址淚 didnB次元官网网址檛 want this story to go in one ear and out the other. So I thought animation is a nice bridge into that, it helps spark their imagination,B次元官网网址� Auchter explained. B次元官网网址淚t would help show them the magic of our work, and help inspire in that way.B次元官网网址�

Now that the film is headed to TIFF, Auchter is excited for the possibility for this powerful Haida story to reach a global audience.

B次元官网网址淚 hope that I created a film that even if youB次元官网网址檙e not from the culture, even if youB次元官网网址檙e from the other side of the world and you donB次元官网网址檛 know what Haida art is or what Haida is, that the story is still interesting,B次元官网网址� Auchter said.

TIFF starts on Sep. 5, with a full schedule of screenings being released on Aug. 20.

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