(September 9, 2016 – Toronto, ON) One of the Canadian films on this year’s TIFF schedule began life titled 70 Something but somewhere in the post-production process this new feature from director Bruce McDonald and screenwriter Daniel MacIvor became Weirdos.
McDonald is known for his “road movies” and there are elements of this in Weirdos. Set in the summer of 1976, 15 year-old Kit (Dylan Authors), bored and restless, is dreaming of a more glamorous life in the big city, away from the small town where he lives with his Dad (Allan Hawco) and grandmother (Cathy Jones). Enlisting the help of his girlfriend Alice (Julia Sarah Stone), they hitchhike towards a new home with his glamorous, artistic mother Laura (Molly Parker). Like all good road movies there is a clear destination and that is the case in Weirdos. As Kit and Alice reach their final destination their relationship is tested as Kit approaches a realization that will change his life forever.
This is a bit of a reunion for McDonald and MacIvor. McDonald’s credits include Hard Core Logo, Highway 61, Pontypool, Dance Me Outside and The Tracey Fragments, has a long history with TIFF dating back to 1989 when Roadkill, his TIFF debut, won best Canadian feature.
MacIvor is a Governor General’s Award-winning writer, actor and director for stage and screen. He wrote and directed Past Perfect and Wilby Wonderful, both of which had their premiere at TIFF, and also wrote scripts for films Marion Bridge and The Whole New Thing.
The duo were director and screenwriter respectively on Trigger (2010) and MacIvor also acted in the TV series Twitch City, directed by McDonald.
Shot in Cape Breton, Windsor, and in and around Halifax in September and early October 2015, the black and white film is a very low-budget production. The shoot schedule ran a tight 21 days. Distributed by Films We Like, tonight’s screening of Weirdos is a World Premiere at TIFF as a Special Presentation. No theatrical release date has been announced.
Click here for a link to the Toronto International Film Festival and other September film festivals.
