A Mother Apart

A Mother Apart
Directed by	Laurie Townshend
Written by	Alison Duke Laurie Townshend
Produced by	Alison Duke Ngardy Conteh George Justine Pimlott
Starring	Staceyann Chin
Cinematography	Ashley Iris Gill
Edited by	Sonia Godding Togobo
Music by	Tom Third
Production companies	National Film Board of Canada Oya Media Group
Release date	April 26, 2024 (2024-04-26)(Hot Docs)
Running time	89 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English

A Mother Apart is a 2024 Canadian documentary film, directed by Laurie Townshend. ^[1] The film profiles writer and activist Staceyann Chin, both in the context of her status as a daughter who was abandoned at a young age by her mother, and as a mother who has resolved to be more caring and attentive with her daughter than her own mother was with her. ^[2]

According to Chin, she had been approached several times in the past to film her story, including by at least one unnamed filmmaker whom she was thankful that she had declined to work with because he had since been subjected to sexual harassment claims, but noted that she agreed to work with Townshend because Townshend was fully honest about being a first-time filmmaker without access to a lot of money, rather than "blowing smoke up her ass" about Hollywood connections or Netflix deals. ^[2]

The film premiered at the 2024 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, ^[1] where producer Alison Duke received the Don Haig Award. ^[3]

Awards

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Inside Out Film and Video Festival	2024	Best Canadian Film	Laurie Townshend	Won	[4]
		Best First Feature Film		Won
		Audience Award, Documentary Film		Won
Canadian Screen Awards	June 1, 2025	Best Editing in a Documentary	Sonia Godding Togobo	Nominated	[5]
Directors Guild of Canada	2025	DGC Allan King Award for Best Documentary Film	Laurie Townshend	Pending	[6]

References

1. Andrew Parker, "Hot Docs 2024 Review | A Mother Apart". TheGATE.ca , April 26,. 2024.
2. Elisabetta Bianchini, "'A Mother Apart': Staceyann Chin's beautiful exploration of being a mother, when her own mother abandoned her". Yahoo! News , June 6, 2024.
3. Brendan Christie, "Alison Duke to receive Hot Docs’ 2024 Don Haig Award". Playback , April 30, 2024.
4. Valerie Complex, "‘A Mother Apart’ Wins Top Prize At Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival Awards". Deadline Hollywood , June 3, 2024.
5. Pat Mullen, "The Tragically Hip, Okurimono Lead Canadian Screen Award Documentary Nominees". Point of View , March 26, 2025.
6. Connie Thiessen, "DGC unveils film, doc nominees; Discovery Award short list". Broadcast Dialogue, September 22, 2025.

External links

• A Mother Apart at IMDb