Diane Obomsawin

Last updated
Diane Obomsawin
Diane Obomsawin (cropped).jpg
Obomsawin in 2018
BornDiane Obomsawin
1959 (age 64–65)
Quebec, Canada
OccupationAuthor, illustrator, filmmaker
GenreLesbian love, graphic novel, animated film

Diane Obomsawin (born 1959) is an Abenaki Quebec-based author, illustrator and animated filmmaker, often known by her pseudonym, Obom. Some of her notable works have explored the issue of lesbian first love, including a 2014 graphic novel, published in French as J'aime les filles by L'Oie de Cravan and in English as On Loving Women by Drawn & Quarterly. [1] [2] [3] J'aime les filles was adapted as a 2016 National Film Board of Canada animated short, I Like Girls (J'aime les filles), which received the Nelvana Grand Prize for Independent Short at the 40th Ottawa International Animation Festival. [4] [5] [6] [7]

Contents

Comic books

Obomsawin's works has been described as complex contemporary comics that often have emotionally charged subjects depicted in clear and accessible manner. [8] An example is Kaspar (2007), which is based on the story of Kaspar Hauser, a German boy raised without human contact. This story, which had previously inspired a film by Werner Herzog, was noted for its different portrait of Hauser as a kind of forsaken everyman, a metaphor for the romantic artist and outsider with the protagonist's depiction that focused on Hauser's naive befuddlement with the world. [9]

On Loving Women, which was translated into English by Helge Dascher, tackles biography (and autobiography) through a series of vignettes that explore memories — crucial moments in the subject's discovery of their sexual identity. [10] A review noted that this material features a “stripped-down approach” that “allows for a focus on the events.” [11]

The author also published the following comic books:

Films

One of Obomsawin's notable films is I Like Girls (2012). This film, which was produced by the National Film Board of Canada and based on J’aime les filles and On Loving Women, follows four women who "reveal the nitty-gritty about their first loves, sharing funny and intimate tales of one-sided infatuation, mutual attraction, erotic moments, and fumbling attempts at sexual expression.” [12] The film was screened at the London Short Film Festival, the L.A. Film Festival, [13]  the New Hampshire Film Festival,  the St. John's International Women's Film Festival, the Yorkton Film Festival, the Sundance Film Festival, and other venues. The National Film Board of Canada, in a collaborative initiative with Canadian cartoonists, also adapted another of Obomsawin's graphic novels, Kaspar, which was released as an animated short. [14]

Exhibition

Obomsawin's first solo exhibition, The Worlds, took place in 2014 at the Centre de Saint-Hyacinthe in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. The exhibition was described as taking viewers “on a journey through stories that form a narrative path into Obomsawin’s imagination.” [15] Obomsawin also illustrated the iconic Molson Brewery building smoking a cigarette in a 2017 exhibition involving magazine Le Montréaler. [16]

Honors and awards

The film “I Like Girls” won the prize for Best Short Film at the Ottawa International Animation Festival in 2016 and was nominated for Best Animated Short Film at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards. [17] It was also nominated for the Prix Iris for Best Animated Short film in 2017. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Film Board of Canada</span> Public film and digital media producer and distributor

The National Film Board of Canada is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and alternative dramas. In total, the NFB has produced over 13,000 productions since its inception, which have won over 5,000 awards. The NFB reports to the Parliament of Canada through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. It has bilingual production programs and branches in English and French, including multicultural-related documentaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alanis Obomsawin</span> American-Canadian Abenaki artist and filmmaker

Alanis Obomsawin, is an Abenaki American-Canadian filmmaker, singer, artist, and activist primarily known for her documentary films. Born in New Hampshire, United States and raised primarily in Quebec, Canada, she has written and directed many National Film Board of Canada documentaries on First Nations issues. Obomsawin is a member of Film Fatales independent women filmmakers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Lipsett</span> Canadian collage filmmaker

Arthur Lipsett was a Canadian filmmaker with the National Film Board of Canada. His short, avant-garde collage films, which he described as "neither underground nor conventional”, contain elements of narrative, documentary, experimental collage, and visual essay. His first film, Very Nice, Very Nice, was nominated for an Academy Award.

Caroline Leaf is a Canadian-American filmmaker, animator, director, tutor and artist. She has produced numerous short animated films and her work has been recognized worldwide. She is best known as one of the pioneering filmmakers at the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). She worked at the NFB from 1972 to 1991. During that time, she created the sand animation and paint-on-glass animation techniques. She also tried new hands-on techniques with 70mm IMAX film. Her work is often representational of Canadian culture and is narrative-based. Leaf now lives in London, England, and is a tutor at The National Film and Television School. She maintains a studio in London working in oils and on paper and does landscape drawing with an iPad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Larkin</span> Canadian animator, artist, and sculptor

Ryan Larkin was a Canadian animator, artist, and sculptor who rose to fame with the psychedelic Oscar-nominated short Walking (1968) and the acclaimed Street Musique (1972). He was the subject of the Oscar-winning film Ryan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre</span> Canadian animated film directors

Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre, born in Murdochville in 1978, is a Quebec director and producer of animated films. She is an associate professor at Université Laval, a theorist, and an author on women's animation cinema.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ottawa International Animation Festival</span> Annual animated film and media festival in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

The Ottawa International Animation Festival is an annual animated film and media festival that takes place in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The OIAF was founded in 1975, with the first festival held from August 10 to 15 in 1976. Initially organized by the Canadian Film Institute on a biennial basis and with the co-operation of the International Animated Film Association, the Festival organization now remains in the hands of the CFI. It moved from a biennial to an annual festival in 2005. Today the festival is recognized as the largest and oldest animation festival in North America, and regularly attracts upwards of 25,000 attendees when it is held each September.

The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June 2020. In addition to the annual festival, Hot Docs owns and operates the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, administers multiple production funds, and runs year-round screening programs including Doc Soup and Hot Docs Showcase.

<i>The Danish Poet</i> 2006 Norwegian film

The Danish Poet is a 2006 animated short film written, directed, and animated by Torill Kove and narrated by Liv Ullmann. A co-production of the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and Mikrofilm AS of Norway, it has won both the Academy Award and Genie Award for best animated short film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geneviève Castrée</span> Canadian musician and cartoonist

Geneviève Elverum, also known as Geneviève Castrée, was a Canadian cartoonist, illustrator, and musician from Quebec. An early admirer of comics, she began creating them at a young age. L'Oie de Cravan published her first book, Lait Frappé, in 2000. By 2004 she had released three more books—Die Fabrik, Roulatheque Roulatheque Nicolore and Pamplemoussi. The latter is considered her artistic breakthrough.

Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance is a 1993 feature-length documentary film by Alanis Obomsawin, highlighting the events of the 1990 Oka Crisis. Obomsawin documents the events of The Siege of Kanehsatake over 78 days, capturing a rare perspective of an important turning point in Canadian history. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada, the film won 18 Canadian and international awards, including the Distinguished Documentary Achievement Award from the International Documentary Association and the CITY TV Award for Best Canadian Feature Film from the Toronto Festival of Festivals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Claire Poirier</span> Canadian film producer

Anne Claire Poirier O.C. is a Canadian film producer, director and screenwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodore Ushev</span> Bulgarian animator and filmmaker

Theodore Asenov Ushev is a Bulgarian animator, film director and screenwriter based in Montreal. He is best known for his work at the National Film Board of Canada, including the 2016 animated short Blind Vaysha, which was nominated for an Academy Award. He is a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France.

Tracey Penelope Tekahentakwa Deer is a First Nations (Mohawk) screenwriter, film director and newspaper publisher based in Kahnawake, Quebec. She has written and directed several award-winning documentaries for Rezolution Pictures, an Aboriginal-run film and television production company. In 2008, she was the first Mohawk woman to win a Gemini Award, for her documentary Club Native. Her TV series Mohawk Girls had five seasons from 2014 to 2017. She also founded her own production company for independent short work.

<i>18 Years Old and Rising</i> 2011 French comedy film

18 Years Old and Rising is a 2011 French comedy film directed by Frédéric Louf.

Robert Verrall is a Canadian animator, director and film producer who worked for the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) from 1945 to 1987. Over the course of his career, his films garnered a BAFTA Award, prizes at the Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival, and six Academy Award nominations.

<i>Blind Vaysha</i> 2016 Canadian film

Blind Vaysha is a 2016 animated short by Theodore Ushev, produced by Marc Bertrand for the National Film Board of Canada, with the participation of ARTE France. Based on a story by Georgi Gospodinov, the film tells the story of a girl who sees the past out of her left eye and the future from her right—and so is unable to live in the present. Montreal actress Caroline Dhavernas performed the narration for the film, in both its French and English language versions. The film incorporates music from Bulgarian musician and composer Kottarashky and is his and Ushev's fourth collaboration.

Amanda Strong is a stop-motion animation filmmaker who resides inVancouver, Canada. She has exhibited work and her films have been screened at festivals worldwide, including Cannes Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, and the Ottawa International Animation Festival. Strong is Red River Metis and a member of the Manitoba Metis Federation. Michif (Métis).

<i>I Like Girls</i> 2016 Canadian film

I Like Girls is a Canadian short animated film, directed by Diane Obomsawin and released in 2016. Based on Obomsawin's 2014 graphic novel On Loving Women, the film features anthropomorphic animal characters acting out stories of lesbian same-sex attraction.

Here and There is a Canadian animated short film, directed by Diane Obomsawin and released in 2006. The film is a portrait of Obomsawin's own childhood experiences growing up in both Canada and France.

References

  1. ↑ Vaillancourt, Julie (22 May 2014). "J'aime les filles: les premières amoureuses". Fugues (in French). Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  2. ↑ Lyons, Michael (9 May 2014). "On women, and loving them: A Q&A with Diane Obomsawin". National Post . Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  3. ↑ Tigchelaar, Alex (5 March 2014). "J'aime Diane Obomsawin". Daily Xtra . Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  4. ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (2016-09-25). "'J'Aime les Filles,' 'Louise' Take Ottawa Grand Prizes". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  5. ↑ Canada, National Film Board of. "NFB Films directed by Diane Obomsawin". National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  6. ↑ "Diane Obomsawin". Réalisatrices Équitables. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  7. ↑ "Diane Obomsawin". Kwahiatonhk! (in French). Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  8. ↑ "On Loving Women". Quill and Quire. 2014-06-26. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  9. ↑ "Kaspar". Quill and Quire. 2009-02-17. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  10. ↑ Afterword (2014-05-09). "On women, and loving them: A Q&A with Diane Obomsawin | National Post". National Post. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  11. ↑ Brown, Hillary (February 13, 2014). "On Loving Women by Diane Obomsawin". Paste. Retrieved 2019-05-07.
  12. ↑ "I LIKE GIRLS | London Short Film Festival". shortfilms.org.uk. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  13. ↑ "I Like Girls". LA Film Festival NewFilmmakers Los Angeles. 12 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  14. ↑ Leblanc, Philippe (2018-02-15). "Syndicated Comics". The Beat. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  15. ↑ Saint-Hyacinthe, Expression : : Centre d'exposition de (2019-04-15). "Diane Obomsawin". Expression : : Centre d'exposition de Saint-Hyacinthe (in French). Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  16. ↑ Enos, Elysha (November 26, 2017). "Le Montréaler imagines a local take on The New Yorker's covers". CBC. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  17. ↑ "'I Like Girls,' 'Louise en Hiver' Wins Top Prizes at Ottawa". Cartoon Brew. 2016-09-25. Retrieved 2019-05-07.
  18. ↑ "Diane Obomsawin". Réalisatrices Équitables (in French). Retrieved 2019-05-07.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.