Filmmaker and screenwriter Ken Kabatoff (Travelers) took home the big prize at the DGC BC’s Greenlight competition a couple of years ago, and the short film he created with that financial backing – The Doukhobor – is one of the most impactful horror films our host has ever seen. The Doukhobor draws its inspiration from the story of the Freedomite Doukhobors, and the abysmal treatment this group of pacifists, freethinkers, and anti-materialists (whose members included Ken’s own family) received at the hands of the Canadian government. Ken is also the filmmaker of two terrifying horror shorts – LUTO and LUTO 2 – as well as a recent video in which he attempted to remake his first LUTO film shot for shot using AI (a video that is horrifying for reasons not related to it being a remake of a horror film).
In this riveting conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Ken talks about making horror films for audiences who live in horrifying times, the bravery of Freedomite Doukhobors (and how their history impacted his short film), and what his recent experiment taught him about AI.
Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment
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Filmmaker and screenwriter Ken Kabatoff (Travelers) took home the big prize at the DGC BC’s Greenlight competition a couple of years ago, and the short film he created with that financial backing – The Doukhobor – is one of the most impactful horror films our host has ever seen. The Doukhobor draws its inspiration from the story of the Freedomite Doukhobors, and the abysmal treatment this group of pacifists, freethinkers, and anti-materialists (whose members included Ken’s own family) received at the hands of the Canadian government. Ken is also the filmmaker of two terrifying horror shorts – LUTO and LUTO 2 – as well as a recent video in which he attempted to remake his first LUTO film shot for shot using AI (a video that is horrifying for reasons not related to it being a remake of a horror film).
In this riveting conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Ken talks about making horror films for audiences who live in horrifying times, the bravery of Freedomite Doukhobors (and how their history impacted his short film), and what his recent experiment taught him about AI.
Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment
Filmmaker Carl Bessai and actor Vincent Gale are legends of the Vancouver screen scene. These two legends have worked together before – Vincent was nominated for a Leo Award for his work in Carl’s iconic comedy-drama Fathers & Sons – and their latest collaboration, Field Sketches, screens at VIFF Centre on April 12 and 14 as part of National Canadian Film Week.
Carl mined his own life and family history for Field Sketches. Vincent stars as Peter, a middle-aged architect whose business and personal life are imploding. With nothing left to hold him in the city, Peter decides to move to his family farm and spend the winter in Saskatchewan. He soon discovers that pioneer life is much more than he bargained for. And the silence and loneliness play tricks on his imagination.
Field Sketches takes its characters and audiences from a gorgeous mid-century modern home in Vancouver, to Peter’s rustic family farm in Saskatchewan (played by Carl’s family farm), and into the past, to East Germany (played by Berlin). The result is a singular piece of art that is rich with surprises, fleeting and impactful beauty, and insight into what it means to age as an artist, an immigrant, and the descendent of immigrants. In this fascinating conversation, Carl and Vincent reflect on their journey with Field Sketches, and how their own experiences with art align with Peter’s journey.
Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council
The YVR Screen Scene Podcast
Filmmaker and screenwriter Ken Kabatoff (Travelers) took home the big prize at the DGC BC’s Greenlight competition a couple of years ago, and the short film he created with that financial backing – The Doukhobor – is one of the most impactful horror films our host has ever seen. The Doukhobor draws its inspiration from the story of the Freedomite Doukhobors, and the abysmal treatment this group of pacifists, freethinkers, and anti-materialists (whose members included Ken’s own family) received at the hands of the Canadian government. Ken is also the filmmaker of two terrifying horror shorts – LUTO and LUTO 2 – as well as a recent video in which he attempted to remake his first LUTO film shot for shot using AI (a video that is horrifying for reasons not related to it being a remake of a horror film).
In this riveting conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Ken talks about making horror films for audiences who live in horrifying times, the bravery of Freedomite Doukhobors (and how their history impacted his short film), and what his recent experiment taught him about AI.
Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment
