Amber Midthunder, Cara Jade Myers & Alyssa Wapanatâhk to Lead TOMBS

Indigenous historical drama Tombs has begun shooting in Vancouver and the Okanagan region of BC.

Award-winning Indigenous director Marie Clements is directing the feature. The film features the talents of Amber Midthunder (Novocaine), Cara Jade Myers (Killers of the Flower Moon), Alyssa Wapanatâhk (Peter Pan & Wendy), Isabel DeRoy-Olson (It: Welcome to Derry), Eric Johnson (Fifty Shades Freed), Darren Mann (1923), Gary Farmer (Reservation Dogs), and Gil Bellows (Ally McBeal).

“Tombs brings together some of the finest Indigenous talent and non-Canadian actors who have brought their commitment and grace to telling this story and speaking the truth of our shared history,” says Clements. “Tombs began as a play I wrote some time ago and I’m honored to bring together this extraordinary cast and amazingly talented production team, to adapt it for the big screen.”

The Indigenous Experience

TOMBS weaves together the triangular story points of three Oklahoma sisters and their mother who travel to Los Angeles. As a part of a relocation program in the 1950s that gave Native Americans the opportunity to become “civilized” by getting jobs in urban centres. When they arrive, they begin to understand that like many east-to-west dreams, the reality is not the new beginning they sought. Abandoned by government policy and in acute poverty, they begin to search for their own. They find home in “the tombs” – the cemented riverways of LA. It is here a young mother is killed, and the lives of her children separate down three very different paths that emerge in 1970s Los Angeles – weaving together one telling, one flood.

“We are proud to be working with Marie Clements and the Screen Siren producers on this mythic story that weaves the lives of three Indigenous sisters apart and then back together again in an emotionally powerful way,” says Myriad President, Kirk D’Amico. “It is rare to see a script that has such a profound sense of the human spirit in it like Tombs does. We are excited to see how the film comes together with such a terrific cast and extraordinary crew.”

Marie Clements

A renowned writer, director and producer whose decorated career has spanned film, TV, radio and live performance, Marie Clements is a Métis/Dene filmmaker and the founder of Marie Clements Media, a production company specializing in the development, creation and production of innovative works of media that ignite an Indigenous and intercultural reality. Her multi-award-winning films have screened internationally at Cannes, TIFF, MoMA, VIFF and more. Clements’ most recent credits include the NFB documentary feature Lay Down Your Heart. As well as the multi-award winning feature film and five-part, hour-long drama Bones of Crows.

“We are very pleased to be working with extraordinary filmmaker Marie Clements once again, to bring her unique and singular vision to the screen,” say producers Christine Haebler & Trish Dolman.

Tombs is written, directed and produced by Marie Clements (Bones of Crows, Red Snow). Produced by Trish Dolman (Bones of Crows), Christine Haebler (Monkey Man) and Steven Thibault (Bombshell). Executive producers are Photon Films & Media’s Mark Slone (Youngblood, Goon) and Myriad Pictures’ Kirk D’Amico (Kinsey).

The director of photography is Adam Madrzyk (A Breed Apart), Maxime Lahaie (Bones of Crows) is the editor. Wayne Lavallee (Sweet Summer Pow Wow) composes and production designed by Mark Freeborn (Breaking Bad).

Tombs is possible with the support of:

• Telefilm Canada,
• the Indigenous Screen Office,
• Creative BC,
• the Harold Greenberg Fund,
• Myriad Pictures,
• Photon Films,
• Film Incentive BC and
• the Government of Canada.

Myriad Pictures will handle worldwide sales excluding Canada. It will launch sales at AFM and Photon Films is the distributor in Canada.