Alain Mickelson

A story about the power of belief, The Devout follows Darryl Eckford during trying times: his 4-year-old daughter, Abigail, has terminal cancer with weeks to live. Abigail is obsessed with space, and she talks with extraordinary detail of the Apollo 1 space mission. After she admits her former name, Darryl researches the space mission and finds inexplicable coincidences. A devout Christian, Darryl faces a crisis of faith when he begins to believe that his daughter was an astronaut in a former life. This newfound belief instills hope in Darryl, because, if his daughter has lived before, she will live again. He must face his wife, community and his own faith as he seeks out truth, because, if his daughter has lived before, she will live again. Its intriguing story and meticulous direction from Connor Gaston makes The Devout one of the most impressive Canadian independent films of the year.

Brilliant, dedicated, and driven, archaeologist Emma Fielding is trying to unearth evidence of a 17th century coastal Maine settlement that predates Jamestown, one of the most significant archaeological finds in years. But the dead body that accompanies it has embroiled Emma and her students in a different kind of exploration.

When Emily, a struggling baker in a small town, receives a handmade Christmas Calendar from a secret admirer, the local residents become obsessed with finding out the identity of the sender.

Young at heart graduate student Becca strikes up an unlikely friendship with Emily, a quiet girl who recently lost her mother. With every passing play date chaperoned by Emily's father, Becca helps Emily come out of her shell and cope with her loss, and Emily teaches Becca to take on adult responsibilities. When a romance develops between Becca and Nate, though, the two must learn to balance their new relationship with Nate's responsibility to Emily, and with Becca's responsibility to finish her education.

Cree matriarch Aline Spears survives a childhood in Canada’s residential school system to continue her family’s generational fight in the face of systemic starvation, racism, and sexual abuse. She uses her uncanny ability to understand and translate codes into working for a special division of the Canadian Air Force as a Cree code talker in World War II. The story unfolds over 100 years with a cumulative force that propels us into the future.

Will, a street-smart teenager, moves from the tough streets of West Philly to posh Bel-Air to live with his Uncle Philip, Aunt Vivian, his cousins — spoiled Hilary, preppy Carlton and young Ashley — and their sophisticated British butler, Geoffrey. Though Will’s antics and upbringing contrast greatly with the upper-class lifestyle of his extended relatives, he soon finds himself right at home as a loved part of the family.

Will, a street-smart teenager, moves from the tough streets of West Philly to posh Bel-Air to live with his Uncle Philip, Aunt Vivian, his cousins — spoiled Hilary, preppy Carlton and young Ashley — and their sophisticated British butler, Geoffrey. Though Will’s antics and upbringing contrast greatly with the upper-class lifestyle of his extended relatives, he soon finds himself right at home as a loved part of the family.

Will, a street-smart teenager, moves from the tough streets of West Philly to posh Bel-Air to live with his Uncle Philip, Aunt Vivian, his cousins — spoiled Hilary, preppy Carlton and young Ashley — and their sophisticated British butler, Geoffrey. Though Will’s antics and upbringing contrast greatly with the upper-class lifestyle of his extended relatives, he soon finds himself right at home as a loved part of the family.