A hockey film with ties to Northern BC has received national recognition.
Hello Destroyer was mostly filmed in Prince George, including the CN Centre, debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), and was named one of the top ten Canadian films of 2016.
Director and writer Kevan Funk says he’s pleased with how popular his vision has become.
“All this attention that we’ve been getting is hopefully raising the profile of the film, and what I mean by that is just the reality of how difficult it is making independent Canadian films and getting a Canadian audience to actually see them. You have to deal with a big shadow cast by Hollywood.”
Fantastic! See it: https://t.co/odQfCVqQS9 | @kevanfunk's #HelloDestroyer leads Vancouver Film Critics Circle awards https://t.co/vwcRuQ9QOX pic.twitter.com/5ZhorkYNec
— Canadian Academy (@TheCdnAcademy) January 11, 2017
He adds it was no question when deciding on location.
“We wanted a place that was big enough to feasibly host a junior hockey team of significant size. Prince George kind of being the place that made the most sense.”
The movie tells the story of a junior hockey player who becomes the known enforcer on his team after seriously injuring a rival opponent; he eventually is outcasted by his teammates and faces the mental consequences.
Bravo Team #HelloDestroyer on being selected for the 16th Canada's Top Ten from @TIFF_NET! #SeeTheNorth https://t.co/GuqfJzwbxa #EyeOnCanada pic.twitter.com/v214uJccIe
— Northern Banner (@NorthernBanner) December 7, 2016
Funk hopes Hello Destroyer will bring to life the issue of violence among youth not just in hockey, but in everyday life.
“I think we often look to blame an individual as opposed to looking at broader, cultural issues that may have led to those things, but I think a lot of situations require us to look a bit deeper and that becomes more of a difficult thing to do.”
The movie was named the Best Canadian Film of 2016 by the Vancouver Film Critics Circle and Funk was named Best Director as well.
Hello Destroyer is expected to be theatrically released across Canada in March.
WARNING: Preview scene contains coarse language!