Hillary Butler

1 month ago | liveforfilm.com | Hillary Butler

Posted by Hillary Butler on May 19, 2025 in All, comedy, Film, Headline, Reviews | 0 comments Clearly not up on my French desserts, I had never heard of a clafoutis before.A crustless tart, often made with cherries, takes centre stage in The Trouble With Jessica.I can only believe that writers James Handle and Matt Winn (who also directs) either love the sweet treat, or found giggles with the word clafoutis during the script writing process.If I had a pound for every time it’s mentioned, I...

1 month ago | intheseats.ca | Hillary Butler

The Tree of Authenticity is a visual essay from photographer, artist, and director Sammy Baloji.  His works largely examine the Congolese people and the exploitation of them and their environment.  This film is no different, as it looks at the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s colonial past under Belgium. The documentary is separated into narratives. Three narratives, but is introduced via an article from The Guardian.

2 months ago | intheseats.ca | Hillary Butler

Memes are all over social media, but what about the real people who are actually in them? In #skoden, director Damien Eagle Bear examines a photo of a Blackfoot man, Pernell Bad Arm, that went viral. Initially it was commented on by many non-Indigenous people in a disrespectful way. However, the Indigenous community re-claimed it. They did so with a sense of pride, using it with the hashtag #skoden (“Let’s go then”).

2 months ago | intheseats.ca | Hillary Butler

Director Ewan Waddell met his girlfriend Liuba in 2022 after she fled war torn Ukraine for Berlin.  As her social media feed flooded with images of her homeland under siege, a strange thing happened.  Instagram created a highlight reel for her. Normal reels would be a typical collage of pet photos or happy vacation memories. But this reel was graphic photos of war set to the upbeat tune Wabi Sabi (Good Good Time) by the Hightops.

2 months ago | liveforfilm.com | Hillary Butler

Posted by Hillary Butler on Apr 6, 2025 in All, drama, Film, Headline, Reviews, short film | 0 commentsIt’s amazing what you can pack into six short minutes.  A family history, grief, generational paradigms, religion, and trans identity are all themes writer and director Deborah Puette deftly examines in her short film Such A Pretty Girl. We meet Meg (Grey’s Anatomy‘s Sarah Drew) who has returned to her childhood home in order to help her aging father, Frank (Harry Groener).