940 Caledonia, a gripping documentary about the challenges of unsheltered homelessness told through the eyes of a middle-aged woman who found herself on the streets of Victoria, will make its world premiere at the Victoria Film Festival in February.
Documentary filmmaker Krista Loughton wrote, directed, and produced the film that follows the story of Tina Dawson, homeless for the first time, who steps up determined to lead when an encampment floods in a city park. The government moves the unhoused campers to a parking lot, and despite a gale-force windstorm and an arctic vortex, the group survives the winter, and the experience changes Tina’s life.
Loughton shot 940 Caledonia during the pandemic when city parks became overrun with encampments and housing-vulnerable community members found themselves on the streets. The film shows how setting up a sanctioned space for the unhoused is a step up and an alternative to camping in parks.
“Over the past few decades, sheltering has been downloaded from senior levels government to municipal parks departments, creating an untenable situation with encampments popping up across the country. It’s time for a new way forward, and 940 Caledonia shows one potential way to lessen the harms for the unhoused and neighbourhoods affected by unsheltered homelessness.”
-Krista Loughton
Shot in real-time, 940 Caledonia showcases Loughton’s intimate and impactful style of filmmaking, making audiences feel like they are part of the experience.
940 Caledonia!
Date: Thursday, February 8, 2024
Time: 6 pm
Location: Blue Bridge Theatre, 2657 Quadra Street, Victoria, BC
Tickets: https://www.victoriafilmfestival.com/product/940-caledonia/