“ I like telling stories because for me , to hold this story in your heart is beautiful , but it can be
painful if you ’ re holding it by yourself .”
“ I like telling stories because for me , to hold this story in your heart is beautiful , but it can be
painful if you ’ re holding it by yourself .”
Both actors have starring roles in her short film “ The Handsome Man ,” which was selected for multiple film festivals including Seattle Film Summit , New York Los Angeles International Film Festival ( NYLA ), Toronto International Women Film Festival , First Nations Film and Video Festival , Dreamspeakers International Indigenous Film Festival , and The Root Experience , among others .
The short film , written and directed by Shipman and her sister Hope Shipman , tells the story of River ( played by Gladstone ), a woman who meets an enigmatic figure known as the Handsome Man ( played by Adams ) on the reservation and invites him home . However , she soon discovers that she ’ s met a trickster spirit who causes a commotion within River ’ s family .
It is a story about hope and healing for Indigenous communities and how they have the answers to the things that ail them within traditional beliefs and practices .
“ Where colonialism has caused us harm , where we may feel like we ’ ve been duped or tricked or changed in some way to be something other than who we ’ re meant to be , within our communities we can find healing and we can become our true selves again ,” she said .
Another one of her recent short films , “ Fire Flower ,” has been making the rounds at film festivals as well , including Love & Hope International Film Festival — Barcelona ( L ’ HIFF ), Rainbow Fest Chicago , Issaquah Film Festival , and Local Sightings Film Festival , among others .
The film — which delves into themes surrounding religious dogma — is about a girl who is selected to marry a cult leader ’ s son , yet the man she is chosen to marry is gay .
54 ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE