By Brian Schultz
Two local production companies have joined forces to create Indigenous film and television projects.
Kistikan Pictures was recently created by Phyllis Laing, Liz Jarvis and Jean du Toit of Buffalo Gal Pictures, and Tina Keeper of Keeper Productions.
Keeper is a former Liberal MP for Churchill who has been involved in hundreds of productions including community theatre, industrial video, and film and television.
“We’re thrilled to be taking on this exciting new initiative with Tina Keeper,” said Phyllis Laing, president of Buffalo Gal Pictures. “We’ve known Tina for a long time, and realized that we can do a lot together by sharing our knowledge and vision.”
“Buffalo Gal Pictures is an incredibly dynamic company with a true passion for filmmaking,” said Tina Keeper. “We share a lot of the same sensibilities, ideals and vision when it comes to production, so it makes sense to put our efforts together.”
Kistikan comes from the Cree word meaning ‘garden,’ and merges the strengths of both companies to establish a joint production company that will create film and television projects by and about Indigenous filmmakers/stories.
The company already has plenty of work ahead of itself, including the third season of “Cashing In,” which is currently in post-production, and scheduled to air on APTN in the spring of 2011.
