Jessica Johnson

A lyrical study of the nearly abandoned company town west of Bella Coola that all but withered and died once its existence no longer made financial sense. Ryan Ermacora and Jessica Johnson invite us to marvel at the stark contrast between the vibrant coastal forests and the manmade structures that have fallen into ruin. An almost spectral presence is on hand to impart tales of a rebellious past and we’re left to consider the grim fates that sometimes befall grand schemes.

The film depicts the lives of the two sole residents of an abandoned company town while unfolding a complex labour history and revealing the vestiges of environmental degradation. Combining large format cinematography and an inquiry into the archival record, it interlaces past and present.

An examination of the contrast between the industrial environments of the Okanagan Valley’s fruit orchards and the upscale vacation spots that surround them. The film documents the daily routines of migrant farm laborers alongside the leisure activities of tourists and retirees inhabiting the same landscape.

Life in Cortes Island, B.C. as local oyster farmers ply their trade amidst a rapidly changing environment.

A mesmerizing look at the tranquil countryside found on the Isle of Coll, Scotland.

E&N is a sensorial exploration of the hidden nature of history embedded within landscapes. The film focuses on the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway (E&N), now called the Southern Railway of Vancouver Island, and its implication on indigenous land rights.

A lyrical study of the nearly abandoned company town west of Bella Coola that all but withered and died once its existence no longer made financial sense. Ryan Ermacora and Jessica Johnson invite us to marvel at the stark contrast between the vibrant coastal forests and the manmade structures that have fallen into ruin. An almost spectral presence is on hand to impart tales of a rebellious past and we’re left to consider the grim fates that sometimes befall grand schemes.

The film depicts the lives of the two sole residents of an abandoned company town while unfolding a complex labour history and revealing the vestiges of environmental degradation. Combining large format cinematography and an inquiry into the archival record, it interlaces past and present.

An examination of the contrast between the industrial environments of the Okanagan Valley’s fruit orchards and the upscale vacation spots that surround them. The film documents the daily routines of migrant farm laborers alongside the leisure activities of tourists and retirees inhabiting the same landscape.

Life in Cortes Island, B.C. as local oyster farmers ply their trade amidst a rapidly changing environment.

Life in Cortes Island, B.C. as local oyster farmers ply their trade amidst a rapidly changing environment.

A mesmerizing look at the tranquil countryside found on the Isle of Coll, Scotland.

E&N is a sensorial exploration of the hidden nature of history embedded within landscapes. The film focuses on the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway (E&N), now called the Southern Railway of Vancouver Island, and its implication on indigenous land rights.

A woman hikes to a secluded section of the Seymour River in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve.

Disillusioned by economic precarity, a young woman travels to do temporary farm work on a Gulf Island in British Columbia.