Telefilm Funds the Birdwatcher as Indiegogo Campaign Launches

VANCOUVER (February 24, 2014) – Having joined forces again, award-winning duo, director, Siobhan Devine and writer, Roslyn Muir, have just received Telefilm production support for their debut feature film, The Birdwatcher.  The funding augments Devine’s $120k Women In the Director’s Chair (WIDC) Feature Film Award, handed out March 2013; a bundle of in-kind industry services and rental packages from some of Canada’s preeminent industry organizations, including William F. White Intl, North Shore Studios, Deluxe/Encore, Clairmont Camera, Front Row Insurance, and executive producing services from Creative Women Workshops Association (CWWA).

“The Birdwatcher tells a story that encompassed both tragedy and hope. It’s a strong first feature project from the up-and-coming filmmaking team in the West,” says Lauren Davis, Regional Feature Film Executive – Western Region, Telefilm Canada.

“Director, Siobhan Devine has a deft touch that inspires the best work from her cast and crew. We’re excited about the talent in this project and supporting them to tell this poignant story,” says Carol Whiteman, award-winning WIDC Producer/CWWA President and CEO. 

Shooting in Metro Vancouver and the surrounding temperate rainforest this spring, The Birdwatcher centers on a complicated relationship between an estranged mother and daughter, both in the throes of their own personal crises. Exploring themes of adoption, terminal illness and family, the film seeks to connect with women through its multi-generational female leads.

The stars of OMG, Devine & Muir’s popular first short film, are reunited in The Birdwatcher.  Acclaimed Canadian actress, Gabrielle Rose (The Sweet Hereafter, The Five Senses, Grace, Mothers & Daughters) plays the title role of Birdy, a famously reclusive birdwatcher, and rising star, Matreya Fedor (Mr. Young, Cedar Cove, Chaos Theory, The Troop) plays Birdy’s estranged teenaged granddaughter, Lucy.

“This script crossed my path shortly after the loss of a dear friend,” explains Devine. “I witnessed her struggle to come to terms with planning a future for her daughter that she would not be a part of, so this story hits home for me.”

To keep project momentum going, the team is creating an IndieGoGo campaign to help carry the film through to completion. Launched yesterday, it offers a menu of apt incentives; everything from original art prints to an invite for the cast and crew wrap party. Visit the campaign at: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-birdwatcher 

About The Birdwatcher

The Birdwatcher is the story of Saffron, a single mother of two, who after being diagnosed with cancer, embarks on a journey to re-connect with her estranged birth mother in the hopes of finding a home for her children when she is gone. Filming begins this March in the Pacific Northwest.

About the Team

Devine has helmed award-winning short dramas, a documentary and several episodes of YTV teen sitcoms, Mr. Young and Some Assembly Required. Muir is an award-winning screenwriter with several features and TV movies currently in development. Joining them to drive this project are Producer, Lori Lozinski (Packages from Planet X, Eat St., Sheltered Life) as well as Executive Producers, Alexandra Raffe (I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing, Endgame, Mr. Young, Package Deal), and CWWA/WIDC’s Carol Whiteman (Lucille’s Ball).

OMG, premiered at the 2012 Vancouver International Film Festival and has been unstoppable on the circuit. Screened on opening night at the Palm Springs ShortFest in 2013, it went on to tour Canada, the USA and Europe, winning Best Short Comedy at the Niagara Film Festival, taking third place at the Sunset Film Festival and representing British Columbia in the CBC Short Film Face Off.

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For more information or to schedule interviews: Pamela Saunders, Publicist – pam@composed.ca | 604.833.3372