It is the first dramatic fiction written, directed and produced by Aboriginal artisans for a large French-speaking network. It will be broadcast French original version and in a version dubbed in Anishinaabemowin. Directed and written by Sonia Bonspille Boileau (the dept and Rustic Oracle) and produced by Jason Brennan, For you Flora tells the story of two Anishinaabe people who are now trying to make peace with their past, the one from which they were uprooted from an early age to be sent to an Aboriginal boarding school to be assimilated and evangelised.

The story, which unfolds over two main storylines – set in the 1960s and spanning two decades to the present – underscores the resilience of this girl and boy who were forcibly separated from their families. A resilience that endures in the face of the most unimaginable adversity.

A collective consciousness

The director took inspiration from a specific boarding school when writing the film, but wanted the story told to represent more generally the Aboriginal boarding schools that existed in Quebec and the rest of Canada. The story she had in mind was there a long time, even before that the macabre discoveries of Kamloops; She wanted to bring our collective history to the screen, but this time from a different perspective than the colonial one.

Despite the dark and tragic side of this period, Sonia Bonspille Boileau, whose grandfather lived in a boarding school with several family members, wanted to bring the public to light. Above all, she wanted For you Flora be the start of a conversation, an awareness of the reality that the different Aboriginal nations are experiencing, a reality that affects everyone.

Many tears flowed when watching the first two episodes in the Montreal Museum’s cinema. Many first, second and third generation survivors, including several cast members from the show, have spoken, sharing their personal experiences and expressing how important this show is, especially to generations to come.

More than ever, it is part of a necessary process of cultural reappropriation, healing and reconciliation.

Watch the trailer for the series

The actors and actresses of the series

For you Flora with Dominique Pétin, Marco Collin, Virginie Fortin, Antoine Pilon, Samian, Eve Ringuette, André Robitaille, Théodore Pellerin, Jean-Carl Boucher, Sophie Desmarais, Jean L’Italy, Charles Bender, Jacqueline Michel, Iannicko N’Doua and Katia Rock , Charles Buckell Robertson, Chantal Baril and, for the first time on screen, Sara Rankin Kistabish, Russell Flamand, Jonah Bacon and Charlotte Pashagumeskum.

It will be premiered May 26 next HERE Tou.tv Extra in the original French version and in a dubbed version in Anishinaabemowin. From autumn next year it will be presented in French TV HEREcatch up in both languages ​​on tout.tv, then on APTN (Aboriginal Peoples Television Network).

Interview with director Sonia Bonspille Boileau

Interview with the actor André Robaille