Bio

BIO –Jeremy Ryan Torrie (Wapshke Mawka)

At 22 Jeremy completed his second novel, Resurrection, which turned out to be a turning point in his writing career. He discovered these compositions reflected a screenwriting sensibility, and in more than two decades since Jeremy has worked to realize his path as the ancestors foretold -as a storyteller through the medium of film.

In that time Jeremy has produced, written, directed, shot and edited more than one hundred hours of network programming for national broadcasters such as APTN, CBC, CTV, PBS, CHUM, Global Television, Television New Zealand, Maori Television, Extreme Sports, A-Channel, Super Channel, Starz, and DirecTV. Regardless of subject matter, Jeremy has traveled the world over exploring the human condition.

An Ojibway from Wauzhushk Onigum First Nation Jeremy remains committed to the Indigenous community through the production, writing, & direction of stories of both a dramatic and documentary nature. In addition, Jeremy is dedicated to the cultivation and employment of emerging talent while utilizing the latest digital cinematographic technologies.

Jeremy’s attention to the creative material has made him an established writer, producer, & director for both documentary and dramatic projects. His stylistic vision is complemented by his choice in subject matter –thought-provoking, socio-political and spiritual stories for mainstream audiences.

In pursuit of the story Jeremy has traveled the world including Iraq, Taiwan, Greece, Italy, France, Germany, The UK and Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Mexico, Chile, South Africa & virtually every corner of North America.

As President of White Bear Films Inc., Chaotik Kreative Inc., Digital Motion Pictures Co. Ltd., cineGUIDE Inc, and Bandwidth Digital Releasing Ltd. Jeremy brings together some of the most successful and creative entertainment professionals working in the industry. He is an active CMPA member.

In 2003 Jeremy co-produced his first dramatic film Cowboys & Indians: The Killing of JJ Harper, which won two international awards, two Blizzard Awards, and garnered 6 Gemini nominations.

In 2005 he directed his first feature film, Mr. Soul, which he wrote and adapted from the book Just Another Indian by Warren Goulding. He also served as editor and executive producer. The film was distributed by the National Film Board of Canada.

In 2010 Jeremy won Best Director Award at the 35th Annual American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco for his feature film A Flesh Offering, an inter-provincial co-production with Quebec.

In 2012 Jeremy shot Path Of Souls starring Adam Beach, Laura Harris, and Corey Sevier where he served as writer, director, producer, and editor. The film won Best Picture at the Cowichan International Aboriginal Film Festival and won Best Director at the American Indian Film Festival. Jeremy also garnered a Best Director Award at the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival. Path Of Souls was an official selection in more than 20 film festivals and was selected to Perspective Canada at Cannes and Berlin.

Jeremy was writer, director, and producer for The Psychopath Next Door for CBC’s Doc Zone, a one hour documentary which premiered nationally in 2014 and was the highest rated show for the ‘Doc Zone’ strand in three years.

The fall of 2015 saw Jeremy co-write, direct and produce Juliana & The Medicine Fish, adapted from the best-selling novel by Jake MadcDonald. It starred Emma Tremblay, Roseanne Supernault and Adam Beach. APTN, CBC, and Hollywood Suite were among the Canadian broadcasters and the film was an official selection at ImagineNative, the American Indian Film Festival, Red Nation Film Festival, Durango Intl Film Festival, The USA Kid Film Family Festival, and KIDS FIRST! Film Festival touring over 50 cities in America.

In 2017 Jeremy took on his 5th feature as a writer and director with his original screenplay The Corruption Of Divine Providence, a dual-language film. It starred Elyse Levesque, David LaHaye, Tantoo Cardinal, and Eugene Brave Rock. Divine Providence is being distributed by Film Option. It has sold to APTN, Hollywood Suite, CBC, and Super Ecran, and has been submitted to A-Tier Film Festivals.

2020 will see Jeremy direct his first action movie with Shaidan, an official co-production with South Africa. He also serves as an executive producer and co-writer starring Raoul Trujillo, Paul Amos, and Frank Rautenbach.

Jeremy currently has several dramatic projects in development including his original screenplays Killing The Shaman, Uprising, Death Of The Great Spirit, and The Splendid Life of Jesse Dixon. Jeremy is also producing the feature film adaption of Kevin Loring’s Governor General Award winning Where The Blood Mixes, and is remaking the award-winning Maori film Once Were Warriors in a co-production with New Zealand.

He is a mentor for young Indigenous filmmakers, and helped design the Aboriginal Micro Budget Feature Film Program with Telefilm Canada (now part of the Talent To Watch Program), where he has triggered finance for three projects (The Northlander, Indian Road Trip, and Road Of Iniquity). Jeremy has also been a part of the Telefilm Indigenous Advisory Group since 2015.

Jeremy worked with the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival where he acted as a programmer and film juror for seven years. He is currently applying those skill sets to resurrect the Sweetgrass Film Festival in his hometown of Kenora, Ontario in the spring of 2021.

He has spoken as a panelist at TIFF, CMPA’s Prime Time in Ottawa, and Durban International Film Festival, while regularly attending numerous international festivals and markets including Sundance, Berlinale/EFM, Cannes, TIFF, AFM, Atlantic Film Festival/FIN Partners, and the Whistler Film Festival where he’s acted as a juror and Indigenous mentor.

Jeremy is the sole Indigenous producer on CMPA’s Feature Film Advisory Committee. he recently joined the CSC’s Diversity Committee.

Jeremy lives and works proudly in Winnipeg, Manitoba with his four children Xavier, Hunter, Semiah, Ruby and wife Tanya.

Intro

A warm greeting to all checking out this web portal. If you’re here, then you might be sincerely interested in diverse projects or people like me who bring a different perspective to the world -both of which are awesome!

In 1964 Bob Dylan wrote, “The times, they are a changin’.” Well, it’s more than 50 years on now and indeed time waits for no one. These words however are particularly salient for those of us who have fought for many, many years to bring about glacial change in the film, television and digital media platforms, particularly as it relates to Indigenous stories. It’s been anything but easy.

Every narrative project I’ve been a lead producer, or writer/director on has had a spiritual bent. This is no accident. As an Ojibway person I take my spirituality to heart and it guides my everyday life. I am a traditional pipe carrier, participate in regular ceremonies, and have a drum. These are tools to assist me in this life while keeping me connected to my community.

I am sincerely interested in those projects which might expand our consciousness, allow us to think about grander possibilities, let us feel good about how we exist as we explore the human condition, and teach us some manner of moral lesson to pass on.

But hey, I also love to laugh, enjoy a good scare, and remember how Star Wars opened my eyes to a literal universe of storytelling…George Lucas said Joseph Campbell’s writings enabled him to imagine the franchise now owned by Disney, and I devoured everything I could on comparative mythology. Combined with reading Stephen King as a babysitter in my early teens, these influences came together to help me realize my path in this life as a storyteller.

When I began to participate in ceremony and went into my first sweat lodge I was told the aadizookaan tells a story. The gift of storytelling was given to me at my birth. I remain dedicated to exploring stories that matter, and hope to work with like-minded people.

Miigwetch.

Reel/Clips

Coming soon!