SOMEONE LIVES HERE – Free Community Screening & Panel Discussion
presented by Rad Snax and hosted by the Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts
Saturday, November 18, 7:00 pm
Marilyn I Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts
15 Artists’ Common, St. Catharines, ON L2R 0B5,
Room MWS 156.
Ground level with elevator and accessible washrooms. Event is free. No childcare. If you have additional accessibility needs, please reach out to us.
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Throughout the COVID pandemic, Toronto has seen a catastrophic increase in homelessness. Sick of seeing his city unable to care for its unhoused people, Khaleel Seivwright quit his job as a full-time carpenter and dedicated himself to building insulated shelters—called “tiny shelters.”
Innovatively using body temperature for heating, Khaleel’s efforts garnered international media attention, leading Toronto to propose a possible partnership—only to reverse its decision a week later.
Capturing the ups and downs of Khaleel’s brilliant intervention, Someone Lives Here also features the voices of those experiencing homelessness, including the articulate and philosophical Taka. The film poignantly captures the City of Toronto’s costly $1.9 million clearance of Toronto’s park encampments, asking all the right questions: What makes Toronto unable and unwilling to address this humanitarian crisis? Why are people like Khaleel being prevented from trying to find solutions?
Who do we prioritize in this city? A sobering and maddening watch.
Film description by Hot Docs programmer Aisha Jamal.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27366407/
Winner – Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Documentary, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, 2023
Winner – Bill Nemtin Award for Best Social Impact Documentary, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, 2023
—- This presentation is organized by Rad Snax with the participation of community partners.
Guests include Khaleel Seivwright who will participate in a panel discussion after the film with:
Patty Krawec, an indigenous author and activist, moderator
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2107428931725
Alicia Marshall, a local social service provider and advocate for unhoused folks
https://twitter.com/Aliciaadvocate
Sabrina Shawana, Anishinaabe Nation, Eagle Clan, tireless advocate for her People, and who established the Strong Water Singers in 2015.
Brock grad and researcher Sarah Lukaszczyk, who has just returned from the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness conference, previously with Housing Help Centre, and who has written about the City of St. Catharines rhetoric of compassion, exposing participation in the Compassionate Cities movement as hollow municipal marketing.
among others.
See the FB posting for more info: https://fb.me/e/1ANjJFyH9
Approximately 100 people participated in the evening program. Seen below (l-r) are Sarah Lukaszczyk, Alicia Marshall, Khaleel Seivwright, Sabrina Shawana and moderator Patty Krawec during the post-screening discussion. Thank-you to Hilary of Game Theory Films for the opportunity to share this film with the community.
