Collective Friction Film Collective is a group of people at various stages of our film careers, specializing in a variety of genres and areas of expertise. Frustrated by the limitations of the Canadian film industry, we are determined to make a difference and ask you to join us on our journey.

It’s time to discuss, inspire and workshop solutions. The answer is in the collective. Collective time, collective resources and collective understanding.

MEET OUR MEMBERS:

SARA BASSO

At the age of five, wild and imaginative Sara Basso believed she could fly. After a few unsuccessful attempts of using her bed as a launching pad, she quickly realized there are other ways to creatively express oneself. As a child, she spent a lot of time alone (perhaps something to do with being a fierce little ginger who thought she could fly) writing stories and putting together short plays at home and in the schoolyard. At the age of ten, she broke the piggy bank, purchased her very own 35mm camera, and used it to capture scenes from her plays for her beloved story-telling scrapbook. During her later years, she immersed herself in the arts, was awarded the “Curtain Call Award” in her hometown of Oakville for her achievements in writing, directing, and advocating for the arts, and accepted a unique opportunity to work with the Sundance Film Festival which launched her passion for independent filmmaking. From there, she began getting involved in various film projects, producing short films, and reaching out to the film community in Toronto. Currently the Creative Director and Producer for Real Image, a small production company in Toronto, Sara is passionately working toward creating an institute (similar to Sundance) to foster independent filmmakers in Canada, and to change the way Canadians see and make films.

Filmmakers of Influence: Steve McQueen, Sarah Polley, Miranda July, Wes Anderson, Sofia Coppola, Jean Luc Godard, Woody Allen, Federico Fellini, Bruce Robinson, Peter Greenaway, Blake Edwards, Bernardo Bertolucci, Michelangelo Antonioni

In Development: Bible War Paint | Our Father (The Four Temperaments)

Contact: sarabasso@mac.com | Twitter: @sarabasso

JAKE CHIRICO

With every passing year Jake Chirico has found himself falling further into a symbiotic relationship with filmmaking. It has become an integral part of his life as film and image making has become the vessel by which he experiences the world: a constant process of recording and reflecting, assembling and learning. His foundation of practical and theoretical knowledge was laid at Sheridan College and York University while the structure above continues to shape through daily professional and personal work. His first short doc about a horde of insects that annually blanket the downtown core of his hometown, North Bay, premiered at Hot Docs. He has since been working in Toronto as a videographer for the provincial government and as a freelance cinematographer and editor. He’s had an internship with Peter Mettler and is developing his own projects. Recently, Jake’s work has led him to shoot both in Lesotho and Cambodia on separate occasions, where he has been helping to create constructive dialogue about the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the horror of child trafficking and the sex trade through film. These experiences have helped him form a new understanding of Canadian culture that will be an integral part of future projects. Jake Chirico is currently co-directing and shooting a web series and feature documentary about Toronto graffiti called Between The Lines.

Filmmakers of Influence: Jean Luc Godard, Werner Herzog, David Lynch, Petter Mettler, Guy Maddin, Wes Anderson, Jennifer Baichwal and Gaspar Noé

In Production: Between the Lines (doc), Between the Lines: Graffiti Talks (webisodes)

Contact: jake.chirico@gmail.com | Twitter: @jakechirico

BRAD DWORKIN

Brad Dworkin is a director, cinematographer, editor and new media artist based in Toronto Canada. With over ten years combined experience in the film and television industry, he has directed films, music videos, documentaries and commercials. His work has been exhibited at international film festivals including Hot Docs and installed at Toronto’s Nuit Blanche festival.

Past clients include filming for MTV, Facebook, Nissan, Canadian Tire and Apple. He has worked in places as diverse as Dubai, Paris, Los Angeles and a 7-11 in the middle of the Nevada Desert.

Brad holds a Fine Arts degree in Image Arts – Film Studies from Ryerson University.

Filmmakers of Influence: Wes Anderson, David Fincher, Spike Jonze, John Cameron Mitchell, Stephen Frears, Sidney Lumet

In Development: Foley, Songwriters (doc),

In Post-Production: Close Your Eyes

Contact: collectivefrictiongroup@gmail.com | Twitter: @brad_dworkin

ROSE LAGACE

Contact: artdepartmental@gmail.com | Twitter: @roselagace

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

BRAD McDERMOTT

Brad McDermott believes there are stories in the world that have yet to be told.
There are dynamics that exist between once subjugated groups of people, that are only now having their voices heard.
They have been untapped and silenced; deemed unproﬁtable and unpopular.
However, the tide is changing against these ideas and the walls that imprisoned them are crumbling. I want Canadian cinema to tap into this new wave, I want it to become the leader in cinema never seen before.
I am Brad McDermott and I am a ﬁlmmaker, animator, screenwriter and surrealist. Iʼll use every tool I have to change the face of Canadian cinema. To make it something strange and unusual; but important and beloved.

Filmmakers of Influence: Jan Svankmajer, The Brothers Quay, Alain Resnais, F.W. Murnau, Norman McLaren, Orson Welles, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Alfred Hitchcock, Rene Laloux, George Franju, Hayao Miyazaki and David Fincher

In Development: Health Class | The Beast of Burden

Contact: brad.mcdermott@hotmail.com | Twitter: @MrBradMcDermott

Blog | Facebook | Twitter

EMMA SUTHERLAND

Emma Sutherland is an actor and producer in Toronto. Emma is currently producing the short film Exxxquisite. Emma has also done repeated runs with The Vagina Monologues. She’s executive produced the Regain to Reign album for The Next Edition, and continues to act as time allows in projects such as the political comedy webseries, Queen’s Park and the feature film, No Boys Allowed. Emma’s influences include John Cameron Mitchell, Tina Fey and Caitlyn Moran.