| A Mother Apart | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Laurie Townshend |
| Written by | Alison Duke Laurie Townshend |
| Produced by | Alison Duke Ngardy Conteh George Justine Pimlott |
| Starring | Staceyann Chin |
| Cinematography | Ashley Iris Gill |
| Music by | Tom Third |
Production companies | National Film Board of Canada Oya Media Group |
Release date |
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Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
A Mother Apart is a 2024 Canadian documentary film, directed by Laurie Townshend.[1] The film profiles writer and activist Staceyann Chin, both in the context of her status as a daughter who was abandoned at a young age by her mother, and as a mother who has resolved to be more caring and attentive with her daughter than her own mother was with her.[2]
According to Chin, she had been approached several times in the past to film her story, including by at least one unnamed filmmaker whom she was thankful that she had declined to work with because he had since been subjected to sexual harassment claims, but noted that she agreed to work with Townshend because Townshend was fully honest about being a first-time filmmaker without access to a lot of money, rather than "blowing smoke up her ass" about Hollywood connections or Netflix deals.[2]
The film premiered at the 2024 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival,[1] where producer Alison Duke was named winner of the Don Haig Award.[3] It subsequently screened at the 2024 Inside Out Film and Video Festival, where it won the juried awards for Best Canadian Film and Best First Feature Film, and the audience award for Best Documentary Film.[4]