The Cinematheque

“Whether in the Canadian wilderness or on the cliffs of Scotland, the films of Ermacora and Johnson harness the power of the landscape to contemplate the relationship between humans and their environments … These films are thoughtful and necessary calls to action.”

Pat Mullen, POV Magazine

E&N
Canada 2015
Ryan Ermacora, Jessica Johnson
4 min. DCP

Reminiscent of 19th century ​“phantom ride” films, E&N critiques industrial technology and power by linking train transportation in British Columbia to a history of colonial exploitation.

Ocean Falls
Canada 2015
Ryan Ermacora, Jessica Johnson
13 min. DCP

A once-bustling company town in BC’s central coast, now nearly abandoned, is captured in a series of contemplative static frames. A recurring motif of natural beauty framed through the windows of decaying buildings highlights the impermanence of human action.

Einst
Canada 2016
Jessica Johnson
12 min. DCP

A single long take of a placid tree-lined pond becomes a cinematic magic trick that plays on ideas of landscape, light, water, and time.

Empire Valley
Canada 2018
Ryan Ermacora
13 min. DCP

The arid vistas of Tsilhqot’in territory in central BC are framed in sweeping widescreen (unusual for Ermacora and Johnson’s work). The extreme distance of the camera is contrasted by an intimate sound design that highlights the disruptive impact of resource extraction.

Hazel Isle
Canada 2018
Jessica Johnson
13 min. DCP

The only film in the series shot outside of BC, Hazel Isle follows Johnson to the Isle of Coll in Scotland. A conversation about the misappropriation of Gaelic place names resonates with broader themes in the series of colonial power and land acknowledgment.

Labour/​Leisure
Canada 2019
Ryan Ermacora, Jessica Johnson
19 min. DCP

Migrant workers pick and package Okanagan cherries in orchards circumscribed by golf courses and expensive houses.