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Canadian Screen Awards

Tracey Deer pulls from both the hilarity and tragedy of life for CSA-nominated 'Mohawk Girls'

The filmmaker knew she wanted to pursue a screen career at the age of 12, when she was profoundly affected by her personal experience during the Oka Crisis.

The filmmaker draws on her real life experiences for the hit comedy

CBC Arts ·

Academy Talks: The Creators Tracey Deer

8 years ago
Duration 2:53
Tracey Deer knew she wanted to be a filmmaker at the age of 12. As Tracey grew up, she became more aware of herself as an Indigenous woman and found her voice telling First Nations stories.

Tracey Deer knew she wanted to be a filmmaker at the age of 12. The executive producer and director of APTN's Mohawk Girls was profoundly affected by her personal experience during the Oka Crisis — the violent clash over Native land rights in 1990. As Tracey grew up, she became more aware of herself as an Indigenous woman and found her voice telling First Nations stories. Now Tracey and her creative partner Cynthia Knight (Mohawk Girls executive producer and writer) draw on their real life experiences to tell both hilarious and tragic stories through the hit comedy.

Mohawk Girls has received three 2017 Canadian Screen Award nominations. Watch the 2017 Canadian Screen Awards Sunday, March 12 at 8pm local time (9 AT/9:30 NT) on CBC TV or stream them online here starting with the red carpet at 7:30pm ET.