The Stairs
"The Stairs" tells the story of three social workers who survived decades of street involvement, including drug use and sex work.
While using their experiences to help their community, each struggles to maintain their newly-found stability. Told over five years, "The Stairs" is a non-judgemental character study of life on society’s margins. Defying stereotypes through intimate portraits, its remarkable subjects are by turns funny, surprising, shocking and moving.
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Hugh GibsonDirector
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Hugh GibsonProducer
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Alan ZweigExecutive ProducerHope, Hurt, When Jews Were Funny, A Hard Name, Loveable, I Curmudgeon, Vinyl
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Cam WoykinCinematographer
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Hugh GibsonCinematographer
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Ryan J. NothEditorThe Road to Webiquie
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Andres LandauEditorUnarmed Verses
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Project Type:Documentary
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Runtime:1 hour 35 minutes
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Completion Date:September 12, 2016
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Production Budget:100,000 USD
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Country of Origin:Canada
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Country of Filming:Canada
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:DCP
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:Yes
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Student Project:No
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Toronto International Film FestivalToronto
Canada
September 12, 2016
World -
RIDM (Montreal International Documentary Festival)Montreal
Canada
November 12, 2016
Canadian Competition. Special Jury Prize: Magnus Isacsson Award. Honorable Mention: Student Jury -
Mar del Plata International Film FestivalMar del Plata
Argentina
November 25, 2016
International -
Jeonju International Film FestivalJeonju
Korea, Republic of
April 27, 2017
Asian
International Competition -
Maryland Film FestivalBaltimore
United States
May 5, 2017
United States -
48th International Film Festival of IndiaGoa
India
November 20, 2017
India -
Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival (GZDOC)Guangzhou
China
December 11, 2017
China
Golden Kapok Award (Nominee - Official Competition) -
Maple Movies Film Festival (touring Germany)Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Wiesbaden
Germany
October 5, 2017
Germany -
Vancouver Theatrical ReleaseVancouver
Canada
April 21, 2017 -
Toronto Theatrical ReleaseToronto
Canada
October 10, 2016
Theatrical Premiere
Toronto Film Critics Assoc: Best Canadian Film, 2016 -
Regent Park Film FestivalToronto
Canada
Audience Award -
Kingston Canadian Film FestivalKingston
Canada -
ReFrame Film FestivalPeterborough
Canada
January 28, 2017 -
Belleville Doc FestBelleville
Canada
March 3, 2017 -
Atlantic International Film FestivalHalifax
Canada
September 16, 2017 -
Buffalo International Film FestivalBuffalo
United States
October 8, 2017 -
Sebastopol Documentary Film FestivalSebastopol
United States
March 22, 2018
California -
BAM CinematekNew York
United States
April 18, 2018 -
Museum of the Moving ImageNew York
United States -
Metrograph CinemaNew York
United States -
Canadian Theatrical Release (2017-18)
Distribution Information
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Grasshopper FilmCountry: United StatesRights: Internet, Video on Demand, Pay Per View, Hotel, Airline, Ship, Video / Disc, Free TV, Paid TV, Console / Handheld DeviceCountry: CanadaRights: Internet, Video on Demand, Pay Per View, Video / Disc, Free TV, Paid TV, Console / Handheld Device
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Midnight Lamp FilmsCountry: WorldwideRights: All Rights
A graduate of York University (BFA: Film), Gibson participated in the Berlinale Talent Campus (’05), TIFF’ s Talent Lab (’06) and TIFF STUDIO (’12). Selected credits include writing/directing the acclaimed short drama, Hogtown Blues (’04: TIFF; Bilbao FF: Audience Award), and producing short doc A Tomb with a View (’14: TIFF, VIFF, Hamburg). He produced A Place Called Los Pereyra (’09, IDFA, BAFICI, RIDM), which screened extensively in Latin America and Canada. The Stairs, his feature debut as director, premiered at TIFF and won the Toronto Film Critics Award for Best Canadian Film of 2016.
Each character in The Stairs leads a volatile life, where progress can be difficult to gauge. Defining the direction they’re heading in their own narrative can be tricky. The stairs are also a very real place: somewhere to use, work, sleep and even die.
In a dramatic, transitional period for Toronto, the complex struggles of these characters continue to intensify. Given Canada’s changing legislation regarding drug policy and sex work, and ongoing debates about violence against women, the material has never been more relevant. While the film’s location is specific, its stories are universal. Greg’s encounter with police is but one example. The same conflicts with public health, housing and crime happen everywhere: there’s a Regent Park in most cities.
Since 2011, I’ve been granted remarkable access to vastly misunderstood and misrepresented lifestyles. There are many films about poverty, drug use and sex work, but very few that allowed subjects to take ownership of their stories, using the film as a conduit for their own self-expression.
As I got to know Marty, Roxanne, Greg and others in their community, I felt that I’d rarely seen their experiences on film, and rarely seen anything that captured the essence of their personalities: funny, warm, unapologetic; focused on family and their community.
In a large community of under-serviced individuals, many yearn for expressive outlets. Together we saw the film as a way of capturing the honesty of their experiences; revealing their perspectives. I wanted to see, understand and feel stories that don’t get reported.
Harm reduction remains unknown to most North Americans, despite affecting millions. Like the film’s subjects, its non-judgmental approach to health care has often been ignored, or hidden in plain sight. A crucial element of harm reduction is dignity. In my film, each character seeks to attain or restore it, and is routinely denied. It’s also integral to my artistic approach. Subjects spoke for themselves and I strove to accurately capture their stories. Understanding their perspectives and giving them a voice is significant, given the community’s rampant stigma and discrimination. Dignity was part of technique, as well as subtext.