Private Project

House After

House After is an Indigenous story that takes place in the 1940s in the middle of the second world war in a cabin on the west coast of Canada. We follow a grieving widow and her child as they experience the duality of living an Indigenous life and the
pressures of conformity from the church.

Aks, the mother, and protagonist of the film, battles her coping addictions while trying to raise her child in a house that is learning to live without a father. However, Aks succumbs to her addictions as she believes she sees her dead husband, which ultimately pushes her child away.

  • Dustin McGladrey
    Director
    Polar Tour
  • Dustin McGladrey
    Writer
    Polar Tour
  • Tasheal Gill
    Producer
  • Mohammad Zakizadeh
    Producer
  • Dustin McGladrey
    Producer
    Polar Tour
  • Pietro Russolo
    Cinematographer
  • Kit Baronas
    1st Assistant Camera
  • Ahmad Al-Zu'bi
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Juliette Leach
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Benjamin Mouland
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Mohammad Zakizadeh
    Editor
  • Simran Dhinjal
    1st Assistant Director
  • Rachel Tao
    Production Designer
  • Nakuset Gould
    Key Cast
    "Aks"
    Degrasse
  • Nick Dangeli
    Key Cast
    "Israel"
    Monkey Beach
  • Breeze Mann
    Key Cast
    "Raven"
  • Kirc Cohen
    Location Sound
  • Justin Macken
    Location Sound
  • Brennen Little
    Location Sound
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Drama, Historical, Indigenous
  • Runtime:
    15 minutes 30 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 30, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    ProRes4444XQ-23.97FPS-Quicktime
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - University of British Columbia
Director Biography - Dustin McGladrey

Dustin McGladrey is an emerging Director/Writer from the Nisga'a Nation. His filmography includes acting performances, director credits on his first documentary, Wal-aks: Coming Out as 2-Spirit, and his first short film Polar Tour, the latter of which won 5 awards and screened at over 20 festivals around North America. Dustin is a well-rounded filmmaker and has experience in film editing, Sound recording and editing, graphics arts, and cinematography. He aspires to bring Indigenous futurisms and identity on screen. His latest short film, House After, deals with his family's residential school experience and is ready to begin its festival run in the Fall of 2022. While his focus is directed and writing, he dabbles in acting on screen. His first feature acting experience happened on Jules Koostachin's first feature, Broken Angel, where he played a Rez Cop. He has also acted in TV pilots for Telus Storyhive and has some credits in short films.

Accompanying his filmmaking skills, Dustin is an accomplished radio personality. He has accumulated over 6680 hours of radio broadcasting experience within the last ten years serving in several different radio stations within Western Canada. This radio experience gave him excellent interview skills as on-air live guests were a weekly occurrence. Dustin is currently at the University of British Columbia, finishing a Bachelor's Degree in Film Production before eventually completing a Master's degree.

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Director Statement

The script is loosely based on my family's Residential School experience, particularly my great-grandmother. This is where I believe a lot of my family's trauma arose come from. Through making this film, I faced my own intergenerational trauma as a process of healing.