Juliana & The Medicine Fish

BIO –Jeremy Ryan Torrie (Waabishki Maka)

At 22 Jeremy completed his second novel, Resurrection, which turned out to be a turning point in his writing career. He discovered these compositions reflected a screenwriting sensibility, and in more than two decades since Jeremy has worked to realise his path as the ancestors foretold -as a storyteller through the medium of film & television.

In that time Jeremy has produced, written, directed, shot and edited more than one hundred hours of network programming for national broadcasters such as APTN, CBC, CTV, PBS, CHUM, Global Television, Television New Zealand, Maori Television, Extreme Sports, A-Channel, Super Channel, Hollywood Suite, Starz, and DirecTV. Regardless of subject matter, Jeremy has traveled the world over exploring the human condition.

An Ojibway from Wauzhushk Onigum First Nation in Northwest Ontario Jeremy is a traditional pipe carrier. He remains committed to the Indigenous community through the production, writing, and direction of stories of both a dramatic and documentary nature.

Jeremy has been dedicated to the cultivation of emerging Indigenous talent while championing the latest digital cinematographic technologies. He combined both of those passions lobbying the Canadian government in the creation of APTN and being instrumental in headquartering the network in Winnipeg.

Jeremy’s attention to the creative material has made him an established writer, producer, & director for both documentary and dramatic projects. His stylistic vision is complemented by his choice in subject matter –thought-provoking, socio-political and spiritual stories for mainstream audiences.

In pursuit of the story Jeremy has traveled the world including Iraq, Taiwan, Greece, Italy, France, Germany, The UK and Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Mexico, Chile, South Africa & virtually every corner of North America.

As President of White Bear Films Inc., Chaotik Kreative Inc., Digital Motion Pictures Co. Ltd., cineGUIDE Inc, and Bandwidth Digital Releasing Ltd. Jeremy brings together some of the most successful and creative entertainment professionals working in the industry.

In 2003 Jeremy co-produced his first dramatic film Cowboys & Indians: The Killing of JJ Harper, which won two international awards, two Blizzard Awards, and garnered 6 Gemini nominations.

In 2006 he directed his first feature film, Mr. Soul, which he wrote and adapted from the book Just Another Indian by Warren Goulding. He also served as editor and executive producer. The film was distributed by the National Film Board of Canada and starred Gordon Tootoosis and Eric Schweig.

In 2010 Jeremy won Best Director Award at the 35th Annual American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco for his feature film A Flesh Offering, an inter-provincial co-production with Quebec.

In 2012 Jeremy shot Path Of Souls starring Adam Beach, Laura Harris, and Corey Sevier where he served as writer, director, producer, and editor. The film won Best Picture at the Cowichan International Aboriginal Film Festival and won Best Director at the American Indian Film Festival. Jeremy also garnered a Best Director Award at the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival. Path Of Souls was an official selection in more than 20 film festivals and was selected to Perspective Canada at Cannes and Berlin. Path Of Souls has the unique distinction of being the first Canadian feature to be mastered and exhibited in 4K.

Jeremy was writer, director, and producer for The Psychopath Next Door for CBC’s Doc Zone, a one hour documentary which premiered nationally in 2014 and was the highest rated show for the ‘Doc Zone’ strand in three years.

The fall of 2015 saw Jeremy co-write, direct and produce Juliana & The Medicine Fish, adapted from the best-selling novel by Jake MadcDonald. It starred Emma Tremblay, Roseanne Supernault and Adam Beach. APTN, CBC, and Hollywood Suite were among the Canadian broadcasters. The film was an official selection at ImagineNative, the American Indian Film Festival, Red Nation Film Festival, KIDFilm Festival, The Durango International Film Festival, and KIDS FIRST! Film Festival touring over 50 cities in America. Juliana won Best Picture at the White Unicorn Film Festival in Miami.

In 2017 Jeremy took on his fifth feature as a writer and director with his original screenplay The Corruption Of Divine Providence, a dual-language film. It starred Elyse Levesque, David LaHaye, Tantoo Cardinal, and Eugene Brave Rock. Divine Providence is being distributed by Film Option. It has sold to APTN, Hollywood Suite, CBC, and Super Ecran.

2020 will see Jeremy direct his first action movie with Shaidan, an official co-production with South Africa. He also serves as an executive producer and co-writer. It stars Pearl Thusi, Raoul Trujillo, Paul Amos, and Tyler Mane. Raven Banner is the Canadian distributor and international sales agent.

Jeremy currently has several dramatic projects in development including original screenplays Killing The Shaman, Uprising, Death Of The Great Spirit, Deathstalkers, The Witch Of Beacon Hill, and The Splendid Life of Jesse Dixon. Jeremy is also producing the feature film adaption of Kevin Loring’s Governor General Award winning Where The Blood Mixes, and remaking the award-winning, classic Maori film Once Were Warriors in a co-production with New Zealand.

He remains a mentor for young Indigenous filmmakers, and helped design the Aboriginal Micro Budget Feature Film Program with Telefilm Canada (now the Talent To Watch Program), where he has triggered finance for three projects (The Northlander, Indian Road Trip, and Road Of Iniquity). Jeremy has been a part of the Telefilm Indigenous Advisory Group since 2015.

Jeremy worked with the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival where he acted as a programmer and film juror for seven years. He is currently applying those skill sets to resurrect the Sweetgrass Film Festival in Kenora, Ontario in the spring of 2020.

He has spoken as a panelist at TIFF, CMPA’s Prime Time in Ottawa, and Durban International Film Festival, while regularly attending numerous international festivals and markets including Sundance, Berlinale/EFM, Cannes, TIFF, AFM, Atlantic Film Festival/FIN Partners, and the Whistler Film Festival where he’s acted as a juror and Indigenous mentor.

Jeremy is a member of the Directors Guild Of Canada, and sits on CMPA’s Feature Film Advisory Committee.

Jeremy lives and works proudly in Winnipeg, Manitoba with his four children Xavier, Hunter, Semiah, Ruby and wife Tanya.