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Women of the West - series pilot

Love, death, and the wheel of fortune. Set at the turn of the century across Canada, the US and Mexico, this is the story of Sara. The Victorian romantic is thrust on an unexpected journey when she is suddenly widowed from the love of her life; in striving to provide for her family, she must carve an unconventional path for herself amidst the turbulent landscape of the expanding West. This is a story of resilience and defying destiny.

  • Marie-Michele Jasmin-Belisle
    Director
    Desert Haiku, Wonder Chamber no 1, Grey Matter, The Drum Will Never Stop, Helix
  • Marie-Michele Jasmin-Belisle
    Writer
    Desert Haiku, Wonder Chamber no 1, Grey Matter, The Drum Will Never Stop, Helix
  • Marie-Michele Jasmin-Belisle
    Producer
    Desert Haiku, Wonder Chamber no 1, Grey Matter, The Drum Will Never Stop, Helix
  • Tom Fugelsang
    Producer
  • Ellie Jackson
    Producer
  • Eleanore Jackson
    Key Cast
    "Sara"
  • Marie-Michele Jasmin-Belisle
    Cinematography
    Desert Haiku, Wonder Chamber no 1, Grey Matter, The Drum Will Never Stop, Helix
  • Project Type:
    Television
  • Genres:
    Drama, historical, period
  • Runtime:
    22 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    February 25, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    9,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada, United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital 1920x1080
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Marie-Michele Jasmin-Belisle

Montreal film director and artist Marie-Michele can often be found in seascapes, deserts and urban jungles between the Maritimes, California, New Mexico and Japan.

She catches the light working across the cinematic platform using dance, surrealist narratives, film-poems, immersive dreamscapes and branded content, collaborating with indigenous hiphop artists, Japanese spiritual singers and other creatives around the world. Recent accomplishments include solo shows in Montreal and Tokyo, screenings at the International Symposium of Electronic Arts, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and film festivals from Indonesia to Germany, Australia to Italy, Brazil, England and the US, as well as the prize for ‘Best Cinematography’ for her short ‘Helix’ in Buenos Aires.

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Director Statement

What does it mean to be a Woman of the West ? Born at the crossroads of French, English and Native American cultures, I believe that the western world in which I was raised is not as much a place, as it is a state of mind. To be ‘of the West’ evokes an intrepid spirit; one that does not falter when challenges arise, rejoicing where others will retreat. It is a spirit born of necessity, bred by creativity, resilience, hope and unending faith. Faith in oneself, in community, in love, in family.
We are here to celebrate the lives of women whose paths will remind us of the incredible interconnectivity of all things.
In a land where the vastness of the deserts is only met in grandeur by the immensity of its oceans, where mountains marry forests and streams ow through the course of our four seasons,
we will follow the stories of botanists, opera singers, costumers, fortune tellers, wives and daughters, mothers and sisters, pioneers in the frontiers of their minds moreso than the land. is is not a western, this is a celebration of what it’s like to be a woman in a unique time and place, where space and privilege has afforded us the choice to be who we were born to be. Though tragedy misses no one, these will be tales of victory through our own darkness, tales of second chances, turning poison into medicine,
finding courage, strength, and above all love.