TORONTO 鈥� As the COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life a few years ago, R.T. Thorne found himself facing "existential fears."
With the food supply chain disrupted and people stockpiling toilet paper, the Calgary-born director started questioning whether the world he knew was ever as stable as it seemed.
鈥淚f a sickness that we can't even control knocks us off our rocker like that, are we really that safe? Are we really that firm in what we know?鈥� Thorne recalls wondering.
鈥淪o it started to make me think, 鈥楥an I provide for my kids if everything were to shut down? Can I grow food? Do I know how to do that? Can I protect them?鈥�
Thorne says those uncertainties were key inspirations for his debut film 鈥�40 Acres,鈥� which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.
The post-apocalyptic thriller centres on Hailey Freeman, an ex-military matriarch played by Danielle Deadwyler who leads her family in a future ravaged by famine. Faced with the threat of a ruthless band of cannibals intent on overtaking their farm, she clashes with her son Emanuel, played by Toronto鈥檚 Kataem O'Connor, on the best way to survive a crumbling world.
鈥淎t its heart, it's a mother and son story,鈥� says Thorne, who cut his teeth directing music videos for artists including Sean Paul and Keshia Chant茅 before creating 2020 sci-fi series 鈥淯topia Falls鈥� and helming 2022 period drama 鈥淭he Porter,鈥� both of which aired on CBC.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a thriller that's about two different ideologies of how to move forward in a family.鈥�
While Hailey believes her family鈥檚 safety depends on complete isolation, Emanuel craves connection, eager to explore the world outside their farm after encountering a young woman from a nearby homestead, played by Toronto-born Milcania Diaz-Rojas.
Thorne and co-writer Glenn Taylor weave the dystopian survival story together with a metaphor for the complex history of land ownership in North America. Hailey is a descendant of a Black family of farmers who settled in Canada after the American Civil War, while her partner, Michael Greyeyes鈥� Galen, is Indigenous.
鈥淚 wanted to make a story about a family I've never seen on screen before. It鈥檚 a blended Black and Indigenous family,鈥� says Thorne.
鈥淚 think there are so many stories in Canada that can be told.鈥�
Thorne says 鈥�40 Acres鈥� draws on several current political and economic challenges, from racial inequality to food insecurity to Indigenous land rights.
鈥淲e've been in this space for almost a decade where socially there have been a lot of things that have been happening in the world that are causing a lot of people worry,鈥� he says.
鈥淗opefully (we can) put these ideas out there and let people contemplate it, but take them for a little ride as well.鈥�
Thorne says his film has been eight years in the making and premiering it at TIFF has been a 鈥渄ream come true.鈥�
鈥淚've been coming to this festival for over 20 years as a film lover, just seeing amazing films that just rocked my world,鈥� he says.
"I'm honoured to be able to come here and have my debut film at the festival that I love.鈥�
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 8, 2024.
Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
