An animated short film showcasing heart health issues in remote Indigenous communities made its premiere at Canada's largest short film festival.
Strengthening Our Hearts through a River of Possibilities, produced by Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA), TRANSFORM HF, and the University Health Network (UHN), offers a unique perspective on managing heart health in the Cree communities of Moosonee and Moose Factory. It premiered at the 2024 Toronto Shorts International Film Festival on Aug. 23.
Over the past couple of years, two community-sharing circles helped the filmmakers gather insight.
Justice Seidel, a member of Moose Cree First Nation and the project’s community relations consultant, explained that the film visually narrates the experiences and themes discussed during these circles.
“The animation illustrates the stories shared by community members about managing their heart health and the challenges of accessing care from remote locations,” she said.
The film's production involved a small team of graphic artists and community consultants, Seidel said. The animation features real-life imagery from Moosonee and Moose Factory, such as the train station and docks, to provide an authentic depiction of the communities.
“The backgrounds in the animation are based on actual places in Moosonee and Moose Factory. This inclusion helps viewers connect with the real-world experience of the community,” she said.
“My role as the community consultant was to help provide more of the cultural and community perspectives and ensuring that those elements were shared throughout the animation.”
The colourful film is five-and-a-half minutes long and narrated by a beaver, telling its story as it's forced to take both a boat and helicopter just to get to its doctor's appointment.
Moose Factory is a remote island community on the southern end of James Bay. There is no bridge connecting the island to Moosonee, which is on the mainland across the Moose River.
"Communities in the James and Hudson Bay region rely on ice roads, boats, or helicopters seasonally to get to the closest hospital. You can imagine how difficult it must be to access care when needed," the narrator notes in the film.
"People living with heart conditions have been found to face many obstacles after waiting long hours at the hospital. The reality was most people were either sent home or referred down south for care."
Some individuals who took part in the sharing circle said when they are seen by doctors at Weeneebayko General Hospital, they don't actually feel like they're being seen. Because the doctors come in and out of town, all they know about them is what's on paper and have no idea what's going on at home.
The narrator said the Cree community sees their heart health as more than just symptoms. The heart not only deals with how individuals feel physically, but how they are connected emotionally, mentally and spiritually.
"During difficult times, our hearts are often mended by those close to us. It's not only medication that motivates our wellness, but it's our relationships with our family and the land," the narrator said.
Seidel emphasized the importance of addressing heart health within the communities, highlighting the unique challenges posed by their remoteness.
She added that the animation portrays the difficult journey patients must undertake to access medical care and underscores their resilience and strength. It also emphasizes the significance of community, family, and connection to the land in supporting health management.
“You can imagine that when patients have to leave the community to access care, that is challenging,” she said.
The film also explores the impact of innovative digital health solutions, such as the Medly app developed by UHN. It connects more than 70 WAHA patients to their healthcare teams remotely, reducing the need for travel and improving access to care.
“The animation touches on the role of digital tools in providing care closer to home, which helps lower barriers to accessing healthcare and supports patients in staying connected with their medical teams,” Seidel said.
According to Seidel, they wanted the film to be really “strength-based.”
“Because obviously we know the history and the relationship between Indigenous peoples and healthcare is, you know, a challenging and complicated one,” she said.
“So we really wanted to focus on the strengths of the community, the strengths of the people who shared their stories, and just that resiliency they showed in wanting to take care of their health, and the reasons for wanting to take care of their health, and the elements that helped them get to that.”
