B.C. shorts head to Cannes

“Pilgrims” and “This Bleeding Heart”—produced by the insurgent local film company Tabula Dada—have been selected to screen at this year’s Short Film Corner showcase at the Cannes Film Festival (which starts today). Although slated for broadcast on Bravo in the coming months, their inclusion at Cannes puts both films in front of a considerably larger global market.

Either one is an impressive achievement. Made by Métis playwright Marie Clements, “Pilgrims” is the fractured and unsettling tale of a German tourist whose hunger for West Coast aboriginal culture takes him out of his depth—literally.

West Coast culture of another kind takes a skewering in “This Bleeding Heart”. There's a bitterly funny dénouement to writer-director Kevan Funk's tale of a new mom experiencing a sudden awakening of goodwill towards all of God’s little creatures, especially if you’re the kind of person who despises words like bliss and quinoa.

“Pilgrims” and “This Bleeding Heart” are among 44 shorts being presented as part of Telefilm’s Not Short on Talent program.