We speak with Director/Writer Charles Officer about his new film “Akilla’s Escape.” Charles Officer is a Jamaican-Canadian writer, actor, director and former professional hockey player. His directorial debut, “When Morning Comes,” premiered at the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). His feature film “Nurse.Fighter.Boy.” premiered at TIFF 2008 and won the Audience Award at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg and the audience award for Best in World Cinema and a jury prize for Best Cinematography at the Sarasota Film Festival.
In June 2015, Officer completed principal photography in Toronto on a National Film Board of Canada documentary entitled Unarmed Verses, produced by Lea Marin, which explores youth and race-related issues in the city of Toronto in the aftermath of the killing of Trayvon Martin in the United States through the experiences of Francine, a 12-year-old girl living with her father and grandmother in a northeast Toronto neighbourhood facing demolition and reconstruction.
The film was named Best Canadian Feature at the 2017 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival and the Best Canadian Documentary at the Vancouver International Film Festival. The Skin We’re In, Officer’s documentary about Canadian journalist Desmond Cole, premiered on CBC Television in March 2017.
