Cinequest 2019 – Circle of Steel
Amidst the oil and gas crash of 2015, chemical engineer Wendy Fong (Chantelle Han) is new to Paloma North and unsure of the future she worked so hard for. As rumors of layoffs begin to circulate in her small, isolated team, her monotonous routine crumbles, giving way to ambivalence. Long days in the field and long nights alone begin to take their toll. With support and often-questionable guidance from her coworkers, Wendy must navigate personal ethics and corporate interest within Canada’s most controversial industry.
Interview with Director/Writer/Producer/Editor Gillian McKercher
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
When layoffs first started happening in 2016, the atmosphere at work was horrible. One of many days of layoffs, I waited patiently at my desk for a few hours and assumed that our team was safe. I asked my coworker, a super talented Project Engineer in her 40’s, if she wanted to get coffee. She looked at me with a face full of tears and croaked that she got “called to an office” – I’d never seen my co-worker come even close to a mile of an emotional crack. We both knew she was getting laid off. The ambiance of hopelessness, dread, and anticipation was a reality right up until I got laid off. I was frustrated that the rest of Canada seemed ambivalent, even sanctimonious, that brutal layoffs were happening. Perhaps we “deserved” to be laid off from the dirty and controversial petroleum industry. I wanted to show that the people who work in resource industries deserve compassion and respect. I also wanted to show that amidst the loneliness and depression, there’s also lots of camaraderie and humour.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Circle of Steel looks squarely in the face of uncomfortable questions that are rarely considered on-screen. Why do we go to work? Do we like our work? How does work define our lives? My film tackles these topics with compassion, heart, and a good dose of humour. I hope that people who've experienced layoffs feel that I'm in solidarity with them and that those who don't sympathize with the people who are in the midst of them.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
I juggled the tone through drafts and drafts of the script! I’d felt pressure to hit a mark politically and emotionally, but the stress didn’t result in good writing. I wrote what was true to my experience. When I first began to write Circle of Steel, Wendy was undeniably based off of my own experiences. As the story progressed, she became an amalgamation of many women whom I know in the industry.
I was raised in oil and gas and understood the world intimately. It was how I knew that I could make the film on a micro-budget scale. We received primary funding from the Calgary Film Centre, and shot the film over 16 days in November and December of 2017. We world-premiered the film at the Calgary International Film Festival in September 2018. I'm very proud of our turnaround.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback has been very good! Many oil and gas workers have told me that the film is accurate to their experiences. Some have even said that the film has helped them deal with the stress of layoffs and the uncertainty of employment; they felt "seen" by my film.
People who are unfamiliar with oil and gas have also been interested in the film – noting everything from the casual drug and alcohol use in the film, to the bizarre methods of laying people off. Overall, I'm extremely proud of what we accomplished.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I was surprised by the reaction from other industries who came to see my film. I had my American premiere at Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival, and I was taken aback by the reception from workers in the tech industry. One man told me that he "thought that layoffs like that only happened in the Bay Area".
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I would be honoured to have my story on We Are Moving Stories! Not only because of its reach but because of its curatorial excellence. Ultimately, it would be a great place to reach out to other filmmakers and hopefully connect with other like-minded people who I could collaborate with in the future.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I am looking for American sales agents, buyers, and distributors to help me reach more audiences across the country. I had an incredible time in San Jose and Omaha, and I can't wait for my screening in Chicago. I firmly believe that there are audiences in the Rocky's and in Texas and the Midwest – people who are intimate with resource-based industries, who would love this film.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I want people to feel compassion for workers who go through mass layoffs. In the news we often see big companies slashing thousands of jobs, and I want those people to know that my movie is for and about them. I want to celebrate the people who I met at work, as disparate in age and personality as you can imagine!
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What would you do if you got laid off tomorrow? Would you be happy or sad?
Would you like to add anything else?
Just a quick blurb about the prologue, which I'm super proud of: Since I don’t have a professional background in film, most of my education is DIY. At this point, my experimental background is part of my language. There’s no other way that I could’ve told the prologue of Circle of Steel. I have more confidence in my ability to express myself via 16mm experiments than VFX. In pitching this project, people were prohibitively hesitant and uncertain about my desire to incorporate experimental analogue film. I’m proud that I stayed true to my roots.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am developing on my second feature film, a father-daughter story, as we speak. Additionally, my production company Kino Sum is in post-production on a dramatic feature, Everybody Altogether Now (directed by Guillaume Carlier); and will shoot a high school comedy this summer, Events Transpiring Before, During and After a High School Basketball Game (directed by Ted Stenson).
Interview: March 2019
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Circle of Steel
Amidst the oil and gas crash of 2015, chemical engineer Wendy Fong (Chantelle Han) is new to Paloma North and unsure of the future she worked so hard for. As rumors of layoffs begin to circulate in her small, isolated team, her monotonous routine crumbles, giving way to ambivalence. Long days in the field and long nights alone begin to take their toll. With support and often-questionable guidance from her coworkers, Wendy must navigate personal ethics and corporate interest within Canada’s most controversial industry.
Length: 1:25:00
Director: Gillian McKercher
Producer: Gillian McKercher; Robyn Ho; Guillaume Carlier
Writer: Gillian McKercher
About the writer, director and producer:
GILLIAN MCKERCHER is a Calgary-based filmmaker and an Alberta Foundation For the Arts Young Artist Prize winner. She completed a BSc in Chemical Engineering at the University of Calgary while she practiced filmmaking at the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers. After she worked concurrently in film and engineering, she decided to focus on cinema. Circle of Steel is her first feature film as director.
GUILLAME CARLIER was born in Montreal and raised in Calgary. Guillaume’s work includes music videos, short narrative and documentary films, and his forthcoming feature film debut Everybody Altogether Now. Most recently he shot Radio Canada’s biopic on Formula 1 legend, Gilles Villeneuve.
ROBYN HO is a Calgary-based producer with a wide range of experience in short films, advertising, and television. Her work with agencies such as Critical Mass and Joe Media includes the Travel Alberta campaign, the award-winning short film No Face, and advertisements for BMW. Circle of Steel is Robyn’s first feature film.
Key cast: Guillaume Carlier (Producer), Robyn Ho (Producer), Chantelle Han (lead actor), Duncan Ollerenshaw (actor), Tina Lameman (actor), Erin St.Clair (editor), Grant Cooper (Director of Photography)
Looking for: distributors, sales agents, buyers
Facebook: Kino Sum Productions
Twitter: @kinosumprod
Instagram: @kinosum
Website: www.circleofsteel.ca
Other: IMDB
Made in association with: Kino Sum Productions
Funders: Calgary Film Centre, Alberta Media Fund
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Cinequeset Film & Creativity Festival/San Jose, U.S.A. - March 12; Kamloops Film Festival/Kamloops, Canada - March 15; University of Toronto, Environmental Humanities screening/Toronto, Canada - April 5; Asian Pop-up Cinema/Chicago, U.S.A. - April 12