# Bones of Crows > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Bones_of_Crows > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Bones_of_Crows.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bones_of_Crows > Source revision: 1356140284 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) 2022 Canadian drama film Bones of Crows Film poster Directed by Marie Clements Written by Marie Clements Produced by Marie Clements Trish Dolman Sam Grana Christine Haebler Starring Grace Dove Cinematography Vince Arvidson Edited by Maxime Lahaie Music by Wayne Lavallee Jesse Zubot Production companies Ayasew Ooskana Pictures Marie Clements Media Screen Siren Pictures Grana Productions Distributed by Elevation Pictures Release date September 10, 2022 (2022-09-10) (TIFF) Running time 127 minutes Country Canada Languages English Cree Italian French ***Bones of Crows*** is a 2022 Canadian drama film, written, produced, and directed by [Marie Clements](/source/Marie_Clements) and starring [Grace Dove](/source/Grace_Dove).[1] The film's cast also includes Summer Testawich and Carla-Rae as Aline Spears in childhood and older age, as well as [Phillip Lewitski](/source/Phillip_Lewitski), [Rémy Girard](/source/R%C3%A9my_Girard), [Karine Vanasse](/source/Karine_Vanasse), [Michelle Thrush](/source/Michelle_Thrush), [Glen Gould](/source/Glen_Gould), [Gail Maurice](/source/Gail_Maurice), [Cara Gee](/source/Cara_Gee), [Joshua Odjick](/source/Joshua_Odjick), [Jonathan Whitesell](/source/Jonathan_Whitesell), [Jules Arita Koostachin](/source/Jules_Arita_Koostachin) and [Alanis Obomsawin](/source/Alanis_Obomsawin) in supporting roles. The film premiered at the [Toronto International Film Festival](/source/2022_Toronto_International_Film_Festival) on September 10, 2022,[2] before going into commercial release on June 2, 2023.[3] ## Plot A [Cree](/source/Cree_people) woman survives the [Indian residential school system](/source/Indian_residential_school_system) to become a [code talker](/source/Code_talker) for the [Canadian Air Force](/source/Canadian_Air_Force) during [World War II](/source/World_War_II). ## Cast - [Grace Dove](/source/Grace_Dove) as Aline Spears - [Phillip Lewitski](/source/Phillip_Lewitski) as Adam Whallach - [Rémy Girard](/source/R%C3%A9my_Girard) as Father Jacobs - [Karine Vanasse](/source/Karine_Vanasse) as Sister Ruth - [Alyssa Wapanatahk](/source/Alyssa_Wapanatahk) as Perseverance Spears - [Michelle Thrush](/source/Michelle_Thrush) as January Spears - [Glen Gould](/source/Glen_Gould) as Matthew Spears - [Gail Maurice](/source/Gail_Maurice) as Older Taylor Whallach - Carla-Rae as Older Aline Spears - [Cara Gee](/source/Cara_Gee) as Percy Whallach - [Jonathan Whitesell](/source/Jonathan_Whitesell) as Thomas Miller - Patrick Garrow as Archbishop Thomas Miller - Summer Testawich as Young Aline Spears - Sierra Rose McRae as Young Perseverance Spears - Ethan Evans as Preteen Johnnie - Payne Merasty as Young Tye Spears - [Alanis Obomsawin](/source/Alanis_Obomsawin) as TRC Film Director - [Joshua Odjick](/source/Joshua_Odjick) as Jake Whallach ## Production The film was shot partially at the [Kamloops Indian Residential School](/source/Kamloops_Indian_Residential_School). Although the revelation of 215 [unmarked gravesites](/source/Canadian_Indian_residential_school_gravesites) at the school took place just one week before shooting was to start, the [Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc](/source/Tk%CA%BCeml%C3%BAps_te_Secw%C3%A9pemc) nation encouraged production to proceed because of the importance of getting residential school stories publicized and told.[4] ## Television series In 2021, [CBC Television](/source/CBC_Television) announced a five-hour limited series, which delves more deeply into Spears' extended family history over 100 years.[5] The television version premiered on September 20, 2023, on both CBC[6] and [APTN](/source/Aboriginal_Peoples_Television_Network), with a [Cree language](/source/Cree_language) version also airing on APTN beginning September 25.[7] ## Reception ### Critical response ‹ The [template](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Template) below (*[Rotten Tomatoes prose](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Rotten_Tomatoes_prose)*) is being considered for deletion. See [templates for discussion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Templates_for_discussion/Log/2026_June_18#Rotten_Tomatoes_and_Metacritic_film_prose) to help reach a consensus. › On the [review aggregator](/source/Review_aggregator) website [Rotten Tomatoes](/source/Rotten_Tomatoes), 95% of 19 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.8/10.[8] Aparita Bhandari of *[The Globe and Mail](/source/The_Globe_and_Mail)* wrote that "Although it’s a difficult film to watch, the loving way in which it depicts Indigenous families and their traditions, including a simple family dinner, offers a perspective often missing from news stories. The historical span from the late 1800s to present day also gives the film heft; the flashbacks used to reflect how memories carry intergenerational trauma are a poignant device. It’s a gift to watch the largely Indigenous cast bring to life a story that many of them have a personal connection to."[9] For *Original Cin*, Kim Hughes wrote that "Clements’ searing film — notably and beautifully shot on traditional territories and with its unanimously strong performances abetted by a brilliant cameo by filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin — is unsparing, as perhaps it must be. The horrors of residential schools should be perceived through a lens of revulsion and deep regret. Still, it is very hard to watch children being stomped on, tortured, molested, dying, and then to watch their adult selves funneling all that trauma into behaviour guaranteed to further compound their suffering and disenfranchisement. Equal parts indictment and historical score-setter, Bones of Crows is the film we deserve, its message of personal and spiritual resilience unmistakable. But enter knowing it is bleak beyond the most chilling slasher flick. Because it’s true."[10] ### Awards The film received five [Canadian Screen Award](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award) nominations at the [11th Canadian Screen Awards](/source/11th_Canadian_Screen_Awards) in 2023, for [Best Original Screenplay](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award_for_Best_Screenplay) (Clements), [Best Original Song](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award_for_Best_Original_Song) (Clements, [Wayne Lavallee](/source/Wayne_Lavallee) and [Jesse Zubot](/source/Jesse_Zubot) for "You Are My Bones"), [Best Makeup](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award_for_Best_Makeup) (Darci Jackson and Elizabeth McLeod), [Best Hair](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award_for_Best_Hair) (Charlene Dunn) and [Best Visual Effects](/source/Canadian_Screen_Award_for_Best_Visual_Effects) (Eric Gambini, Sarah Krusch Flanagan, Louis Mackall, Virginie Strub, Andrew Joe, Gabriel Chiang and Linus Burghardt).[11] ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Local actor Grace Dove stars in new psychological drama"](https://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/local-arts/local-actor-grace-dove-stars-in-new-psychological-drama-4693953). *[Prince George Citizen](/source/Prince_George_Citizen)*, October 27, 2021. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Pat Mullen, ["TIFF Announces Canadian Films for 2022 Festival"](https://thatshelf.com/tiff-announces-canadian-films-for-2022-festival/). *That Shelf*, August 10, 2022. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Gail Johnson, ["Bones of Crows launches in movie theatres across Canada, starting June 2"](https://www.createastir.ca/articles/bones-of-crows). *STir*, May 31, 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Rachel Ho, ["Marie Clements Brings the Truth of Residential Schools to the Big Screen"](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/marie_clements_brings_the_truth_of_residential_schools_to_the_big_screen). *[Exclaim!](/source/Exclaim!)*, May 31, 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["CBC/RADIO CANADA, APTN AND AYASEW OOSKANA PICTURES ANNOUNCE CASTING AND START OF PRODUCTION ON MARIE CLEMENTS’ BONES OF CROWS"](https://www.tv-eh.com/2021/10/27/cbc-radio-canada-aptn-and-ayasew-ooskana-pictures-announce-casting-and-start-of-production-on-marie-clements-bones-of-crows/). *TV, eh?*, October 27, 2021. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-setsfall_6-0)** Greg David, ["CBC sets fall 2023 streaming and broadcast premiere dates for new and returning original series on CBC Gem and CBC Television"](https://www.tv-eh.com/2023/08/24/cbc-sets-call-2023-streaming-and-broadcast-premiere-dates-for-new-and-returning-original-series-on-cbc-gem-and-cbc-television/). *TV, eh?*, August 24, 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Greg David, ["Changing leaves, inspiring stories: APTN unveils fall programming with Indigenous resilience at its core"](https://www.tv-eh.com/2023/08/30/changing-leaves-inspiring-stories-aptn-unveils-fall-programming-with-indigenous-resilience-at-its-core/). *TV, eh?*, August 30, 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Bones of Crows"](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bones_of_crows). *[Rotten Tomatoes](/source/Rotten_Tomatoes)*. Retrieved May 3, 2024. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Aparita Bhandari, ["Marie Clements won’t let Canada forget its painful past with sweeping epic Bones of Crows"](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/article-marie-clements-wont-let-canada-forget-its-painful-past-with-sweeping/). *[The Globe and Mail](/source/The_Globe_and_Mail)*, May 31, 2023 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Kim Hughes, ["Bones of Crows: Fact-Based Drama Depicts the Horrors of Residential Schools"](https://www.original-cin.ca/posts/2023/6/1/bones-of-crows-fact-based-drama-depicts-the-horrors-of-residential-schools). *Original Cin*, June 1, 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** ["The 2023 Canadian Screen Award Nominees"](https://windsorfilmfestival.com/the-2023-canadian-screen-award-nominees/). *[Windsor International Film Festival](/source/Windsor_International_Film_Festival)*, February 22, 2023. ## External links - [*Bones of Crows*](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21342838/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier)) v t e Residential schools in Canada Residential school Genocide Denialism Indian agent Pass system Nutrition experiments International Grenfell Association Presbyterian Church in Canada Racial separate schools in Canada Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sixties Scoop United Church of Canada Documents Gradual Civilization Act Gradual Enfranchisement Act Indian Act 1969 White Paper People Charles Bagot James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin Nicholas Flood Davin Edgar Dewdney Vital-Justin Grandin John A. Macdonald Peregrine Maitland Rawson W. Rawson Hayter Reed Egerton Ryerson Arthur Wellesley Vowell John West Survivors Phil Fontaine Phyllis Webstad Chanie Wenjack Schools Alberta Assumption (Hays Lakes) British Columbia Ahousaht Kamloops Kootenay Lejac St. Augustine's St. Paul's St. Mary's St. Michael's (Alert Bay) St. Joseph's Manitoba Assiniboia Birtle Brandon Norway House Portage la Prairie St. Boniface Nova Scotia Shubenacadie Ontario Bishop Horden Cecilia Jeffrey McIntosh Mohawk Institute Mount Elgin Pelican Lake Shingwauk Spanish St. Anne's St. John's Saskatchewan Battleford Beauval Gordon's Marieval Muscowequan Prince Albert Qu'Appelle Responses Peter Bryce Canadian history wars Who Killed Canadian History? Gravesites discovery 2021 Canadian church burnings Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement Fontaine et al. v Canada Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Indians of Canada Pavilion National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Orange Shirt Day Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples Visit by Pope Francis to Canada Legislation United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Canada) Media portrayals Books Fatty Legs Five Little Indians Grave Error: How The Media Misled Us (and the Truth about Residential Schools) Indian Horse Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada Kiss of the Fur Queen Not My Girl Secret Path A Stranger at Home Sugar Falls These Are My Words Wenjack When We Were Alone Film Bones of Crows Honour to Senator Murray Sinclair Indian Horse Returning Home Rhymes for Young Ghouls Savage Secret Path Sleeping Children Awake Snip Sugarcane WaaPaKe We Were Children Where the Spirit Lives Music Secret Path Stage Zahgidiwin/love Television Bones of Crows "Great and Sudden Change" Organizations Aboriginal Healing Foundation Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation National Indigenous Residential School Museum of Canada Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Bones of Crows](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bones_of_Crows) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bones_of_Crows?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.