Lynne Stopkewich | |
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Born | 1964 |
Nationality | Canadian |
Alma mater | Concordia University, University of British Columbia |
Occupation | film director |
Lynne Stopkewich (born 1964) is a Canadian film director, particularly notable as the director of the film Kissed (1996).
In 1987, Stopkewich obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in film studies from Concordia University, followed in 1996 by a Master of Fine Arts Degree in film studies from the Department of Theatre and Film at the University of British Columbia. Her first short films were made while at Concordia. Kissed commenced development as Stopkewich's thesis feature at the University of British Columbia, to which Stopkewich later returned as a faculty member.
In addition to Kissed, Stopkewich has directed the feature film Suspicious River (2000). She has also directed various television episodes of Bliss, Da Vinci's Inquest, The L Word, This Is Wonderland and The Shields Stories. Stopkewich generally prefers to work with cast and crew with whom she has worked before, most notably, the actress Molly Parker.."
Stopkewich's approach to the gaze in film is in part informed by feminist film theory, and thus her films have been described as being "darkly feminist." Canadians also see in her films "a strong sense of local culture" which rises "above the American appropriation of Vancouver as a backdrop for American generic culture."
She is the Vancouver director on Here At Home, a 2012 National Film Board of Canada web documentary exploring the Mental Health Commission of Canada's efforts to end homelessness for people with mental illness via its At Home initiative.