Loading Events
The University of British Columbia

UBC Connects SVG
Robson Square
  • This event has passed.

Cinema Thinks the World: Fail to Appear (2017) Film Screening and Discussion

March 15, 2023
6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
at UBC Robson Square (map)

RSVP

About the Event

Cinema Thinks The World is proud to present a free screening of Fail to Appear (2017), which is the first feature-length film from Antoine Bourges, an Assistant Professor at UBC’s Department of Theatre and Film. The film premiered at the Vancouver International Film Festival and played numerous festivals including Buenos Aires International Film Festival (BAFICI); and the Lincoln Center’s Art of the Real. It was theatrically released in Canada and Mexico.

Lea Caragata (Associate Professor of Social Work, UBC) and Lyana Patrick (Assistant Professor of Health Sciences, SFU) will join filmmaker Antoine Bourges (Assistant Professor of Film Production, UBC) and moderator Christine Evans (Assistant Professor of Film Studies, UBC) for a discussion of Fail To Appear after the screening.

This event is free and everyone is welcome to attend. This is final event of six free screenings held at Robson Square as part of the Cinema Thinks the World series.  

About the Film

Canadian new wave fixture Deragh Campbell (Anne at 13,000 ftNever Eat Alone) shines as an inexperienced Toronto caseworker navigating an arduous and impersonal mental-health system in this understated, formally austere debut feature from writer-director Antoine Bourges, an Assistant Professor of Film Production at UBC. Still acclimating to her new job, Isolde (Campbell) is assigned to a despondent, middle-aged man (Nathan Roder) awaiting a court hearing for petty theft. As Isolde grapples with inadequate resources, bureaucratic protocols, and professional insecurity, she struggles to foster a trusting bond with her client. Bourges, returning to the front lines of social safety net services previously explored in his Downtown Eastside trilogy, frames this quiet drama in measured, uninterrupted, mostly static shots. Campbell impresses with a remarkably lived-in performance; Nikolay Michaylov, chief cinematographer with MDFF (Medium Density Fibreboard Films) lenses.

Event Schedule

6:00 PM: Doors open, light snacks and beverages will be provided
6:30 PM: Program begins
6:45 PM: Film starts
8:00 PM: Discussion, Q&A Period
9:00 PM: Program ends

Panelists

Antoine Bourges is a filmmaker and Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre and Film at UBC. He holds an MFA in Film Production from York University and previously served as an adjunct faculty member at Humber College. Bourges’ work blurs the lines between fiction and documentary, often exploring the impact of systems and institutions on human relationships. His shorts Woman Waiting (2010) and William in White Shirt (2015) have screened at festivals across North America and Europe, including the Berlinale, Toronto International Film Festival, South by Southwest, Museum of Moving Images, Ann Arbour Film Festival, and Indie Lisboa. His mid-length hybrid film, East Hastings Pharmacy (2012), premiered at Centre Pompidou’s Cinéma du Réel, and was presented at numerous festivals and art spaces, such as the Viennale; Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM); Entrevues Belfort Film Festival; Melbourne International Film Festival; New York’s Anthology Film Archive; Kasseler Dokfest (Best Film); and DOXA Documentary Film Festival (Best Canadian Film).

Christine Evans’ pedagogic research focuses on bridging film theoretical, psychoanalytic, and ideological approaches with evidence-based scholarly teaching in film and media studies. She has a particular interest in curriculum design, repurposing ‘traditional’ teaching and evaluative practices, and learning technologies. Her discipline-specific research focuses primarily on film theory, Lacanian psychoanalysis, and the work of Slavoj Žižek. Her pedagogic and discipline-specific work has appeared in The Journal of Cinema and Media Studies, Film-Philosophy and The International Journal of Žižek Studies; her book in the series Film Thinks, Slavoj Žižek: A Cinematic Ontology, is forthcoming from Bloomsbury.

Lea Caragata completed her PhD at the University of Toronto, focused on the interplay between land use, social movements and the democratization of public space. Her return to academe to do a PhD followed an almost 20-year career that included grassroots community organizing, social housing development, public policy coordination and public administration in non-profit community organizations and in government. Dr. Caragata continues to blend academic and research interests with her interest and commitment to public policy change and community development. Her book, Not the Whole Story: Challenging the Single Mother Narrativeis an illustration of her participatory, activist work, while her research has examined welfare and labour market changes, critical constructions of resilience and the provisioning roles played by children and youth in low-income families. Other research has focused on citizenship, social movements, gender and social exclusion. Lea contributes to “Canada’s conversation” through her active role as a member of the Educational Review committee of The Walrus magazine as well as having served on numerous non-profit Boards.

Lyana Patrick is an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. She received her BA and MA from the University of Victoria, where she specialized in Canadian history, film studies and Indigenous Governance. She went on to study Indigenous documentary film at the University of Washington through a Canada/US Fulbright Fellowship, before completing her PhD at the University of British Columbia in 2019. Her doctoral studies brought together research interests in Indigenous community health and well-being and self-determination in urban health governance models. These interests were informed in part by three years spent completing pre-requisites for medical school and several years working in the BC Government in treaty negotiations. She joined the Faculty of Health Sciences in 2019.

Event Partners

 

 

Get funding to host your next event at Robson Square!

You can get funding plus promotional and logistical support to bring your event to life.

 

March 25, 2023

Screening & Exhibition of Leslie Cheung—Hong Kong Icon

We are proud to present the screening of the 4K digital restoration of Rouge, accompanied by a special exhibition “Leslie Cheung—Hong Kong Icon” to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the passing of the legendary Hong Kong actor, singer, and performer, Leslie Cheung.

March 15, 2023

Cinema Thinks the World: Fail to Appear (2017)

A free screening of Fail to Appear, a film from UBC professor Antoine Bourges, followed by a discussion featuring the filmmaker.

February 24, 2023

Sue Big Oil Launch Party

Join us for the launch of Sue Big Oil's campaign.

February 16, 2023

Cinema Thinks the World: Rewind & Play (2022)

A free screening of Rewind and Play, followed by a discussion and Q&A led by UBC scholars and local experts.

January 23, 2023

Cinema Thinks the World: The Goddess (1934)

A free screening of The Goddess (1934), followed by a discussion by Professor Christopher Rea.

December 17, 2022

Africans in BC Town Hall

An end-of-year townhall for Africans in the diaspora to come together to network, connect, and discuss how to give back to the development of the continent.

November 25, 2022

Cinema Thinks the World: Mariupolis (2016)

A free screening and discussion of Mariupolis, a documentary made in 2016 by Lithuanian filmmaker Mantas Kvedaravicius about the contested Ukrainian city of Mariupol.

Hand placing an election ballot into a voting box.

October 18, 2022

BC Votes: What Happens Next?

Join a panel of UBC Political Science faculty and alumni as we break down the results of the province’s municipal elections and their consequences for future policy and the future of local government.

October 11, 2022

Cinema Thinks the World: Coming Out (1989)

A free screening and discussion of the 1989 film, Coming Out.

September 15, 2022

Cinema Thinks the World: Irma Vep (1996)

A free screening of Olivier Assayas’ meta-cinematic masterpiece, Irma Vep (France, 1996).

August 25, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

August 18, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

August 17, 2022

Students Underground: UBC Downtown Takeover

Calling all students! Join us for a hands-on, social night of building community and learning how to use your power to make local change.

July 28, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

July 21, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

July 14, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

July 7, 2022

Summer Pop-Up Concert Series

Join us for our Summer Pop-Up Concerts at UBC Robson Square! We're bringing our most talented students to perform for you right in the heart of downtown every Thursday in July.

June 14, 2022

All Our Father’s Relations: Film Screening and Dialogue on Settler Colonialism, Identity, and Migration

In a special partnership with the UBC AMS Indigenous Committee, The Ismaili Centre, Vancouver and UBC Connects at Robson Square will be hosting a FREE, exclusive screening of All Our Father’s Relations, followed by an in-person talkback with Elder Larry Grant and filmmakers, Alejandro Yoshizawa and Sarah Ling.

May 14, 2022

In Tune With Your Brain

A half-day symposium all about the intersection of music and the brain presented by UBC Faculty of Science, Faculty of Applied Science, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, UBC Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

March 27, 2023

Connecting Online Safely

UBC experts explore the subject of how youths can cope with and develop healthier approaches to social media, cyberbullying, and more.

March 30, 2023

Peer-Led Intervention Work to Promote Dignity

A UBC public dialogue event centered around the importance of peer-led work, with formerly incarcerated lived-experience speakers.