Bárbara Wagner and Benjamin de Burca

Completed during a 2018 residency in the Wexner Center’s Film/Video Studio and winner of the 2019 Audi Short Film Prize at the Berlin International, RISE explores the musical universe of a community of young poets, rappers, and singers living on the outskirts of Toronto. These performers, which include a number of first-generation Canadians from Africa and the Caribbean, are all part of RISE (Reaching Intelligent Souls Everywhere), a movement encouraging personal expression and storytelling through hip-hop and spoken-word performance. The group worked collaboratively with Wagner and de Burca on the script and music for the film. (20 mins., 2K DCP)