(Submitted: Karen Riley)
Highest Tides & Green Grass; Introducing Saint John’s Newest Hitmakers, a new documentary focusing on the movers and shakers in Saint John’s cultural community is set to premiere Saturday at the Imperial Theatre.
Director Karen Riley shot the film from May-to-August 2019, interviewing twenty of Saint John’s “hitmakers,” people who helped shape and grow Saint John’s local arts and culture scene.
“I wanted to celebrate the fact that my city is the cultural capital of Canada,” says Riley.
Moonlight Bazaar organizers Jody Kliffer and Lauchlan Ough, Saint John Theatre Company Executive Director Stephen Tobias, Filmmaker and producer Greg Hemmings and Jones Gallery curator Sarah Jones are some of the hitmakers interviewed in the film.
“This project would not have happened if it wasn’t for the collaboration of these artists saying, ‘yes Karen, I’ll give you an hour of my time,” she said. “Not one person said no.”
The documentary has inadvertently become a time capsule of Saint John’s art community, having been filmed before the COVID-19 pandemic, reflecting how people have a new appreciation of the arts, music and culture.
Highest Tides & Green Grass; Introducing Saint John’s Newest Hitmakers will be screened at the Imperial Theatre Saturday, September 25 at 7 PM. Attendees must provide proof of full vaccination and will be required to wear masks when not eating or drinking.
Anyone interested in attending the premiere can check out the Imperial Theatre’s website.
