In 1896, the newly formed Department of Indian and Northern Affairs began removing young indigenous children from their families and taking them south to residential schools where they were subjected to severe physical, sexual and emotional abuse by those entrusted to care for them. The result was the near complete decimation of the health and welfare of generations of indigenous children and perhaps the beginning of the end of the indigenous way of life.

The children of these “Lost Generations” would spend the rest of their lives struggling to cope with the emotional and physical trauma inflicted upon them, to relearning their languages and cultures, to reconnecting with friends and family and to redefining their place within their community and the world at large.

Many would win this struggle, most would not.

HEROINE is the story of one brave young girl who struggled to defy them.

Inspired by the hardships of three generations of Indigenous women, HEROINE is the story of a young indigenous girl who, taken from her village and sent to residential school, witnesses unimaginable atrocities before eventually ending up on the streets of Toronto where she succumbs to drug and alcohol addiction. A passionate and resilient young woman, she manages to overcome her ordeal, before tragically losing her life at the hands of a serial killer.

Originally conceived as an opera, the film uses the vibrant songs and music of the 1970’s combined with traditional animation and colourful characters and settings to underscore the deeply troubling and emotionally charged world of a young Indigenous woman as she struggles to overcome the hardships of life before, during and after residential school.