Amanda Strong

Amanda Strong is a Michif artist, animator, and film director who’s short films have been internationally screened at Cannes, TIFF, The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the Museum of Anthropology, and more. 1She grew up in Mississuaga, Ontario, being heavily involved in the Metis community. Her grandmother told her many stories of their ancestors and family as she grew up, which she portrays through the complex stories of her animated films. Following the death of her grandfather, Strong began exploring making films using his camera when she was still in high school. 2 In 2009 she created the Vancouver-based animation studio Spotted Fawn Productions, where she collaborates with other creators to make stop-motion films which she utilises the medium to tell Indigenous stories and perspectives.

Four Faces of the Moon

Directed and produced by Amanda Strong in 2016, Four Faces of the Moon is an animated short film that depicts the harsh history of colonialism in Canada. The film follows Fawn, a photographer, who meets her Cree, Metis, and Anishinaabe ancestors as she journeys into the past. Strong’s family history is shown through the events Fawn witnesses, where she learns about the development of the railway and the mass slaughter of the buffalo. 3

Inkwo For When the Starving Return

Inkwo For When the Starving Return is a short film that is based on a short story written by Richard Van Camp. Produced by Spotted Fawn Productions and in 2024, the film follows Dove, a young, genderfluid warrior, who is gifted with medicinal knowledge and the healing arts. Dove must use this medicine, called Inkwo, to protect humanity and animals from supernatural beasts that are able to consume the souls of living creatures. 4 Inkwo For When the Starving Return was co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada and played at the Sundance Film Festival in January, 2025. Strong also announced in January that Spotted Fawn Productions will produce an animated series based on the film and the work of Richard Van Camp. 5

Flood

Combining shadow puppetry and stop-motion, Flood follows Thunder, an Indigenous youth who has to traverse through a colonial flood as Spider Woman battles against Old Judge, an oppressive figure who fills the world with his writings of colonial history.6 Flood is one of five films in the “Keep Calm and Decolonize” series, curated by Jesse Wente in 2017 to bring together Indigenous-made films that show how Canada could have been different without European colonization. 7

Personal Reflection

I am a huge fan of stop-motion animation and have been obsessed with Amanda Strong’s work since high school, when I was shown Flood in class. The medium is extremely unique and gives an almost tactile sensation to the films, which is especially seen in Strong’s work. Stop-motion in particular works extremely well with the Indigenous stories that Strong has depicted; stop-motion is extremely complex and difficult, but the extreme efforts and time that goes into making the props move in ways that seem organic and genuine are not seen in the final product. It can take days to make one minute of stop-motion animation, but people tend to dismiss just how much work goes into it. I feel that such notions are shared with how people view Indigenous stories, and the unseen efforts behind stop-motion is symbolic of the complex and sometimes strenuous history of Indigenous peoples.

  1. “Team.” Spotted Fawn Productions. https://www.spottedfawnproductions.com/team/. Accessed 18 April 2025. ↩︎
  2. CBC. “1,000 handmade skulls: The Making of Four Faces of the Moon” https://www.cbc.ca/shortdocs/features/four-faces-of-the-moon-director-amanda-strong-film. Accessed 18 April 2025. ↩︎
  3. “Four Faces of the Moon.” Spotted Fawn Productions. https://fcp.nux.mybluehost.me/four-faces-of-the-moon/. Accessed 18 April 2025. ↩︎
  4. “Inkwo For When the Starving Return.” Spotted Fawn Productions. https://www.spottedfawnproductions.com/inkwo/. Acessed 20 April 2025. ↩︎
  5. Lee, Abigail. “Sundance Short ‘Inkwo for When the Starving Return’ to Be Expanded Into Limited Series (EXCLUSIVE).” Variety, 22 January 2025. https://variety.com/2025/film/news/inkwo-for-when-the-starving-return-animated-short-series-1236282120/. Accessed 20 April 2025. ↩︎
  6. “Flood.” Spotted Fawn Productions. https://www.spottedfawnproductions.com/flood/. Accessed 21 April 2025. ↩︎
  7. Dimoff, Anna. “Animated short film tells story of Indigenous youth combating colonial influence.” CBC, 10 December 2017. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/amanda-strong-flood-short-1.4442248. Accessed 21 April 2025. ↩︎