Get Sonya to San Diego Comic Con
HELP SONYA GET TO SAN DIEGO COMIC CON
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UPDATE JUNE 2 2018: THANKS TO YOU ALL
My campaign has reached its goal but I shall keep it up as any additional funds will go towards the funding of my SDCC short doc "Cree Super Girl" and a donation to the Winnipeg Film Group and/or the National Screen Institute to get some Neechi girls and women into their awesome classes.
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My name is Sonya Ballantyne and I am filmmaker and writer based out of Winnipeg. I am Swampy Cree originally from Misipawistik First Nation. I am also a huge nerd.
I was recently given an opportunity to speak at 2018 San Diego Comic Con in July. Being the only Cree woman attending this year. I believe this will be an amazing opportunity to speak about the importance of positive Indigenous and female representation in nerd media as well as my continued work in the field. This will allow my work to be more visible on the world stage.
The goal of my campaign is to raise 3400 dollars Canadian to attend this event. As it is San Diego Comic Con, the hotel costs (something I could normally cover) are almost unspeakable especially when converted to Canadian dollars and it combined with costs related to ground travel and flights are making planning for the trip extremely stressful.
As a public speaker, I’ve given a TedX talk on the subject of positive Indigenous representation in media entitled “If I don’t see myself how do I know I exist?” and spoke at We Day Manitoba on the importance of telling your own story (and opened for George Takei!) I have also spoken at various elementary and high schools to classes about my work and what inspires me to do it.
The majority of my film and narrative work focuses on Indigenous women and girls in non traditional genres such as sci-fi, fantasy and superhero stories. My first film Crash Site has played internationally including the Superman Fan Festival in Metropolis Illinois.
This is a really once in a lifetime event and I would love to be able to attend with your help. Thank you for any help you are able to give and every little bit helps.
