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Caledon’s Pannia part of two Oscar nominated short films

March 3, 2022   ·   0 Comments

By Rob Paul

Breaking into the film industry is no small task, and it becomes increasingly hard when you aren’t brought up in an area that easily lends itself to connections in the arts and entertainment world. 

Being a Canadian and trying to make it in film offers unique challenges, which make it even more jaw-dropping that Caledon’s own Marc Pannia has not only made it as a director and producer, but he’s now got two short films he’s worked on up for Oscars.

The Mayfield High School grad grew up in Caledon with his parents being business owners in Bolton and at the 94th Academy Awards he’ll have two producer credits on two nominated films: Maria Brendle’s “Ala Kachuu – Take and Run” (Best Live Action Short) and Hugo Covarrubias’ “Bestia” (Best Animated Short).

“I’m extremely honoured to be part of the talented teams of two powerful short films,” he said. “Beyond the incredible filmmaking, it’s their important and impactful stories that mean the most. I’m still in shock, it’s incredible to be on these two projects. They’re two important stories and I’m happy the Academy is seeing what I’m seeing in it as well. It’s validating that they also see how important these stories are and understand that they need to be promoted and recognized.”

“Ala Kachuu – Take and Run,” which Pannia was an executive producer on, focuses on the Kyrgyz bride-kidnapping and is inspired by real events as the film follows a young Kyrgyz woman who dreams of studying in the capital as she is kidnapped and forced to marry a stranger. 

“I’m honoured to join the talented team of ‘Ala Kachuu – Take and Run,’” said Pannia. “Maria Brendle has created more than just a piece of entertainment; her vision is a call to action to demand basic human rights and I couldn’t be prouder to stand behind a powerful and eye-opening film that seeks to create that kind of change.”

Pannia is co-proudcer of “Bestia,” a film inspired by real events that centres on the life of a secret police agent during the military dictatorship in Chile, where the relationship with her dog, body, fears and frustrations, reveal a macabre fracture in her mind and country.

“Hugo Covarrubia’s artistry is unparalleled, and I couldn’t be more excited to support a film that invites the audience to consider not just the banality of evil, but the way it moves through our world, often looking just like the rest of us,” said Pannia. “It was a no-brainer to get involved with these films because I love the message behind them, and I love the film-making teams. These filmmakers are so talented, so I had to jump on. I’ve seen all the Oscar nominated shorts and they’re all very good, but I’m so proud of the two I’m representing and working with.”

Since 2015, Pannia has been involved in numerous short films and music videos as a director, producer, writer, and editor, but this wasn’t necessarily a career he ever realistically saw for himself.

“I was in Toronto working in sports and marketing and then one day my sister called me and told me her roommate was moving out and had already paid for the rest of the year and she asked if I wanted to come live with her in L.A. for a few months,” he said. “And I was like, ‘well, yeah, why the hell not?’ She had lived there since 2011 and this was 2014. I loved film as a child, but I never thought it was a career path and I ended up on a music video shoot and I fell in love with the production process. I realized, ‘Wow, this is how the hotdogs made and I really enjoy this, it’s so cool.’ 

“From there, I applied to UCLA and got into UCLA Extension where I was studying directing and producing and the education got me moving forward with it. That led my sister and I to write a script called ‘OverAgain,’ and it was the first short I directed. It went on to play in 11 film festivals and won a ton of awards at UCLA and Las Vegas. From then on it was kind of like, ‘alright this is a possibility for me, this is what I’m doing now.’”

Despite the opportunity coming somewhat out of nowhere for Pannia, he had the mentality that even though this wasn’t always his plan, he didn’t want to leave anything on the table, so he decided to shoot his shot.

“I thought while I’m in LA, I’m young and I’m in such a lucky spot to get to be able to do this so I might as well try it,” he said. “Worst case scenario, it doesn’t work then that’s okay, at least when I’m 60 or 70 I won’t regret it and I can tell my grandkids that I made a short or a music video. It was something that was really cool, and I wanted it to work, of course.”

It might seem almost impossible for a Canadian from a small-town to make it in TV or film, but Pannia says that’s slowly changing as the narratives shift with more and more promotion of the quality content coming out of Canada.  

“It’s starting to become a lot more global, but even in 2014 it could feel inaccessible and like it’s out of reach and not for us,” he said. “I graduated from Mayfield in 2008 and even with the arts program there you’d only hear about like one person making it out to LA to be in the industry. It didn’t really feel like it was a career option. 

“The good news now though is a lot of organizations like Telefilm and Ontario Creates have been doing a lot better film promoting the Canadian film and TV industry. We’re turning out a lot better content and it’s just growing and growing. Canada used to be a place where Hollywood would come and film because it’s cheap and it can play New York, but now there’s a lot more Canadian shows being made here. Schitt’s Creek was made here and is a Canadian show and thanks to things like it, Canada is becoming more of a leader than just a place people come to film. 

On top of having more recognition for Canadian work, Pannia points to advancements in technology making it easier for anyone interested in the industry to just go out and start creating content and putting it online or submitting it to film festivals. 

“The industry is becoming more accessible every day. Everyone has an iPhone, and the new iPhone 13 is almost a cinema quality camera. You don’t need to fly to New York or L.A. to get an education anymore, I’ve learned so much from YouTube. You can start putting stuff together on your own and upload it right away and get recognition on the internet. Everything is becoming more accessible. Just because you’re in Caledon, doesn’t mean that it’s for them and not for you. The best way to learn is to just go out and do it—go out and start filming.”

Going forward, Pannia’s priority in film is to continue to create projects that tell important stories, and to help others with diverse experiences that he feels need to have their voices heard.

“My goal is to continue to make my own projects and work on projects I want to see be made, and I think that speaks to my past history,” he said. “Everything I’ve made has been something I wanted to see, whether I directed or produced, I just want to be part of making stuff that needs to be made because, if I don’t do it, then maybe other people won’t. One thing that’s really important to me is working with diverse casts and crews because I love getting input from everyone.

“If I was closed-minded and kept to myself then I’d never make great stuff. I’m a straight white dude and there’s no getting around that, but it doesn’t mean that other people shouldn’t be cut out. Once you get too much of the same voice on something, you lose depth and perspective, and you don’t learn about other people’s experiences and stories. I’m a director, that’s what my passion is, but sometimes I need to take a back seat because I’m not the right person to tell the story.”

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