Biography
Sonia Bonspille Boileau is a bilingual Kanien'kehá:ka and Québécois filmmaker who has been working with Nish Media for almost fifteen years bringing Indigenous content to the screen for viewers of all cultural backgrounds.
She first started making documentaries to explore her bicultural heritage and understand the impacts of colonialism. Some of her documentary credits include Last Call Indian, The Oka Legacy, Wapikoni, and Skindigenous. In 2015 Sonia wrote and directed her first feature film Le Dep, a small budget film that had a surprisingly successful run in festivals, theatres and on demand. Her second feature film Rustic Oracle, which was shot in her home community of Kanehsatà:ke, recently won two Leo Awards including Best Feature Film. She is currently in preproduction of her first drama series.
In the duality [of] carrying both identities and how you make room for that, I also realized I had the power to be a bridge between two different cultures with the projects that I wanted to develop, trying to create that space where you’re carrying this voice. But, you’re actually speaking to these people as well as these [other] people, and you are in a good position to navigate that because you have one foot in each world.
—Sonia Bonspille Boileau