Welcome to the North End

Arriving in Winnipeg’s North End in search of a better, safer life, young Ukrainian immigrant Eva finds a city filled with rundown, outdated establishments and a disproportional number of other, culturally diverse immigrants, all too in search for a new life; each desperately holding onto their own language and culture, creating a neighbourhood of (comedic) miscommunication, growing apathy and oft painful alienation.  

In what is quite possibly the most culturally diverse film in history, this deeply resonant portrait of immigrant life has 25 different languages spoken on screen, cast entirely with immigrant Canadians from disparate corners of the world, each speaking in their native tongue.  Uniquely, this rich tapestry of immigrant life in DIASPORA is presented without the aid of subtitles; this deliberate choice is a hugely rewarding one, for as depicted in the film, new people to new countries are faced with the harsh reality of needing to communicate in ways other than - spoken language - to understand one another, to survive, to find a sense of purpose and feel a sense of belonging.   DIASPORA is unique in many ways, most poignantly however, is how it uses humour, authentic locations, constrained language, impeccable cinematography and a singular, female empowered point of view to present its truly authentic portrayal of the often painful and lonely immigrant experience.