On March 11, the Creston Valley Public Library film club’s feature, the National Film Board of Canada’s Bad Coyote, examines the emergence of a deadly new super-species infiltrating our communities: part coyote and part wolf. Is there any truth to the existence of this new creature, or is it just fear and rumours?
Bad Coyote investigates a perceived threat in the rural Maritimes following a coyote attack that resulted in the death of a young woman in the Cape Breton wilderness. According to local residents the “coywolf” is new, fearless, and very real.
After the attack, said to be the first such fatal mauling against an adult human, alarm spreads across Nova Scotia. Trappers, scientists, sheep farmers and the mother of the 19-year-old victim, Taylor Mitchell, weigh in. Increasing media coverage and reports of coyote attacks and sightings prompts the provincial government to issue a controversial bounty for dead coyotes. To some, the only good coyote is a dead one; but others call for a more measured approach, seeking mutual respect between humans and animals.
The documentary, by Nova Scotia filmmaker Jason Young, provides a forthright analysis of the politics — and the price — of living and playing close to nature.
Bad Coyote will be preceded by the beautifully illustrated Soup of the Day. This animated short presents a dilemma faced by a couple every time they go out to eat. Will their culinary differences douse the flames of romance, or will love prevail? Set to a rollicking doo-wop song by Canadian songwriter Alexander (Zander) Ary, the film brings Lynn Smith’s gouache paintings to life as she animates directly under the camera. This short is a tasty comic narrative that skips along an array of tantalizing dishes. Vocalists Ary and Susie Arioli each bring a unique interpretation to this funny, charming song.
See Bad Coyote and Soup of the Day at 7 p.m. March 11 at the Creston Valley Public Library (use rear entrance). Admission is free. Running time is 55 minutes.
—CRESTON VALLEY PUBLIC LIBRARY