The Films of Ella Morton

• In-Person event
• SAW , Ottawa , ON , K1N 6E2

Admission: Free but donations are welcome. 

Please join us for a screening and artist talk by Ella Morton. Ella Morton (she/her) is a Canadian visual artist and filmmaker whose expedition-based practice has brought her to residencies and projects across Canada, Nordic Europe, Greenland, Latin America, Australia and Antarctica. Working primarily with lens-based media, she uses experimental analogue processes to capture the sublime and fragile qualities of remote and increasingly vulnerable landscapes. 

Following a short talk where Ella will discuss her use of the photographic darkroom technique mordançage in her filmmaking practice, we will screen Crushed Between Ocean and Sky (2023), Wanderer (2024 ) and An Uncertain Eternity (2025). 

Crushed Between Ocean and Sky (25 min): “In late 2021, I set out on a unique sailing journey on the tall ship Bark Europa from Uruguay across the South Atlantic Ocean, towards South Georgia & Antarctica. One week into the trip, the ship ran into a massive storm & the main mast was struck by lightning. The intended itinerary was cancelled & we spent the next two weeks sailing directly to our end destination of Ushuaia, Argentina. This story is told by crew & passengers aboard the ship during the two weeks sailing towards Ushuaia after the lightning strike” (Ella Morton).

Wanderer (12 min): A music video for Linda Catlin Smith’s contemporary music piece of the same name. Performed by the Thin Edge New Music Collective in Toronto & filmed on location in the Faroe Islands.

An Uncertain Eternity (36 min): An Uncertain Eternity follows the journey of icebergs that travel from Ilulissat Icefjord in Greenland to the East coast of Newfoundland in Canada. Narrated by Greenlanders & Newfoundlanders, this film explores the political, social, & spiritual implications of the icebergs & how they are changing as the planet warms.

This event is organized by the Ruth and Mark Phillips Professorship in Cultural Mediations (Carleton University), Lightproof Film Collective, The Canadian Film Institute, and the Film Studies Program (Carleton University).

*Club SAW is fully wheelchair accessible. Visitors enter SAW at 67 Nicholas Street through the paved courtyard, where a ramp and stairs lead to the entrance’s automated door. SAW’s entrance and Club SAW are located on Level 0. There is also an accessible washroom in the venue on Level 0.