Toy Sheep Microcinema, Awesome Space and the Appalachian Theatre present
Oh, Canada!
Friday, January 16, 2026 at 8:30 p.m. / Doors open at 8:00 p.m.
Free Admission – Open to the Public Donations appreciated to support Toy Sheep Microcinema Film Series.
This program is unrated but recommended for adults.
All Seating is General Admission
On Friday, January 16, the Appalachian Theatre, Awesome Space, and Toy Sheep Microcinema begin their wild Spring 2026 season with “Oh Canada! Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Winnipeg Film Group,” featuring two movies: the short SISSY BOY SLAP PARTY (Guy Maddin, 2004, 6 minutes) and the feature CRIME WAVE (John Paizs, 1985, 80 minutes).
What is the Winnipeg Film Group? From their mission statement: “[We are] an artist-run education, production, support, exhibition, and distribution centre committed to advancing the art of the moving image.” WFG’s done all this and more, including supporting the careers of internationally acclaimed directors (including Matthew Rankin, whose UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE is on many “Best of 2025” lists) and nurturing an oddball aesthetic that Toronto critic Geoff Pevere calls “Prairie Post-Modern.”
It’s impossible to cover all WFG’s achievements on January 16, though Toy Sheep programmer Craig Fischer will hit some highlights in his introduction. Craig’s also programmed two films central to WFG history: SISSY BOY SLAP PARTY (2004), a wacky smash-up of homoeroticism, early sound film style, and the Three Stooges by Guy Maddin, the most famous WFG alumnus, and CRIME WAVE (1985), John Paizs’ lively tale of Kim, a precocious pre-teen, Steven Penny, a would-be screenwriter of “colour crime movies,” and Dr. Jolly, a Hank Williams impersonator who volunteers to collaborate with Steven on a screenplay for nefarious reasons.
As Thomas Scalzo writes on the NOT COMING TO A THEATER NEAR YOU website: “Aside from its inviting world, what makes CRIME WAVE so fascinating, and worthy of multiple screenings, is that it is not only a tale of a young screenwriter attempting to find his voice, but also a visualization of a young filmmaker’s struggle to find his voice […] Paizs is constantly experimenting with styles and subjects, never falling back on telling his story in a predictable or conventional way.”
And now CRIME WAVE is, in fact, coming to a theater near you!
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