HATCH
HISTORY OF HEATHER
My childhood was less than ideal and I struggled in a lot of ways. Things started to fall into place once I found out I had been adopted. At 16 I met my biological father Rick, a charming and charismatic Haida man. Through him, I got to know this other side of myself and my family. I met my Nuni, Dolores Davis, and discovered the beauty of the Haida culture.
In 2016, I asked my Nuni for a blanket so I could be fully participate in my culture. “I’ll give you one if you make it,” she said. I took it one step further. Not only will I make the blanket, I thought, I’ll make a movie of it. My first film, Woman Who Returns, was aired on CBC Gem in 2017 and helped me embrace my culture and love of story telling. From then on, film was my only way forward.
In the decade I’ve been making films, my lens has become wider. Filmmaking has taught me compassion and how to listen. Most importantly film has deepend my respect for the human connection. I’ve had much to learn along the way and have much more to learn in years to come. But one thing I’m certain of is that we learn in stories, we remember in stories, and there are many yet to come.
Awards & Recognitions
FILM BIO
Heather Hatch is a Haida filmmaker whose focus is on writing stories that explore the female and Indigenous experience. She has worked on a number of broadcast shows as a Director, Field Producer, Coordinator and Story Producer. Her work as a director for APTN and Cottage Life’s Dr. Savannah Wild Rose Vet: Season 2 was nominated for an AMPIA award in 2023 for Best Director (Documentary Under 30 Minutes) and a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Nine Lives in 2024. Heather is a recipient of the Gil Cardinal Legacy Fund award, Edmonton Arts Council Cultural Grant, WIFTV Banff Fellowship, Whistler Indigenous Filmmaker Fellowship, Hot Docs Doc Accelerator Program, Netflix Diversity of Voice Initiative - Banff World Media Festival and the NSI EAVE yearlong producer program in 2022.
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Her first feature film, Wochiigii lo: End of the Peace, looks at the devastating impacts of land development on Indigenous ways of life. The film was produced with support from Telefilm’s Talent to Watch program and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival before going on to another 22 more festivals. The film was nominated for seven AMPIA awards winning Best Production Reflecting Cultural Diversity and was a runner up for the Edmonton Film Prize in 2022. She also received an award of excellence for outstanding long form documentary from FAVA and a special mention for the RIDM Magnus Isacsson Award.
OUTSTANDING
LONG FORM DOC
Heather Hatch
Wochiigii lo: End of the Peace
FAVA 2022
BEST PRODUCTION REFLECTING CULTURAL DIVERSITY
Wochiigii lo: End of the Peace
AMPIA 2022