Episode 501: In The Seats With...Ashley McKenzie and 'Queens of the Qing Dynasty'

The dynamic nature of Canadian storytelling is just creating a plethora or riches for Canadian audiences....On this episode we are looking a the brand new film from one of Canada's most exciting new filmmakers which is opening at the TIFF Bell Lightbox today.  It's time for 'Queens of the Qing Dynasty'.Queens of the Qing Dynasty is a queer friendship romance that breaches the absurd and poetic. Both intimate and intense, it explores the intrinsic beauty and innate flaws of what it is to be human, the profundity of connection, the vortex of mental illness, and the creativity of neurodivergence. The electronic music score blurs between cinema foley and sound design to create a feeling of an alternate plane. It's an affectionate ode to women, asexuals, and genderqueer individuals who exist beyond the norms of society by writer and director Ashley McKenzie.This celebrates not only the power of connection but the importance and beauty of those who exist just outside of the "accepted" norms of society and takes us inside the unique headspace of what it means to be truly human.We had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with writer/director Ashley McKenzie to talk about the origins of the story and so very much more....