The Fall 2023 edition of the First Nations Film and Video Festival closes with the Chicago debut of Cody Lightning's "Hey Viktor!", fresh from the Tribecca Film Festival, at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N Southport Ave, on Friday, November 10, 2023 at 7:00pm.
EventBrite tickets are required for entry.
From the Tribecca Film Festival website:
"It’s been 25 years since all eyes were on the Cree kid from Edmonton who made it big with a starring role in the indie hit Smoke Signals. Now grown up, former child actor Cody Lightning is deep in the bottle and down on his luck, basking in past glories via faded VHS tapes and endlessly rewriting zombie-priest scripts with creative partner Kate (Hannah Cheesman). When his friends stage an intervention, Cody seizes the moment — and camera crew — to take one last shot at producing Smoke Signals 2. With backing from a psycho investor and in hot pursuit of Adam Beach’s wig to tie the film together, Lightning’s deliriously dysfunctional set becomes a mess of unresolved tension and self-destruction, leading to a long-overdue reckoning with the community that raised him.
Unapologetic and unafraid to milk sacred cows, Hey Viktor! is an irreverent comedy that’s as smart as it is raunchy, and marks the arrival of a major comedic voice in Native cinema. With rich supporting turns from Irene Bedard, Gary Farmer, and Simon Baker, Lightning strikes a balance between riffing on the work of a previous generation and the importance of community."––Cedar Sherbert
Official synopsis: (Language warning)
Twenty years removed from childhood fame as Little Viktor in 1998’s Smoke Signals, CODY LIGHTNING has been forced to move home to his reserve in northern Alberta. He still believes himself to be famous— even though the only parts he gets these days are porn & fracking commercials. But when Cody learns his wife and kids are leaving him for a younger, more successful actor, he decides it’s time to quit fucking around and make his masterpiece— writing, directing, & starring in SMOKE SIGNALS 2: STILL SMOKING. A documentary crew follows Cody on his journey around the Indigenous world— re-uniting the original cast, borrowing money from arms dealers, & realizing his vision... just in time to realize his vision was shit.
So, this film will be a trip. We hope that you can join FNFVF Inc in presenting this brand new feature to Chicago audiences!
LIMITED SEATING AVAILABLE! Ticket link goes live on OCT 1st!
Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you there!
Featured Film: “Hey Viktor!” Clip