MANDATE
Created Independently is a Toronto based company dedicated to the creation and production of original theatre, films and multimedia installations that explore themes of social, cultural and personal identity through comedy. In doing so we aim to stimulate and entertain audiences and provide opportunities for Canadian artists to share ideas, collaborate and create works together.
If you are interested in working with us give us a shout! Email helen@createdindependently.com, we’re always interested in new people and projects.
HISTORY
Created Independently began in the summer of 2009 in downtown Toronto. The name was found when Helen realized that a whole bunch of projects on her resume had ‘created independently’ written in where the production company would normally be, and figured why not? It pretty much sums up the nature of our work, so we decided to roll with it.
In the beginning each member had their own experience with multimedia productions, from Helen and Patrick’s experimental installation “How To Rent A Room” at Queen’s University, to Robin’s shadow-show production of “Blue Velvet” for Toronto Fringe Festival 2009 (**** Eye Weekly). In all instances various media collided to create a new and alternative space that the audience could experience, enjoy and respond to.
Stimulated by these experiences we began our first project: “Trash Talk”. This was a multimedia installation that explored connections and patterns of being that exist between individuals living in Toronto through found objects (aka people’s trash). We exhibited these objects at Labspace Studios in Dec 2009, accompanied by audio recordings in which strangers discussed the objects with us and the memories and ideas that they inspired. It was exciting to watch people listen to and respond to the interviews that we’d collected and we will be re-investigating the project as part of a larger series in the fall.
Since then we have also made two short films “The Worst People In the World” and “That Thing You Watch” which are in various stages of production. These are satirical and somewhat absurdist comedies that have been pulled together to take a look at how people deal with the world around them and how we interact with media and our city.
With more imagination than money, we’ve filmed in weird and interesting locations, dived into politically incorrect territory, and discovered our own brand of weird humour, similar to “Kids in the Hall”, “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” and “Mr. Show”.
However, the most important parts of our process, and the thing that links all our work together, is the amazing people that we’ve met and worked with in the past year. It’s been incredible discovering so much talent in the city, and it is our goal to continue networking and building relationships with artists across the city, in all disciplines, and to continue creating exciting new works.