''The Rez'' is a Canadian drama television series, which aired on CBC Television from 1996 to 1998. Bruce McDonald and

Norman Jewison Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best ...

were executive producers of the series, which chronicled life in an

Ojibway The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

community. The series is based on the short story collection '' Dance Me Outside'' by

W. P. Kinsella William Patrick "W. P." Kinsella (May 25, 1935September 16, 2016) was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, known for his novel ''Shoeless Joe'' (1982), which was adapted into the movie ''Field of Dreams'' in 1989. His work often concern ...

and its 1994 film adaptation by McDonald. It was cancelled after two seasons.

Cast

* Ryan Rajendra Black - Silas Crow *

Jennifer Podemski Jennifer Podemski (born January 1, 1974) is a First Nations (Canadian) film and television actress and producer. Her acting credits include starring roles in the television series '' Tin Star'', ''The Rez'', '' Riverdale'', ''Moccasin Flats'', ...

- Sadie Maracle *

Darrell Dennis Darrell Dennis is an Indigenous Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter and radio personality from the Secwepemc Nation in the interior of British Columbia. Darrell’s acting career began at the age of 17 when he walked into his first profes ...

- Frank Fencepost * Tamara Podemski - Lucy Pegahmagabow * Elaine Miles - Mad Etta (season 2) *

Gary Farmer Gary Dale Farmer (born June 12, 1953) is a Canadian actor and musician. He is perhaps best known for his role as Nobody in the films ''Dead Man'' (1995) and '' Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai'' (1999), and for his role in '' Smoke Signals'' (1 ...

- Chief Tom * Adam Beach - (played Frank Fencepost in ''Dance Me Outside'', but was recast in the series as "Charlie") *

Kari Matchett Kari Matchett is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Colleen Blessed on ''Power Play'', as Joan Campbell on ''Covert Affairs'' and as Kate Filmore in the science fiction movie '' Cube 2: Hypercube''. She has also appeared in films ...

- Tanya Nanibush * Patricia Collins - Eleanor Nanibush *

Herbie Barnes Herbie, the Love Bug is a fictional Sentience, sentient 1963 Volkswagen Beetle, who has been featured in several Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney motion pictures starting with the 1968 feature film ''The Love Bug''. He has a mind of his own an ...

- Joseph Crow *

Monique Mojica Monique Mojica ( Kuna and Rappahannock) is a playwright, director, and actor based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She was born in New York City, but came to Canada as founding member of Native Earth Performing Arts. She has appeared in several ...

- Mad Etta (Season 1) *

Shirley Cheechoo Shirley Cheechoo ( cr, ᔒᓕᒋᒍ born 1952) is a Canadian Cree actress, writer, producer, director, and visual artist, best known for her solo-voice or monodrama play ''Path With No Moccasins'', as well as her work with De-Ba-Jeh-Mu-Jig theat ...

- Simone Crow

Production

Bruce McDonald was executive producer with

. Most of the characters were based on

's short story collection ''Dance Me Outside'', which had been made into a film by McDonald. The series was filmed in the

Parry Sound Parry Sound is a sound or bay of Georgian Bay on Lake Huron, in Ontario, Canada. It is highly irregularly shaped with many deep bays and islands. Killbear Provincial Park is located on the large peninsula that separates the sound from Georgian B ...

region at Harrison Landing in Carling Township. All episodes run around 23 minutes. The name of the reservation, "Kidabaneesee", is a word made up by the producers.

Episodes and synopsis

;Initial Movie (1994) : Dance Me Outside (84 minutes) ;Season 1 (1996–1997) # Dressed Like a Fish - The marina's owner dies. For fun Frank stages his own mock funeral with the others. Who will take over the marina? # Golf and Politics - Sadie organizes a boycott against the bar/marina and insists that Silas and Frank quit working for Eleanor, the new owner. # A Little Revealing - Sadie showcases her revealing wear to Silas after Silas is asked to become a male stripper. # The Longhouse - Frank locks Lucy in a shack in hopes she will think and reconsider her plans to leave for Toronto. # The Lark - Silas' mentally impaired brother goes to a group home. # Dirty Girls, Kill Kill! - Frank hires strippers to fight in a vat of pudding to raise money. Sadie is upset by what she sees as sexism. ;Season 2 (1997–1998) # Strange Bedfellows - A stranger comes to run for chief versus Chief Tom. Sadie backs him at first, until Charlie digs up his past (and present) behavior. # They Call Her Tanya - Eleanor's daughter is introduced to the Rez. All the boys are looking her way. # Poster Girl - Local girls are asked to try out to become a cover-girl for a clothing line. Sadie is against it at first, but—when she is chosen as the model—she changes her tune. # Like Father, Like Son - Silas' birth father comes back to the Rez, but Silas is not happy about it. His father is given the sentence of living alone on an island to win back the respect of the locals. # Granted - The reservation band announces a $5000 youth grant. # Lust - Silas' challenged brother, Joseph, traumatizes a young girl with unwanted touch. # Windigo - Silas and Frank think they are cursed and must fight and defeat the Windigo spirit. # No Way to Treat a Lady - Frank likes Tanya, but Tanya likes Charlie, which causes friction at a party. More friction is happening elsewhere when Eleanor and Simone are being hit on by three troublemakers at a bar. # A Rock and a Hard Place - Charlie and Tanya's relationship grows. Meanwhile, he, Silas and Frank are working for a racist construction foreman. Frank gets revenge on the foreman in an explosive finale. # Der deutsche Indianer - A German historian comes to the Rez to learn some native stories from Silas and Frank. The only problem is that he knows more native stories and history than the boys do. # Too Many Chiefs - Sadie takes over from Chief Tom. # No Reservations Part 1 - Silas finds Sadie in bed with another man. Frank sees Lucy working the streets of Toronto. # No Reservations Part 2 - Frank tries to rescue Lucy from working the streets. Silas wants Sadie back.

Awards and nominations

At the 1997 Gemini Awards,

was nominated for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role" for the episode "Golf and Politics". At the 1998 Gemini Awards, Patricia Collins was nominated for "Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series" for the episode "They Call Her Tanya". Producer Brian Dennis was also awarded the Canada Choice Award for this episode. Also at the 1998 Gemini Awards, Ryan Rajendra Black was nominated for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role" for the episode "Lust".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rez, The 1990s Canadian drama television series First Nations television series CBC Television original programming 1995 Canadian television series debuts 1998 Canadian television series endings Northern Ontario in fiction Canada Award-winning shows Television shows set in Ontario Films based on works by W. P. Kinsella