''Unclaimed'', released as ''On the Farm'' in some international markets, is a Canadian TV film starring

Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers Elle-Máijá Apiniskim Tailfeathers (born in 1986) is a Blackfoot and Sámi filmmaker, actor, and producer from the Kainai First Nation in Canada. She has won several accolades for her film work, including multiple Canadian Screen Awards. Bor ...

Sara Canning Sara Canning (born July 14, 1987) is a Canadian actress. She co-starred on The CW television series ''The Vampire Diaries'' as Jenna Sommers, and appeared in the 2009 feature film, '' Black Field''. She starred as Dylan Weir in the Canadian telev ...

, Patrick Gallagher, Kevin McNulty,

Tantoo Cardinal Tantoo Cardinal CM (born Rose Marie Cardinal; July 20, 1950) is a Canadian actress of Cree and Métis heritage. In 2009, she was made a member of the Order of Canada "for her contributions to the growth and development of Aboriginal performing ar ...

, and

Sarah Strange Sarah Strange is a Canadian actress. She has worked in a variety of American and Canadian television and film projects, including Helen in the Canadian drama ''Da Vinci's Inquest'' and as the voice actor for Ranma Saotome. Life and career Strang ...

. It is a dramatic narrative adapted from journalist

Stevie Cameron Stevie Cameron, , (, Stephanie Graham Dahl; born 11 October 1943) is a Canadian investigative journalist and author. Early life and work Stephanie "Stevie" Graham Dahl was born in Belleville, Ontario, to Harold Edward Dahl, a mercenary Americ ...

's 2010 book of the same name, examining the years leading to serial killer

Robert Pickton Robert William "Willy" Pickton (born October 24, 1949) is a Canadian serial killer and former pig farmer. He is suspected of being one of the most prolific serial killers in Canadian history. After dropping out of school, Pickton left a butcher ...

's arrest and the court proceedings before his conviction.

Plot

Nikki Taylor ( Elle-Maija Tailfeathers), a resident of Vancouver's

Downtown Eastside The Downtown Eastside (DTES) is a neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the city's oldest neighbourhoods, the DTES is the site of a complex set of social issues including disproportionately high levels of drug use, homeles ...

, struggles to get out of the cycle of addiction and

sex work Sex work is "the exchange of sexual services, performances, or products for material compensation. It includes activities of direct physical contact between buyers and sellers as well as indirect sexual stimulation". Sex work only refers to volunt ...

to get back to her son. She notices the disappearance of an alarming number of women as she fights to get off the streets. She teams up with social worker Elaine (

) and police officer Sinead McLeod (

) to investigate. They face a slow-moving police department until the media takes notice and it becomes a national story.

Cast

as Nikki Taylor *

as Elaine *

as Sinead McLeod * Patrick Gallagher * Kevin McNulty *

Awards

The film won the awards for Best Television Movie, Best Screenwriting in a Television Movie, and Best Casting in a Television Movie at the 2016

Leo Awards The Leo Awards are the awards program for the British Columbia film and television industry. Held each May or June in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the Leo Awards were founded by the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foundation of British C ...

. It was also nominated for Best Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Picture Editing, Best Musical Score, Best Make-Up, Best Supporting Performance - Female (

), and Best Lead Performance - Female (

). At the

5th Canadian Screen Awards The 5th annual Canadian Screen Awards were held on March 12, 2017, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2016. Nominations were announced on January 17, 2017. Awards in many of the technical categor ...

in 2017, Tailfeathers won the award for Best Actress in a Television Film or Miniseries.

Reception

The narrative has been noted for its refusal to put the serial killer as the main character. Francois Marchand of ''

The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published si ...

'' notes: "A more sensational retelling of the story would be about Pickton, but ''On The Farm'' is clearly not about the character portrayed briefly by actor

Ben Cotton Ben Cotton (born July 26, 1975) is a Canadian film and television actor. His most notable roles are on the TV series ''Stargate Atlantis'' playing scientist Dr. Kavanagh, his portrayal of "Leon Bell" in the game Dead Rising 2, Shane Pierce, the ...

, who doesn’t have a single line of dialogue and is simply credited as 'The Farmer.'” ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' television critic John Doyle writes: "The Pickton character barely appears and the attention is, rightly, on the addicts and sex workers and the handful of cops who understood from the start that the matter of missing women deserved serious scrutiny."

References

External links

* * {{Rachel Talalay Films directed by Rachel Talalay English-language Canadian films Films shot in Vancouver Canadian drama television films 2016 television films 2016 films 2010s Canadian films