Colin Van Loon

Filmmaker Ahnahktsipiitaa (Colin Van Loon) originally hails from The Piikani Nation. During his upbringing, he resided alongside his mother in Lethbridge and many other dusty Southern Alberta towns. Currently, Ahnahktsipiitaa is the Operations Manager for the Indigenous Matriarchs 4 AR/VR media lab (IM4-Lab), a leading VR/AR project to increase Indigenous representation in emerging XR fields. Ahnahktsipiitaa sits on Telefilm Indigenous Working Group and is a Frames Film program board member. Community centered, he aims to elevate the voices and stories of Indigenous peoples whether it is creating spaces for youth works in the Talking Stick's Festivals REEL Reservation: Indigenous Cinematic Indigenous Sovereignty Series or through his company Blackfoot Nation Films and collaborations with other Indigenous artists including the Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Trevor Soloway and the late Taran Kootenhayoo. Ahnahktsipiitaa currently collaborates with The National Film of Canada's Digital Studio in Vancouver, developing an immersive and experimental 360-video documentary known as This Is Not A Ceremony set to debut in 2021.