By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A new documentary probing Chatham-Kent’s housing crisis will air this Friday.
Produced, edited and directed by Kat and Karissa Strain, “Unhoused: Communities in Crisis” will premiere in Tecumseh Park at 8 p.m. and on Cogeco’s YourTV Chatham at the same time.
Aimed at being “educational and inspirational,” Karissa Strain said the documentary showcases stories about the unhoused that are “solution based.
“It is intended to share information and build awareness around solutions being sourced,” Strain said of the production and “remind the community we must work together to combat this.”
The Strain twins, a filmmaking duo known for their work in front of the camera, were already working on the documentary prior to the downtown Chatham encampment moving to the Chatham-Kent Public Utilities Commission green space this summer.
The encampment’s relocation, which evoked a strong reaction from the public, spurred the pair on.
“It aims to do a local snapshot of a global issue,” Strain said, showcasing a plethora of issues rural municipalities face in relation to Canada’s housing crisis.
Until the federal and provincial governments come forward with a fix, Strain said the only solution is for the “community to come together.”
Strain said Reach Out Chatham-Kent (R.O.C.K) gave the sisters access for the film, as did Chatham-Kent municipal staffers who deal with programs associated with housing and homelessness. However, she noted all aspects of the issue will be explored, including information presented to C-K council via deputations.
According to Strain, both of the twins are aware of growing tension and frustration in the community with a lack of solutions or tangible results at present, but the film will show what’s currently being done.
The Friday screening will be the only opportunity to see the documentary before it is submitted for film festival judging.
Prove what exactly that the homeless people are affecting the global economy destroying images of what investors are wanting to see and are Panhandling infront of businesses and grocery stores that’s really insightful to see a bunch of drug addicts acting like low lifers getting praise for being for not doing what they were supposed to be housed and going to treatment
And you have one hell of a run on sentence. I could barely read that. But I tried.
You brought nothing to the table.
The money used to make this film probably could have housed some people instead of making the strain sisters more “famous” in Chatham-Kent. Having worked in the film industry for 5 years, and wanting to be a documentarian I understand what it costs to make a film.