SHADES: The Experience

SHADES: The Experience includes a screening of a selection of short films from Humainologie's series, , which centres and celebrates the voices and lived experiences of Black women, women of the Global Majority, and LGBTQIA+ individuals in Calgary, Alberta. A panel of Black and racialized filmmakers who occupy a variety of intersectional identities will discuss authentic and supportive storytelling and the values, goals, approaches, and techniques for telling underrepresented stories. Plus, Humainologie will be announcing the new cast for SHADES Season Three, premiering Fall 2025!

With live music from Calgary soul artist, ZENON+, Calgary rap/funk artist and Season One Alumni, Sinzere, and cameo appearances by Calgary bass guitarist and Season One Alumni, Lisa Jacobs.

DOORS OPEN AT 4PM. Your ticket includes a free welcome drink. There will be light fare provided and drinks for purchase.

ASL interpretation will be provided at the event. For any other accessibility concerns, please email [email protected].

Cece Chow is a Treaty 7 based trans model, filmmaker, and trans advocate. She firmly believes that positive representation is a key factor in creating equity for the trans community and especially for queer trans people of the global majority. She connects with audiences and readers with deeply personal vulnerability and authenticity to bring people together in our shared humanity. Whether she is creating art, storytelling or speaking out with her own voice, Cece hopes to lift up the marginalized, fill in the gaps, and instigate journeys of discovery.

Contra is a visionary artist, creating immersive and transformative experiences through film, music, and creative direction. As the Co-Founder of the art and production house, FOREIGNERZ, she can be often found building worlds as a film director and producer. Her most well-known alter ego is as one-half of the path-breaking music project, Cartel Madras, signed to American label, Sub Pop Records. In Calgary, she works in the arts as a curator, is one of the organisers and creative leads behind BUMP Festival, and is Calgary Public Library’s current Filmmaker in Residence. In all her endeavours, Contra pioneers new narratives and fosters cultural evolution, sought after for her innovative creative direction by arts institutions across Canada.

Ebony R. Gooden is an emerging artist, filmmaker, and activist based in Calgary, Alberta. With a passion for storytelling and a commitment to social justice, she uses film as a means of exploring and exposing the experiences of marginalized communities. Her films often focus on issues facing the Black Deaf community, as well as broader themes of identity, communication, and relationships. Ebony has been invited to speak at numerous events and has served as a panelist and consultant for organizations such as Calgary Arts Development and the Black Arts Development Program.

Salima Stanley-Bhanji seeks to subtly transform the essence of our visible and invisible environs by experiencing and sharing diverse expressions of beauty and ambiguity. A director/producer and lawyer, she is the co-founder of Humainologie, and co-creator of SHADES. Since 2015, Salima has produced/directed many short films receiving more than 50 international film festival awards and selections. Salima is a Tedx YYC speaker and coach, a recipient of the Calgary Influential Women in Business Award, a recent adjudicator for the Canadian Social Security Tribunal and mama to her favourite human.

Host or Publisher Humainologie