TORONTO, ON - Tom Wilson is the subject of Beautiful Scars, a TVO Original Documentary available to stream now at Beautiful Scars onTVO . The trailer can be seen on Youtube at Beuatiful Scars Trailer . From two-time CSA-nominated Métis director Shane Belcourt (Red Rover, Kaha:wi: The Cycle of Life), Beautiful Scars is a poignant narrative crafted by an indigenous director. Through intimate, detailed interviews with Wilson, Belcourt unpacks an astounding story about a secretive upbringing, self-destructive music career and the moments that led to the discovery of the shocking, stranger-than-fiction lie Tom Wilson was fed his
entire life.
The film traces back in time to unravel Wilson’s biographical history and eventually follows him to the
Kanawahke reserve, where he explores his Mohawk heritage and meets for the first time the birth family that
didn’t even know he existed. “Making this movie was a transformative and revitalizing experience for my mother and I,” says musician and visual artist, Tom Wilson. “It freed whatever old ghosts that were hanging around our attics and stirred up the sludge at the bottom of our lakes. My mother and I were victims of a heartless colonial system but in the end
we won.”
Beautiful Scars blends a hybrid of visual styles, animation and archival photos set to motion. The soundtrack,
pulled from Wilson’s extensive catalogue, drives the pace and story development.
“Tom is a fearless artist that courageously wears his heart on his sleeve, and for us, he puts it on the screen,”
says Belcourt, “and as we spoke about from the beginning, his reclamation journey isn’t about putting on an
indigenous costume, this is ultimately a story about taking the costume off and revealing Tehoh’ahake, (Two
Roads), his Mohawk name.”
“With Shane at the helm and our incredible access to Tom, who’s a naturally gifted storyteller, we tell a
layered, nuanced story,” says Corey Russell, Executive Vice President of Cream Films and producer of the
film. “Beautiful Scars is Tom’s painstakingly told journey about the scars that both hurt us and make us who
we are.”
Beautiful Scars is a TVO Original documentary. The broadcast partners of this film are TVO and APTN and
includes funding from the Hot Docs Slaight Fund. Cream Films recently produced All or Nothing: Toronto Maple Leafs (Amazon) and the premium doc Nike’s Big Bet, which had its world premiere at Hot Docs last year and just won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Sports Program.