Carts of Darkness
Encyclopedia
Carts of Darkness is a 2008 National Film Board of Canada
documentary film
by Murray Siple about a group of homeless men in North Vancouver, who use shopping cart
s to collect bottles and cans to return for money and also race down the city's steep slope for thrills.
The subjects in the film control the carts using only their weight and one foot, during descents that cross intersections, with top speeds claimed to be as high as 70 km/h.
Siple, a former director of extreme sports videos and avid skateboarder and snowboarder, became a quadriplegic after a car accident in 1996. His first film after his accident, Carts of Darkness allowed the filmmaker to regain the excitement he had experienced with extreme sports as well as relate to a fellow group of outsiders.
at the Picture This Film Festival in Calgary.
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
by Murray Siple about a group of homeless men in North Vancouver, who use shopping cart
Shopping cart
A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...
s to collect bottles and cans to return for money and also race down the city's steep slope for thrills.
The subjects in the film control the carts using only their weight and one foot, during descents that cross intersections, with top speeds claimed to be as high as 70 km/h.
Siple, a former director of extreme sports videos and avid skateboarder and snowboarder, became a quadriplegic after a car accident in 1996. His first film after his accident, Carts of Darkness allowed the filmmaker to regain the excitement he had experienced with extreme sports as well as relate to a fellow group of outsiders.
Reception
Carts of Darkness was shown at public screenings in Vancouver and Victoria, with the film's subjects in attendance. It was also selected for the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. The film received the Leo Award for Best Documentary Program in the Nature/ Environment/Adventure/Science/Technology category as well as the award for best documentary over 30 minutesat the Picture This Film Festival in Calgary.