Farewell Winona
13-Nov-2019
A fourteen year-old girl on her last day before high school navigates the juncture between childhood and adolescence. Daiva Žalnieriunas directs “Farewell Winona,” a textured coming-of-age drama that vividly captures a place - rural Canada - and a period of innocence right before things start to turn complicated. Winona spends the day swimming in a lake with a friend, playful and carefree. On the way home though, the tone of the day begins to shift. Her bike gets a flat tire, and a local boy offers her a ride. Suddenly she’s in a truck with a senior in high school feeling new pressures and anxieties. They only get worse when the boy (who used to be her babysitter) invites her to a friend’s trailer, where the topic of conversation quickly lands on unsettling stories of partying and sexual encounters. An evocative snapshot of a time defined by new feelings, Žalnieriunas’ film is told with immediacy and sensitivity, carried by great performances and rich visuals. Directed by Daiva Žalnieriunas. Cast: Natalie Ioffe, Talia Neelis, Danny Bohr Lee, Seth Duffy. DOP: Graham Foy. Editor: Andrea Ziedenberg. Producer: Emily Harris. Production Design: Erika Lobko.