Jeff Barnaby, a filmmaker and member of the Mi’kmaw tribe who brought Indigenous cinema to greater attention, has died at 46. He had a yearlong battle with cancer, his representative confirmed.
Raised on the Listuguj Reserve in Quebec, Barnaby is known for his early shorts, the Jutra Award-nominated The Colony and the Genie-nominated File Under Miscellaneous.
His 2013 debut feature, Rhymes for Young Ghouls, criticized Canada’s residential school system. Barnaby followed up with the 2019 zombie horror film Blood Quantum, which swept the Canadian Screen Awards, winning six out of its 10 nominations — the most of any film at the awards that year. It featured a mostly Indigenous cast.
Blood Quantum depicted a zombie outbreak on a fictional Mi’kmaq reserve. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2019, but saw its theatrical release canceled by the pandemic. It was released for streaming in 2020.
On Twitter, Toronto International Film Festival CEO Cameron Bailey described Barnaby as an “artist powered by a blazing fire,” who “understood horror on its deepest levels.”
“Canadian cinema was better for having his talents, passion and vision,” said actor and writer Jay Baruchel in his own post.
Barnaby is survived by his wife, Sarah Del Seronde, and son, Miles. No memorial details have been released.