RoachTrip
Encyclopedia
RoachTrip is a 46-minute 2003 Canadian
documentary
about two punks, Roach and his friend Smash down the invisible punk highway across Canada
. It captures their goal to escape the streets of Montreal
as they cross 5000 km (3,107 mi) to reach the "promised land" of British Columbia
's Okanagan Valley.
The film is an autobiographical
coming-of-age chronicle told in an intimate point-of-view style, directed by Eric "Roach" Denis
of EyeSteelFilm
, a Montreal
-based documentary production company, as a continuation of the autobiographical journey that he had started by being portrayed as one of the main characters in Daniel Cross
award-winning documentary S.P.I.T.: Squeegee Punks in Traffic where Eric Denis contributed with his RoachCam. The film RoadTrip became the directorial debut film of Eric "Roach" Denis.
the desert. In between is a hardcore odyssey down Canada's invisible punk highway in search of something pure and clean. Roach and Smash, two inseparable street buddies from Montreal introduced in 2002 documentary "S.P.I.T." earlier, ping-pong across the country. The same couple are now set loose with RoachCam and the loose mandate of filming the annual Punk migration across Canada.
Camping, fishing, and fruit-picking their way through summer, these two punks are never quite able to leave the city behind. Just beyond the paradise of the Okanagan lies the lure of the streets of Vancouver
.
, Alberta
, Canada. The film is scheduled for New York Underground Film Festival
(aka NYUFF) (New York) NEMO (Paris) and the Images du Nouveau Monde (Quebec City
).
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
documentary
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...
about two punks, Roach and his friend Smash down the invisible punk highway across Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It captures their goal to escape the streets of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
as they cross 5000 km (3,107 mi) to reach the "promised land" of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
's Okanagan Valley.
The film is an autobiographical
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
coming-of-age chronicle told in an intimate point-of-view style, directed by Eric "Roach" Denis
Eric "Roach" Denis
Eric Denis better known as Eric "Roach" Denis is a Montreal-based Canadian documentary film maker and activist whose films deal with social justice, and particularly homelessness.-Earlier Life:...
of EyeSteelFilm
EyeSteelFilm
EyeSteelFilm is a Montreal-based Canadian cinema production company founded and co-owned by Daniel Cross and Mila Aung-Thwin, dedicated to socially engaged cinema, bringing social and political change through cinematic expression...
, a Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-based documentary production company, as a continuation of the autobiographical journey that he had started by being portrayed as one of the main characters in Daniel Cross
Daniel Cross (filmmaker)
Daniel Cross a Canadian documentary filmmaker, producer and activist whose films deal with social justice.He is co-founder of EyeSteelFilm with fellow director/producer Mila Aung-Thwin. He is the president of the company...
award-winning documentary S.P.I.T.: Squeegee Punks in Traffic where Eric Denis contributed with his RoachCam. The film RoadTrip became the directorial debut film of Eric "Roach" Denis.
Synopsis
RoachTrip starts by waving the black flag in the House of Commons and ends wandering lost inthe desert. In between is a hardcore odyssey down Canada's invisible punk highway in search of something pure and clean. Roach and Smash, two inseparable street buddies from Montreal introduced in 2002 documentary "S.P.I.T." earlier, ping-pong across the country. The same couple are now set loose with RoachCam and the loose mandate of filming the annual Punk migration across Canada.
Camping, fishing, and fruit-picking their way through summer, these two punks are never quite able to leave the city behind. Just beyond the paradise of the Okanagan lies the lure of the streets of Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
Festivals
The documentary premiered at the FCMM Festival and also screened at the Global Visions Festivals in EdmontonEdmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, Canada. The film is scheduled for New York Underground Film Festival
New York Underground Film Festival
Founded in 1994 by filmmakers Todd Phillips and Andrew Gurland, the New York Underground Film Festival was an annual event that occurred each March at Anthology Film Archives in New York City from 1994 through 2008...
(aka NYUFF) (New York) NEMO (Paris) and the Images du Nouveau Monde (Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
).