Roots

200610 min 55 secFilm: Animation

Direction: Alison Reiko Loader

Production: David VerrallMichael Fukushima

Script: Alison Reiko LoaderPaul Bellini

"I just keep thinking, does my other mom love me? Does she think about me? What was it like for her to give me away. Why can't I find out? I need to know. It's my story too."

Roots is a one-of-a-kind produce-eye journey through a supermarket - and through the highly sensitive issue of adoption disclosure.

As a series of fruits and vegetables each drop into a shopping cart, they quickly get caught up in a conversation about origins. Together, they offer a diet of strongly held opinions: from a weepy apple who desperately seeks the truth about her natural mother, to a moralistic mushroom who thinks adoption information is best kept in the dark.

With its bright and a-peeling look, Roots is a brilliant film that will help seed discussion among older children and adults. While the film presents a medley of opinions, it clearly comes down on the side of greater openness. Or, as one outspoken orange puts it: "I tell you, this whole sealed records issue is pissing me off."

Directed by Alison Reiko Loader (herself an adoptee), Roots is written by Paul Bellini of the legendary comedy troupe Kids in the Hall, and voiced by an all-star comedic cast, including ex-Kids Scott Thompson and Mark McKinney.

Availability


Other versions


Subject categories


  • Families > Adoption and Foster CareAnimation on the Family

Credits


direction
Alison Reiko Loader
story
Alison Reiko Loader
animation
Alison Reiko Loader
writer
Paul Bellini
voice
Maggie Cassella
Mark McKinney
Cara Pifko
Fiona Reid
Scott Thompson
original music
Luigi Allemano
sound design
Luigi Allemano
musician
Marie-Claire Cousineau
Mariane Croteau
Dave Gossage
Sheila Hannigan
Mathieu Harel
François Pilon
John Sadowy
Luigi Allemano
additional models
Stephanie Duong
additional animation
Stephanie Duong
graphic design
Jason Lee
digital imaging specialist
Susan Gourley
camera
Zacharie Fay
camera assistant
Francis Hanneman
picture editing
Oana Suteu
recording
Geoffrey Mitchell
Sylvain Cajelais
Eric Apps
foley
Karla Baumgardner
additional sound recording
Marco Fania
additional sound editing
Marco Fania
re-recording
Jean Paul Vialard
titles
Gaspard Gaudreau
online editing
Denis Gathelier
grocery store shopper
Marco Fania
Helen King
Janis Kirshner
Julie Tamiko Manning
Rebecca Singh
technical coordination
Jelena Popovic
Samuel Lambert
Julie Laperrière
Richard Lesage
marketing
Hélène Tanguay
Melissa Wheeler
studio administration
Gisèle Guilbault
Rosalina Di Sario
Jocelyne Lalonde
executive producer
David Verrall
producer
Michael Fukushima