Soul Catcher trailer, shared by Amanda Strong. Watch on Facebook or Instagram.
Some films draw us into their worlds so completely that the craft and the storytelling become inseparable. Haboolm Ksinaałgat (Soul Catcher), from director Amanda Strong and screenwriter and co-director Pamela Post, has that quality. Magical in its storytelling and outstanding in its artistry, this stop-motion short brings a deeply personal history to the screen with extraordinary care.
Set on the Ksyen, or Skeena River, Soul Catcher follows Lu’oo’ya—Echo—a young, gender-fluid Ts’msyen apprentice learning the supernatural knowledge of their ancestors. Their teacher is Gyilak’yoo, or Robin, a 150-year-old halaayt voiced by Tantoo Cardinal. Under her guidance, Lu’oo’ya takes on a task that connects their own journey to a painful chapter in their people’s history. Spotted Fawn Productions
A missionary forced Ts’msyen children to throw a century-old totem pole into the river to “drown the devil” in their people. Using a soul catcher amulet, Lu’oo’ya must retrieve the pole’s lost soul. Their journey moves through supernatural transformations and beneath the river’s surface, linking ancestral knowledge with an effort to reclaim what colonial violence sought to destroy. EIFF award announcement, Spotted Fawn Productions
The film’s historical foundation comes from a true experience in the childhood of Post’s Ts’msyen father. That family connection extends into the cast: actor and singer Asher Wyatt Maclaren voices Lu’oo’ya in a story inspired by his own grandfather. Traditional Ts’msyen music further connects the film to the culture at its heart. Spotted Fawn Productions
Inside the world of Soul Catcher
Film stills: Spotted Fawn Productions.
What makes Soul Catcher so captivating is the way its artistry serves this journey. The puppetry, cinematography, and storytelling draw the audience into a world where the relationship between generations feels immediate. The supernatural elements give the story a sense of wonder, while its roots in lived experience give that wonder emotional weight.
There is a remarkable command of stop motion here. The craftsmanship invites admiration, yet the film keeps drawing our attention back to Lu’oo’ya’s journey and the history behind it. Its images and puppet performances work together with the assurance of artists who deeply understand how to make a handmade world feel alive.
For those of us who love the medium, that combination is especially rewarding. Soul Catcher captures the magic of watching physical artistry become an absorbing cinematic experience. The skill is exceptional, and its greatest achievement is how fully it brings us into the story.
For Post, the project continues a practice of bringing family histories into public view. A Ts’msyen and German-Canadian journalist, broadcaster, filmmaker, and educator, she previously explored her family’s stories in a CBC IDEAS documentary. Here, animation offers a form in which memory, ancestral teachings, and supernatural adventure can share the screen.
Strong brings a filmmaking practice built around handmade animation and Indigenous storytelling. A Red River Métis director, producer, and editor, she founded Vancouver-based Spotted Fawn Productions in 2010. The Indigenous-owned and led studio places mentorship, collaboration, and cultural continuity at the center of its work, supporting emerging artists alongside its productions.
Stop Motion Magazine readers may recognize Strong and the studio from our coverage of INKWO for When the Starving Return, co-produced with the National Film Board of Canada. Soul Catcher brings a distinct family history and Ts’msyen perspective into that growing body of work.
The short has already earned significant festival recognition. Following its September 2026 world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, it received the Director’s Prize at SPARK Animation. Simon Fraser University, Cartoon Brew
It also won the Grand Jury Award for Best Short Film in Animation at the Edmonton International Film Festival, an Oscar-qualifying award. According to Strong, the win qualified the film for consideration at the 99th Academy Awards. EIFF award announcement
Strong, Post, and their collaborators have created a film whose artistry makes its story of ancestral love deeply engaging. Through Lu’oo’ya’s quest to recover the pole’s soul, Soul Catcher gives cultural reclamation a compelling dramatic form—and demonstrates the expressive power of stop motion in the hands of masterful artists.
Learn more about Haboolm Ksinaałgat (Soul Catcher) at Spotted Fawn Productions.
