Trigger (film)

Trigger is a Canadian comedy-drama film, released in 2010. Directed by Bruce McDonald, the film stars Molly Parker and Tracy Wright as Kat and Vic, former rock stars reuniting their band Trigger for the first time since their retirement.

The film was originally planned in the late 1990s as a companion film to McDonald's Hard Core Logo, which would have starred Hugh Dillon and Callum Keith Rennie. However, the film was never made at that time, and remained dormant until McDonald and screenwriter Daniel MacIvor decided to rewrite their original screenplay to be about two women instead. Rennie does, however, appear in the film as his Hard Core Logo character Billy Tallent.

The film's cast also includes Daniel MacIvor, Don McKellar, Sarah Polley, Lenore Zann, Carole Pope and Julian Richings. Brendan Canning of Broken Social Scene wrote the film's score.

Wright was undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer during the film's production. It was the last film she completed before her death.

Trigger film

A trigger film is a type of short social guidance educational film intended for student audiences. It is often presented in elementary and middle school classrooms and carry themes that are often about subjective topics such as morality, ethics, and safety. The movies often carry a loose, disconnected, plot that intentionally lacks a conclusion or even a moral.

Format

Trigger films are usually very short and only have a few scenes. They are usually not accompanied by narration or any prologue (except, perhaps, to introduce the situation), instead the audience only observes the characters' behaviors and actions.

The intention of a trigger film is to "trigger" a discussion about the short scenes presented in the movie and how the characters reacted to the situation, and how each viewer would handle that situation differently. The teacher often serves as a mediator, perhaps offering his or her own insights, but most of the discussion is left to the students.

Example

A trigger film about cheating on a school test would be presented as follows: