Speaking to Iorì:wase ahead of the Quebec premiere of Rising Through the Fray, Sherry Bontkes couldn’t help but feel a tinge of melancholy for her glory days on the derby rink.
“I miss the game. I miss the people. I miss being a part of the fray,” Bontkes lamented.
Better known by her alter ego Sour Cherry, Bontkes was one of the central figures of Rising Through the Fray. The documentary tells the story of Indigenous Rising, the first borderless Indigenous roller derby team, and its journey to the 2018 World Cup in Manchester, United Kingdom.
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As a lifelong fan of the sport, Kahnawa’kehró:non filmmaker Courtney Montour was inspired to make the documentary after reading about Indigenous Rising in a local newspaper back in 2017.
“The film is not a sports documentary,” Montour said. “It’s about personal stories of disconnection from community and identity and finding their way home through a team.”
Having spent most of her adult life in roller derby rinks, Bontkes first learned about the formation of what was then called Team Indigenous in 2006. While intrigued, Bontkes was still unsure if she was “Indigenous enough” for the team.
“I am part of that Sixties Scoop generation,” Bontkes explained. “It was tough growing up in a white family. I didn’t have a lot of roots. I didn’t know my birth family.”
Bontkes eventually decided to go out on a limb and apply anyway. But to her surprise, Bontkes would learn that the team’s founders had been following her career for years and were hoping she would try out for the team. Once she became a full-fledged member of Indigenous Rising, Bontkes learned that many of her teammates had similar fears before joining.
“I found out I wasn’t alone,” Bontkes said.
Indigenous Rising would do more than help Bontkes reconnect to her roots. As roller derby was a women-only sport at the time, it also gave her a safe space to express herself.
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“So, we didn’t have to deal with toxic masculinity: it was just toxic women,” Bontkes said.
As Indigenous Rising’s chief enforcer, it also gave Bontkes the chance to, as she put it, “beat the crap out of other people.”
“I think it was a good avenue to get my frustrations out,” Bontkes said.
Rising Through the Fray is Montour’s first feature-length documentary. But Jason Brennan, the producer of the film and owner of NISH Media, had collaborated with her on earlier projects.
“When you have somebody like Courtney, there’s not a whole lot of hand-holding that needs to be done,” Brennan said.
Brennan has been helping Montour coordinate Rising Through the Fray festival run, with additional screenings planned in Edmonton, Montreal, Winnipeg and Ottawa from January through February. Rising Through the Fray is also scheduled for wide release through the CBC on May 9.
Attending the Quebec premiere last week has also given Bontkes the “much needed” opportunity to reunite with her former teammates.
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“I felt like that was a piece of me that’s been missing lately, and I really needed to make that connection,” Bontkes said.
Bontkes has since retired from roller derby due to sustaining a career-ending knee injury after her days as Indigenous Rising’s enforcer caught up to her.
“It is possible to have longevity; just don’t be the Dave Semenko of roller derby,” Montour added.
Rising Through the Fray will have its final Montreal screening at the Alanis Obomsawin Theatre this Saturday at four p.m.
Bontkes hopes that her story can give hope to young Indigenous girls grappling with their identity and space in the world.
“It doesn’t matter how Indigenous you think you’re not; you can still be accepted,” Bontkes said.
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