Sam Rose Phillips is a poet, filmmaker, and photographer based in Nuu-chah-nulth Territory on the west coast of Vancouver Island. She focuses her lens on human-wildlife stories and their significance to coastal communities, specializing in off-grid, remote storytelling from land and on the water. In the midst of documenting the awe and aches of the natural world, Sam’s art kneels at the foot of moments spent following wolf tracks and dreaming alongside humpbacks. She listens closely for Earth’s guidance on how to exist in these times. Framing narratives alongside communities has instilled in her a dedication to integrating truth and hope into the same conversations. Her words, images, and films are published by Save Our Seas Magazine, Salty at Heart Journal, CBC’s The Wild Canadian Year, Age of Union, Clarion Magazine, and Outdoor Photography Magazine.
Sam's ethical approach to storytelling has been the subject of workshops and lectures with youth and emerging photographers around the coast. She has been working with Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ and Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation mentoring youth in cultural filmmaking projects. She is a meaningful contributor to Iisaak Sin Hay Tiic?mis, a working group of local scientists, Parks Canada staff, members of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations, and residents of Tofino and Ucluelet seeking to find a way forward to guide more respectful carnivore-human coexistence. She is currently directing a documentary about coexisting with carnivores. When Sam's hands aren't actively engaging with stories, they're happiest when nesting at the homestead with her partner and pup, covered in soil from her budding garden, and paddling her kayak around the temperate rainforest she calls home.
UPCOMING PROJECTS
Sam is in the development phase of directing her first long-form documentary. Sam and her crew are excited to be working so closely on a wildlife conservation story close to home, in partnership with local communities. They’re looking for funding so if you have any suggestions, or would like to purchase any prints please reach out - all wisdom-shared and profits-gathered will go towards the making of this film.
In the midst of ecological grief accumulated through five years of documenting the thriving and collapsing of the natural world, Sam retreats to her poetry and watercolours to elicit solace from this collective heaviness. In dialogue with her wild photography, her words kneel at the foot of moments spent following wolf tracks and dreaming alongside humpbacks, listening closely for guidance on how to exist in these times. An underlying awareness emerges from this collection: the Earth can be our greatest teacher in learning to have compassion for ourselves and one another. Earth Knows How to Love Herself is a gallery exhibit that connects this theme across Sam Rose Phillips’ photography, poetry, and watercolour paintings.
Sam has hosted workshops with the Royal BC Museum, primary school classes, and was a filmmaking mentor with youth from Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation. Whether it’s film, photography, or words, she is offering to empower you with these tools through 1-on-1 sessions. The length and subject matter will be fit to your training level, age, and area of focus. If you’re living in British Columbia and are interested in learning from someone with the experience, values, and ethics of Sam Rose Phillips, please reach out through the contact form below.