The Story
A woman-powered documentary film about one of Canada's most overlooked trailblazers. Wildflowers blends backcountry adventure with a historical deep-dive to explore the themes that bond two writers living a century apart.
Featuring Mary Schäffer Warren (1861-1939) and Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS) Fellow, Meghan J. Ward (b. 1984).
Mary Schäffer Warren (1861-1939) was 43 years old and recently widowed when she bucked Victorian-era conventions and reinvented herself as a mountain explorer, writer, and photographer. Over a century later, Meghan J. Ward, an outdoor writer, historian and a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, is entering her forties with new questions about her identity and her relationship with adventure and the natural world. Captivated by the mystery of this woman she can’t meet in person, Ward dives into Schäffer’s story to find both inspiration and answers.
Ward's journey to “meet Mary” takes an interesting turn in the new terrain that awaits her in the Maligne River Valley. She invites fellow travel writer Jane Marshall and photographer/RCGS Fellow Nat Gillis on a week-long hiking and paddling adventure to revisit the last leg of Schäffer’s 1908 expedition to Chaba Imne (Maligne Lake) where unmaintained trails make for challenging conditions.
[Mary Schaffer and Billy Warren] V439 / PS - 6 WMCR.
Meghan J. Ward. Photo by Paul Zizka.
In Mary Schäffer Warren, we’ve found a true trailblazer and inspiration for modern-day women, creatives and people from many walks of life. We initially set out to make a film about a bold character who bucked conventional norms and embraced a wild spirit. But the more we delved into Mary’s story, the more the focus of the film turned to how she inspires us to navigate life transitions, embrace our imperfections, and seek healing in nature. We want as many people as possible to meet Mary, whose story also challenges us to look at the colonial history of the Canadian Rockies with a fresh and nuanced perspective.
Schäffer’s camera gear and lantern slide projector at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. Photo: Nat Gillis.
Schäffer’s lantern slide collection. Photo by Trixie Pacis.
Schäffer’s book (1911) that chronicles her 1907 and 1908 expeditions. Photo: Trixie Pacis.
Meghan takes a close look at lantern slides. Photo by Nat Gillis.
The many names of Mary Schäffer Warren. Photo by Meghan J. Ward.
By exploring the common threads between two kindred souls living a century apart, Wildflowers aims to shine a light on the impacts of Schäffer’s legacy, give a voice to an underrepresented segment of the outdoor community, and inspire people of all ages to explore their own wild spirits. It reminds us to honour our overlooked trailblazers while also acknowledging the areas in which we need to blaze a new trail.
Wildflowers revisits Schäffer’s story from the perspective of a woman and fellow mountain writer approaching midlife. One doesn't often see middle-aged women represented in the outdoor space. We see them on the trails, just not often on the screen. Wildflowers isn't only about the midlife experience but uses it as a portal into an exploration of how we might navigate our life transitions, and redefine our relationship with the outdoors.
Schäffer was a complex and contradictory person whose story also offers an entry point into nuanced discussions around gender expectations, cultural norms, colonial impacts and the influence that Schäffer's life had on Indigenous peoples of the Canadian Rockies. Her story gives us an opportunity to gain a different view of Canadian history as it’s been told.
Meghan J. Ward. Photo by Paul Zizka.
[Mary Schaffer crossing stream on log, William Warren watching] V439 / PS - 3 WMCR.
Meghan on the horsepacking trip into Red Deer Lakes. Photo by Trixie Pacis.
Meghan and Jane at Maligne Pass. Photo by Nat Gillis.
Jane Marshall crosses one of the many streams in the area. Photo by Nat Gillis.
A still of photographer Nat Gillis on a scramble to obtain a repeat of Sid Unwin’s shot of Maligne when he first spotted it on the 1908 expedition. Image by Anandi Brownstein.
Meghan J. Ward writing before the canoe journey begins. Photo by Nat Gillis.
A sample repeat photo from a series Nat Gillis photographed during the expedition. Here our crew paddles through the frame, which shows an image of the raft in front of Mt. Unwin that Schäffer’s group built back in 1908. Photo: Nat Gillis. Archival photo: Mt. [Mount] Unwin from Camp [Maligne Lake], V527 / PS 1 - 68 WMCR. Photo: Nat Gillis.
By exploring the common threads between two kindred souls living a century apart, Wildflowers aims to shine a light on the impacts of Schäffer’s legacy, give a voice to an underrepresented segment of the outdoor community, and inspire people of all ages to explore their own wild spirits.
The Background
The idea was first born in March 2020 when emerging filmmaker Trixie Pacis pitched the story to the Banff Centre Adventure Filmmakers Workshop. She wondered: Why had no one ever done a documentary about Mary Schäffer Warren — such a powerful female figure in Western Canadian history? The idea started coming to life on a hike when she mentioned it to friend and Rockies-based writer and historian, Meghan J. Ward. Meghan, it turned out, had been tracking and exploring Schäffer’s story for nearly 20 years.
Meghan considered how Schäffer is well-known in the Rockies, however, Trixie’s observations about her story being under-told were true. Growing up on opposite sides of the country, neither Trixie nor Meghan had heard of Schäffer until they spent time in Banff, Alberta, where Schäffer made her historic mark and spent her last decades. That Schâffer isn't more well-known in a broader context was baffling to the two. Trixie and Meghan set off to change that. Seeing that the scope of the project was growing by the minute, the two teamed up as co-producers.
What's more, the filmmakers set off to work with as many women as possible through the process. Women creators are underrepresented in the outdoor filmmaking space. Many women, as well as members of the BIPOC community, need to see each other working in this industry in order to feel encouraged to participate. We are proud to say our team — between cast and creative — is made up of 95% women from a variety of cultural backgrounds.
In the spirit of respect, reciprocity, and truth, we honour and acknowledge that Wildflowers is filmed and produced on Treaties 6, 7 and 8 Territory, the traditional and sacred lands of Indigenous peoples, including the Niitsitapi from the Blackfoot Confederacy (including the Siksika, Kainai, and Piikani First Nations); the Îyârhe Nakoda of the Chiniki, Bearspaw, and Goodstoney First Nations; the Tsuut’ina First Nation; the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region III within the historical Northwest Métis Homeland; the Ktunaxa and Secwépemc First Nations; the Mountain Cree clan of Chief Peechee; and the Dene of the far north and far south. It is with gratitude that we visit these landscapes.
Filmed on location and with the permission of the Parks Canada Agency, at Jasper National Park and Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada, as well as with permission of the Town of Banff.