Bio

Tanner Zurkoski is a third-generation Indigenous filmmaker born in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, and raised across Stó:lō, Nuu-chah-nulth, Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh territories. He was immersed in filmmaking from an early age, beginning his career by logging and transferring MiniDV tapes for his mother, documentary filmmaker Nitanis Desjarlais, whose work documented the front lines of Indigenous resistance movements of the 1990s and early 2000s. Storytelling runs deep in his family: his Kokum, Cleo Reece, was a founding member of one of Canada’s first Indigenous film festivals, and his grandfather, Victor Reece, was a respected Tsimshian carver.

Tanner studied film production at York University in Toronto before writing, directing, and producing the award-winning comedy series The Village Green for Canal+. Since returning to British Columbia, he has worked extensively as a production manager and line producer across TV movies, feature documentaries, series, and animation, honing his craft while collaborating with a wide range of filmmakers. These experiences have sharpened his commitment to telling authentic Indigenous stories that challenge dominant narratives and authentically represent the communities he is part of.

As a director and producer, Tanner’s work blends history, animation, and contemporary Indigenous experience. His short film ʔiiḥtuup (Whale), supported by the Harold Greenberg Fund, Bell Media, and the Netflix Accelerator through the Canadian Film Centre, explores language revitalization and cultural resurgence through the story of a young boy returning to his estranged community. He is also an animation producer on Kokum and Dot, a hybrid puppet and animated Cree-language children’s series for TELUS Originals. Most recently, Tanner has delivered a feature-length hybrid animated and live-action historical documentary on West Coast Indigenous history for Knowledge Network, scheduled for broadcast in 2026, titled Illustrated Legacies: Graveyard of the Pacific. He continues to develop projects that reflect his values as a filmmaker while contributing to ambitious productions as a production professional.