‘Blood Quantum’ Filmmaker Jeff Barnaby Dies of Cancer at 46

Mi’kmaw filmmaker Jeff Barnaby, who received critical acclaim for his films Rhymes for Young Ghouls and Blood Quantum, has died at 46 after a year-long battle with cancer.

The writer-director was considered a visionary in modern Indigenous cinema. He brought to light the horrors of Canada’s residential school system in his 2013 debut Rhymes for Young Ghouls, and in 2019 won six Canadian Screen Awards for his follow-up Blood Quantum, a horror film 13 years in the making about a zombie outbreak on a Mi’kmaq reserve.

His colleagues in the Canadian film industry shared their condolences on social media. 

Barnaby was raised in the Mi’gmaq community of Listuguj in Quebec and lived in Montreal. Blood Quantum is currently available on-demand and Rhymes for Young Ghouls is on CBC Gem in Canada.