Enigmatico Films was formed in 1993 by husband-and-wife writer/producer/directors David Mortin and Patricia Fogliato. They are currently developing several dramatic theatrical feature films, including:

The Songbird, a dark Victorian romance about two aerial high-wire artists, set against the tumultuous backdrop of Niagara Falls, and the world of 19th century circus spectacles and exhibitions of ‘human curiosities’. Download The Songbird brochure.

The Gravesavers, a family film about a twelve-year-old girl who is sent to spend the summer in a seaside village with her sour grandmother, and becomes haunted by the history of the most tragic Maritime shipwreck prior to the Titanic. Adapted from the novel by Sheree Fitch.  Download The Gravesavers one-sheet.

Mad Ship, about a Finnish immigrant, driven to madness by ruined dreams and the tragic death of his wife, who embarks on a quixotic mission to build a homemade ship and sail out of the prairie dust bowl at the height of the Great Depression.

The Damaged Heart, adapted from a short story by Katherine Govier, in which an elderly man receives the transplanted heart of a teenage girl and finds himself possessed by her wild and wayward spirit.

David and Patricia’s most recently completed production is Black Widow (2005), a macabre film noir musical starring singers Sarah Slean, Martin Tielli, Mary Margaret O’Hara, and actors Tom McCamus and Julian Richings. The film, which premiered on CBC Television in January 2006, received the Czech Crystal for Best Performing Arts Program at the prestigious Golden Prague International Television Festival. The film also received six Gemini Award nominations, including Best Photography, Editing, Sound, and Performance in a Performing Arts Program, as well as Best Costume Design and Original Music Score for a Dramatic Program. See the Black Widow website.

Youkali Hotel (2003), also for CBC Television, stars acclaimed Canadian cabaret singer Patricia O’Callaghan, and features performances by Mary Margaret O’Hara, Hawksley Workman, Kurt Swinghammer and Albert Schultz. Youkali Hotel was nominated for the Rose D’Or in Europe, and received three 2004 Gemini Award nominations for Photography, Editing and Production Design – ultimately winning the award for Best Photography. The film also received three awards at the 2004 Yorkton Film Festival, including Best Direction-Dramatic, Best Arts Production and Best Performance. Download the Youkali Hotel Poster.

Also in 2003, Patricia wrote and directed Dear Juliet, an hour-long documentary produced by Primitive Entertainment for TVOntario’s The View From Here. The film explores the enduring myth of Shakespeare’s tragic heroine, and the thousands of lovelorn letters which people from all over the world write to her each year, addressed simply to Juliet, Verona, Italy.

David has co-written several feature-length performance specials for the internationally renowned arts production company, Rhombus Media, including the Emmy-nominated, September Songs: The Music of Kurt Weill (1995), starring Teresa Stratas, Elvis Costello, Nick Cave, Lou Reed, Betty Carter and Charlie Haden. He was also Co-Writer and Associate Director of Tuscan Skies - Andrea Bocelli (2001), a music special for A&E Television and worldwide DVD release, and Stormy Weather: The Music of Harold Arlen (2002), featuring singers Sandra Bernhard, Deborah Harry, Jimmy Scott and Rufus Wainwright. 

David and Patricia’s earlier productions include: Enigmatico (1995), a Genie-nominated and Hot Docs Award-winning arts documentary that interweaves the poetry, opera, painting, sculpture and photography of several prominent Italian-Canadian artists; Time on Earth (1997), which follows three seniors as they travel the highways of North America in their motor-homes; and The Lanza Sessions (2000), a behind-the-scenes portrayal of the recording of the musical soundtrack for a yet-to-be-made Hollywood biography of Mario Lanza, featuring Canadian opera star, Richard Margison, as the voice of Lanza.