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Fefe Dobson has toured the world, achieved pop-punk stardom and found a new home in Nashville, but she\u2019s never truly left Scarborough behind.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI\u2019ve seen the good and the bad of that part of the city,\u201d the singer says of the east-end\u00a0Toronto\u00a0district where she grew up.<\/p>\n
\u201cScarborough has always had its own energy. Its own community. I appreciate where I come from. I don\u2019t think I\u2019d be who I am if I didn\u2019t grow up there. There\u2019s a lot of stories and a lot of strength that comes out of Scarborough.\u201d<\/p>\n
When her friend Ron Dias reached out to her six years ago asking for help bringing those Scarborough stories to life via a film called \u201cMorningside,\u201d it was a no-brainer.<\/p>\n
Opening in select theatres Friday, the film follows seven people whose lives converge at a community centre in Morningside Heights, Dobson\u2019s childhood neighbourhood.<\/p>\n
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Dobson plays a nurse in the drama, joining\u00a0Toronto\u00a0actors Kiana Madeira and Lovell Adams-Gray as Scarborough residents navigating relationship turmoil, systemic barriers and the creeping effects of gentrification. The film also explores the ripple effects gun violence can have on communities.<\/p>\n
Dias says he always wanted to make a movie about the diverse suburb he grew up in, but securing financing as a debut filmmaker proved challenging.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe kept running into roadblocks, which helped us in a way, because the community came together to help us make this,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
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