KAWARTHA LAKES-Six Canadian venues will mark the 100th anniversary of the Balsam Lake tragedy with special screenings on Monday, July 20, 2026
One hundred years ago, on the night of July 20, 1926, a group of young men and their camp leaders set out across Ontario’s Balsam Lake in a thirty-foot war canoe – and were swallowed by a freak summer storm that would test the limits of human courage, sacrifice, and camaraderie.
Click here to see our video of the original release of the movie in Kirkfield and a memorial held on the 93rd anniversary:Â https://www.kawartha411.ca/2019/08/02/kirkfield-hosts-world-premiere-screening-of-brotherhood-the-movie/
On Monday, audiences are invited to special screenings of the Canadian Screen Award-winning 2019 drama to discover this epic adventure / survival story. Brotherhood was written and directed by Richard Bell and stars Brendan Fehr, Brendan Fletcher, Jake Manley, Spencer MacPherson, Sam Ashe Arnold, Matthew Isen, Gage Munroe and Dylan Everett. Since its original release in December of 2019, Brotherhood has screened at over 80 cinemas in Canada.
Brotherhood follows a band of young men who arrive at Long Point Camp on Balsam Lake for two weeks of games, canoeing, and adventure — only to be caught in a storm that turns their holiday into a soul-shuddering fight for survival. 15 left on the canoe to get supplies. Only four would make it home.
Six venues across the country – from Victoria, B.C., to Peterborough, Ontario – are hosting screenings on the anniversary date itself: Monday, July 20, 2026.
Cinecenta – Victoria, BC
5:00 pm and 7:00 pm
https://www.cinecenta.com/calendar/brotherhood/2026-07-20/
artsPlace – Canmore, AB
7:00pm
https://artsplacecanmore.com/whats-on/screenings/brotherhood
The Roxy Theatre – Saskatoon, SK
4:30pm
https://www.roxysaskatoon.ca/film/brotherhood
The Boonies Drive-In – Tilbury, ON
9:30pm
https://www.thebooniesdrivein.com/copy-of-upcoming-events
Princess Cinemas – Waterloo, ON
4:15pm
https://princesscinemas.com/movie/brotherhood-free-for-members
The Canadian Canoe Museum – Peterborough, ON
7:30pm
Presented by actors Sam Ashe Arnold, Haig McGarry & Perry Mucci with director Richard Bell
https://canoemuseum.ca/eventcal/%f0%9f%97%a3-speaker-series-brotherhood-screening-mon-july-20-2026/
The Juy 20 anniversary screenings are preceded by a special presentation of the film – on July 18 – at The Olde Kirk Museum in Kirkfield, at Balsam Lake, where the real tragedy occurred (with a flotilla on the lake earlier in the day to honour the lost). On July 27, Brotherhood will screen at Muskoka Drive-In in Gravenhurst.
