Jennifer Podemski
Jennifer Podemski | |
|---|---|
Podemski in 2014 | |
| Born | May 3, 1973 |
| Citizenship | Canada |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Relatives | Tamara Podemski (sister) Sarah Podemski (sister) Michael Podemski-Bedard (son) |
Jennifer Podemski (born May 3, 1973) is a Canadian film and television actress and producer.[1]
Her acting credits include starring roles in the television series Tin Star, The Rez, Riverdale, Moccasin Flats, Bliss, and Moose TV, and the films Dance Me Outside, The Diviners, and Empire of Dirt, as well as supporting or guest roles in Degrassi, Republic of Doyle, The Eleventh Hour, Blue Murder, Wild Card, This Is Wonderland, Rabbit Fall, The Border, and Maniac Mansion. Her production credits include Rabbit Fall, Moccasin Flats, and Empire of Dirt.
Early life
Podemski was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. Her father is Jewish and her mother belongs to the Muscowpetung First Nation[2] and is of Saulteaux,Ojibwe, Lenape, and Métis descent.[3][4][5] Her paternal grandparents were from Poland, and moved to Canada after WWII.[6] Her sisters, Tamara Podemski and Sarah Podemski are also actors. All three sisters appear together in the FX series Reservation Dogs.[5][6]
Career
Podemski's acting credits include starring roles in the television series Tin Star, The Rez, Riverdale, Moccasin Flats, Bliss, and Moose TV, and the films Dance Me Outside, The Diviners, and Empire of Dirt, as well as supporting or guest roles in Degrassi, Republic of Doyle, The Eleventh Hour, Blue Murder, Wild Card, This Is Wonderland, Rabbit Fall, The Border, and Maniac Mansion. Her production credits include Rabbit Fall, Moccasin Flats, and Empire of Dirt.
She was a Gemini Award nominee for the Best Actress in a Drama Series at the 1997 Gemini Awards for The Rez and a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Supporting Actress at the 2nd Canadian Screen Awards, for Empire of Dirt.
In 2018, Podemski created the documentary series Future History for APTN.[7]
In 2021, together with Derek Diorio, she created the television series Unsettled for APTN. She went on to produce the drama series Little Bird for Crave with Hannah Moscovitch.[8]
In January 2023, she was named as a recipient of the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television's Board of Directors Tribute Award at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards.[9]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Dance Me Outside | Sadie Maracle | |
| 1996 | Bogus | Circus character | |
| Fish Tale Soup | |||
| Love Child | N/a | Short film Costume assistant | |
| 1998 | Short for Nothing | Hope | |
| 1999 | Don't Think Twice | Casey | Short film |
| 2000 | Blood River | Rose | Short film |
| 2001 | She | Tala | |
| RepREZentin' in Kettle and Stoney Point | N/a | Short film Executive producer | |
| 2002 | Laurel | Short film Producer | |
| RepREZentin' in Fort Chip | N/a | Short film Executive producer | |
| 2003 | Bar Life | Chris | Short film |
| 2007 | Fugitive Pieces | Grace | |
| 2008 | Pavane | Kim | Short film |
| 2010 | Spare Change | N/a | Short film Executive producer Co-cinematographer |
| Crazytown | N/a | Short film Producer | |
| 2011 | Take This Waltz | Karen | |
| 2013 | Empire of Dirt | Minnie Mahikan | Producer |
| Jimmy P: Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian | Doll | ||
| 2015 | Fire Song | Jackie | |
| Clouds of Autumn | N/a | Short film Producer | |
| 2017 | Reel Seen Women | Mom | Short film |
| Just One Word | N/a | Executive producer | |
| 2018 | Mouthpiece | Mrs. Cappo | |
| 2020 | Akilla's Escape | Mrs. Rosenthal | |
| 2021 | The Death Doula | Doctor | Short film |
| 2022 | Rehab | Janet Cardinal | |
| 2023 | Mothers: Out of a Panedemic | N/a | Short film |
| Redlights | Tina's Mom | Short film | |
| Coming Home (Wanna Icipus Kupi) | N/a | Documentary Executive producer | |
| 2024 | Aberdeen | Grace | |
| The Light Before the Sun | Syd | Short film Executive producer | |
| The Light Before the Sun | N/a | Short film Consulting producer | |
| 2025 | Nika and Madison | Alicia Hall |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Conspiracy of Silence | Cecilia | Mini-series Episode 2 |
| 1993 | The Diviners | Pique | TV movie |
| Maniac Mansion | Kim | Season 3, episode 17: "Freddie Had a Little Lamb" | |
| 1996 | |||
| 1996-1997 | The Rez | Sadie Maracle | Main cast; 19 episodes |
| 1997 | ...First Do No Harm | Hogelman Nurse | TV movie |
| 1997-2000 | Riverdale | Michelle Martin | Character was also played by actress Michelle Martin |
| 1999 | Animorphs | Samantha | Season 1, episode 16: "Tobias" |
| Mind Prey | Gloria Crosby | TV movie | |
| Dear America: Standing in the Light | Bright Eyes | ||
| 2000 | The Lost Child | Kate | TV movie |
| The Seventh Generation | N/a | Producer | |
| 2001 | The Wandering Soul Murders | Kim Barilko | TV movie |
| 2003 | Blue Murder | Alice Tremblay | Season 3, episode 4: "John Doe" |
| Bliss | Kate | ||
| Wild Card | Gallery owner | Also known as Zoey Busiek: Wild Card | |
| 2003-2006 | Moccasin Flats | Deb Johnson | Main cast; 16 episodes Creator Executive producer and producer; 15 episodes Writer; 4 episodes |
| 2003-2010 | Degrassi: The Next Generation | Ms. Chantel Sauvé | 15 episodes |
| 2004 | This Is Wonderland | Beth Taylor | Season 1, episode 7 |
| The Eleventh Hour | Eleanor Martine | Aired in the United States as Bury the Lead Season 2, episode 10: "I'll Build Me an Island" | |
| 2005 | Distant Drumming: North of 60 Mystery | Marjory Sebastian | TV movie |
| Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye | Rosie | Season 3, episode 18: "Bad Girls" | |
| Heritage Minutes | Beryl Prince | Season 9, episode 1: "Tommy Prince" | |
| 2007 | The Robber Bride | Juanita | TV movie |
| Moose TV | Alice Cheecho | Main cast; 8 episodes | |
| 2007-2008 | Rabbit Fall | Hooded Figure / Sharon Mohn | 3 episodes Producer; 14 episodes Writer; season 2, episode: "Berry Fast" |
| 2008 | The Border | Jo Montreux | Season 1, episode 2: "Gray Zone" |
| 2009 | National Aboriginal Achievement Awards | N/a | Creative producer |
| 2010 | Arbor Live! | N/a | Production supervisor; 12 episodes |
| 2013 | Republic of Doyle | Maria House | Season 5, episode 2: "The Overpass" |
| 2014 | Sensitive Skin | Angry Woman | Season 1, episode 4: "The Mummy" |
| 21st Annual Indspire Awards | N/a | Producer | |
| 2014-2015 | Blackstone | Dr. Louise Crowshoe | 8 episodes |
| 2014-2018 | The Other Side | N/a | Producer; 54 episodes |
| 2015 | 22nd Annual Indspire Awards | N/a | Producer |
| 2016 | 23rd Annual Indspire Awards | N/a | Executive producer |
| 2017 | 24th Indspire Awards | N/a | Executive producer |
| Private Eyes | Colonel | ||
| This Hour Has 22 Minutes | Herself | Season 24, episode 22: "The 22 Minutes Canada 150 Special" | |
| 2017-2018 | Hard Rock Medical | Bonnie | Regular; 14 episodes |
| 2018 | Forgive Me | Maria | 2 episodes |
| 2018-2019 | Future History | N/a | Director Executive producer |
| 2019 | Cardinal | Wendy Duchene | 4 episodes |
| 2021 | Unsettled | N/a | Director; 10 episodes Writer; 10 episodes |
| 2021-2023 | Reservation Dogs | Willie Jack's Mom | 3 episodes |
| 2022 | Indspire Awards 2022 | N/a | Director |
| 2023 | Indspire Awards 2023 | N/a | Director Executive producer |
| Little Bird | Mini-series Creator Executive producer / showrunner Executive story editor | ||
| Accused | Bailiff Sophie Taliman | Season 1, episode 6: "Naataanii's Story" | |
| 2024 | Resident Alien | Rachel | 2 episodes |
| Don't Even | Shelly | 6 episodes | |
| 2025 | It: Welcome to Derry | Niko | Season 1, episode 4: "The Great Swirling Apparatus of Our Planet's Function" |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Myst IV: Revelation | Anya | Credited as Jennifer Podemsky |
| 2016 | The Other Side: The Game | N/a | Producer Credited as Jennifer Podemsky |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Artist | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | "I'm a Lucky One" | Tru Rez Crew | N/a | Producer |
| "Music Is the Medicine" | Derek Miller | N/a | Producer |
Personal
Her son, Michael Podemski-Bedard, is also an actor who appears in Deer Lady, an episode of Reservation Dogs.[10] She is currently married to Doug Bedard.
References
- ^ Monk, Katherine (November 21, 2013). "Jennifer Podemski and Cara Gee on digging Empire of Dirt". Canada.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2014.
- ^ Zarzycki, Nick (March 20, 2024). ""It's 2024 and we only just saw Indigenous representation at the Oscars": A Q&A with Little Bird creator Jennifer Podemski". Toronto Life. Retrieved February 8, 2026.
- ^ Podemski, Jennifer (February 27, 2018). "'The power to save lives': Jennifer Podemski's must-read call for Indigenous representation in media". CBC Arts.
- ^ Sleightholm, Stacey (February 2, 2013). "Jennifer Podemski: the actress speaks out about Native rights and the release of her powerful new film, Running Wolf". TRNTO.
- ^ a b Fishbach, Brian (September 30, 2021). ""Reservation Dogs" Actress Reflects on Indigenous and Jewish Roots, Humor and Healing". The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles.
- ^ a b Frick, Evelyn (October 12, 2021). "Jewish Indigenous actress Sarah Podemski: 'It's a miracle just to exist'". The Jerusalem Post.
- ^ Schneller, Johanna (February 22, 2018). "Jennifer Podemski on the challenges Indigenous actors face in the film industry". The Globe and Mail.
- ^ Ahearn, Victoria (June 10, 2021). "'The Amazing Race Canada,' 'Letterkenny' spinoff join upcoming Bell Media lineup". Toronto Star.
- ^ Etan Vlessing, "Ryan Reynolds, Simu Liu, Catherine O’Hara to Receive Honorary Canadian Screen Awards". The Hollywood Reporter, January 18, 2023.
- ^ Whyte, Abbey (August 9, 2023). "Why 'Reservation Dogs' Director Danis Goulet Portrayed Reservation Schools Like a "Horror Movie"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 12, 2025.