7.1
The territory of Akwesasne straddles the Canada-U.S. border. When Canadian authorities prohibited the duty-free cross-border passage of personal purchases - a right established by the Jay Treaty of 1794 - Kanien'kéhaka protesters blocked the international bridge between Ontario and New York State.
7.6
A triumph of film art, creating on the screen a vast, awe-inspiring picture of the universe as it would appear to a voyager through space, this film was among the sources of inspiration used by Stanley Kubrick for his 2001: A Space Odyssey. Realistic animation takes you into far regions of space, beyond the reach of the strongest telescope, past Moon, Sun, and Milky Way, into galaxies yet unfathomed.
6.9
This feature-length documentary from 1974 takes viewers inside Fidel Castro's Cuba. A movie-making threesome hope that Fidel himself will star in their film. The unusual crew consists of former Newfoundland premier Joseph Smallwood, radio and TV owner Geoff Stirling and NFB film director Michael Rubbo. What happens while the crew awaits its star shows a good deal of the new Cuba, and also of the three Canadians who chose to film the island. (NFB)
Black Liberators WWII explores the untold stories of the triumphs and challenges of Black Canadian and Caribbean soldiers who served in the Canadian Army at the height of Nazism during World War II. This film is an homage to Canada's Black war heroes that sheds light on their bravery and commitment to freedom. Prejudice and racism may have marked their lives but, undaunted, these patriotic men and women stepped up to free the world from tyranny. Their rich, authentic first-hand accounts must be preserved to remind us all of the sacrifices made by Canadian soldiers of all backgrounds. These stories must never be forgotten.
On the 50th anniversary of the first new totem pole raising on British Columbia’s Haida Gwaii in almost a century, Haida filmmaker Christopher Auchter steps through history to revisit the day that would signal the rebirth of the Haida spirit.
Surrounded by a family and a community who show her unconditional love as she follows her personal path, Skylar faces the complexities of being a transgender girl on the cusp of puberty with refreshing honesty and unshakeable dignity.
A warm ballroom provides refuge during a harsh Montreal winter.
The key ingredient in bird's nest soup is the hardened saliva of the swiftlet. Once a rarity and now a harvested agricultural product, demand for this Chinese delicacy attracts entrepreneurs to Southeast Asia, where the swiftlets make their edible homes. Howard Gan is one of these investors: a recently retired Chinese-Malaysian Canadian immigrant who spent over half his life in Montreal. Gan decides to return to extended family and oversee his investment. The swiftlet's idiosyncratic life cycle—building homes for their offspring, only to be displaced and forced to resettle—captures the imagination of Howard's artist daughter (filmmaker Emily Gan), who sees the parallels to her father's own life. She's keen to follow him on his adventure, hoping to understand his motivations for making this aviary his children's inheritance. Addressing themes of home and heritage, Cavebirds is a beautifully crafted father-daughter story that explores the changing values between generations and our desire to know where we come from. Winner of the Emerging Filmmaker Award at Hot Docs, the film is a quiet personal reflection on the complexities of migration and belonging.
Exploring one man’s evolving relationship with the natural world, Way of the Hunter tells the compelling story of Robert Moberg, a hunter who ultimately traded his gun for a camera.
In the midst of an Edmonton deep-freeze, Mariah heads out. Every day, before dawn, while everyone else is sound asleep, she gets ready for her daily deliveries. Mariah is a bike courier, one of a handful of winter cycling snow warriors.
Jay Cardinal Villeneuve’s short documentary Holy Angels powerfully recaptures Canada’s colonialist history through impressionistic images and the fragmented language of a child. In 1963, Lena Wandering Spirit became one of the more than 150,000 Indigenous children who were removed from their families and sent to residential school. Villeneuve met Lena through his work as a videographer with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Wandering Spirit spent six years at the Holy Angels Residential School in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta. Against a backdrop of now-empty hallways and classrooms, fragments of memory return—the shadowy figures of nuns, bits of remembered catechism, and the nightmare sounds of the basement boiler. “They call us by number,” she remembers. Wandering Spirit’s experience, like that of many other adult survivors, remains jagged and bright with pain and fear. But other, deeper memories also endured—of running barefoot in summer and picking berries, of stories shared, and of the warmth and love of family.Five-year-old performer Phoenix Sawan brings Wandering Spirit’s recollections to vivid life, dancing through an abandoned building in easy defiance of the bleak history of the place. Filmed with elegance, precision, and fierce determination to not only uncover history but move past it, Holy Angels speaks of the resilience of a people who have found ways of healing—and of coming home again.
7
Rhythm and Blues Revue is a plotless variety show, one of several compiled for theatrical exhibition from the made-for-television short films produced by Snader and Studio Telescriptions, with newly-filmed host segments by Willie Bryant. Originally 86 minutes, the "short" version available on public domain collections and websites is missing a reel
A critical reexamination of The Doors, tracing their success through vintage footage and insights from music experts.
4.6
This documentary features Black women active in politics as well as community, labour and feminist organizing. They share their insights and personal testimonies on the double legacy of racism and sexism, linking their personal struggles with the ongoing battle to end systemic discrimination and violence against women and people of colour.
In 1973, the Eagles released their second album – an album that provided them with their signature tune and announced the arrival of a major new talent in the field of country rock music.
In the absence of timely government emergency response to the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, one woman turns to google docs to organize the relief efforts of volunteers going door-to-door, floor-by-floor in the highrises of south Brooklyn.
Thirty years after the release of Deep Purple's hit album, Burn, Glenn Hughes joins a distinguished panel of music critics and working musicians for an in depth look at the history-making album.
The black image on television changed American culture. This two-hour program includes rare footage, memorabilia, photographs and exclusive interviews from the actors, writers, and producers whose personal journeys shaped television history.
6.2
This short film depicts how a small Canadian city, bearing the name of Stratford and by a river Avon, created its own renowned Shakespearean theatre. The film tells how the idea grew, how a famous British director, international stars and Canadian talent were recruited, and how the Stratford Shakespearean Festival finally became a triumphant reality.
Dig into a Turkish archaeological find shrouded in mystery for over 800 years.
Island Green dares to ask: What if PEI went entirely organic? Using beautiful imagery and poignant stories from the island’s small but growing community of organic farmers, Millefiore Clarkes explores a healthier future for Canada’s smallest province.
Oh, the weather outside is frightful... so get out there and start doing some stupid stuff in cars. Yes, whether it's racing a rally car against a bobsleigh, playing ice hockey with tiny Suzukis, or seeing if a Ferrari can get you from Britain to the ski slopes quicker than a plane, Top Gear has always been at the cutting edge of cold-weather, car-based messing about. Can a combine harvester be turned into a snow plough? What happens if you ski-jump a rocket-powered Mini? Does a Jaguar estate make a good ski lift? This collection sees Jeremy, James and Richard - a trio well versed in trading on thin ice - answering these vital questions, and more besides. Uniting, for the first time, some of the best Top Gear winter adventures, it's a snowy, slippery celebration of all things sub-zero. When the temperature plummets, the fun begins...
