FILMS
Citoyens du monde
A six-part
series of one-hour documentaries about international development.
Une série de six documentaires concernant le développement international.
Tournée dans quinze pays différents, cette série emmène
le spectateur dans le monde de la recherche du développement et nous
fait voir les problèmes dont font face les pays en voie de développement
et des gens qui œuvrent afin d'enrayer ces problèmes.
Letters From Karelia is a National Film Board of Canada production by Shebandowan Films' Kelly Saxberg. It tells the tragic story of Aate Pitkanen: Father, Brother, Comrade, Spy. Pitkanen was one of thousands swept up in the exodus known as 'Karelian Fever', when almost 8000 Canadian and American Finns moved to the Soviet Union in the 1930's. When capitalism went bankrupt during the great depression, they went to Russia to build a 'workers paradise'. Within a few short years, most of those who stayed were either shot during the Terror or sent to the Gulag. During the Second World War the best and the brightest, like Aate Pitkanen, were recruited to spy on the Finns who, like the Germans, were attacking the Soviet Union. The film weaves history, politics and love in a tragic tale of idealism and betrayal.
Banana Split is an award winning film about the most popular fruit in Canada. The
documentary examines the historical, social, economic,
scientific and environmental aspects of banana production. Banana Split begins
in a grocery store in Canada and takes viewers on a journey to Honduras to see
where the fruit comes from. Along the way, Banana Split discusses the history, science and economics of the world's favourite fruit. The film is both entertaining and educational. It was filmed in Thunder Bay, Toronto, Los Angeles,
Montpelier (France) and Tela (Honduras). Banana Split is also available in English
and French, it has a companion publication that can be downloaded for free and teachers can find a professionally developed Global Education curriculum developed for the
Ontario grade 12 Canadian and World Issues course.
More about this film...
 A feature length silent film, shot by the Port Arthur Amateur Cinema Society in 1930, but not finished because of the onset of the Depression and the advent of "talkies." The raw footage was preserved in the Library and National Archives of Canada until it was "discovered" in 2000. In an effort to pay tribute to Canada's filmmaking pioneers and to learn the technique of silent film, an enthusiastic group of people interested in film history pooled their talents to complete The Fatal Flower in 2004. Their efforts paid off in the form of a 45 minute murder mystery complete with an original musical score. More about this film...
Dorothea Mitchell was born in Britain, raised in India and immigrated to Canada in 1904. After settling in Northwestern Ontario she became the first single woman to be granted a Homestead in Ontario, and became the first woman in Canada to make independent films. Along the way, she became known as the Lady Lumberjack and later distinguished herself as an author. A Reel Pioneer is a film about Dorothea Mitchell and the Port Arthur Amateur Cinema Society. Together, they made the first feature-length amateur film in Canada and their story, told through the eyes of Dorothea Mitchell, is brought back in the form of a historical documentry. Dorothea Mitchell's story is an inspiration to women everywhere. More about this film...
 "Strands" is
a one hour documentaryabout barbed wire, a device invented
with the cattle industry in mind, but adapted for use in controlling the
movement of humans. Though silent, barbed wire speaks clearly of the turmoil
of the twentieth century. Barbed wire both protects and attacks, and this
film tells the story of lives that were forever changed by a simple technological
innovation. More
about this film...
Rosies of the North was Kelly Saxberg's first major documentary. It was produced by the National Film Board of Canada and is a film about the women who built airplanes in Thunder Bay, Ontario during World War Two. It features the story of Elsie MacGill, the first woman to receive an Electrical Engineering degree in Canada and the first woman aircraft designer in the world.
Rosies of the North has been broadcast across Canada by several television networks. In it, women whose lives were changed by an opportunity to earn wages doing "men's work" tell of their experiences. More about this film...
 Reserve
life, family problems and the death of a close friend push Kaitlyn, a young
Anishinawbe woman, into a deep depression. Following a suicide attempt and a
lengthy hospital stay in a strange city, she is encouraged by her psychiatrist
to participate in group therapy with three other Anishinawbe youth. The four
group members represent the four directions and the diversity that is found
within Native culture. Reluctant at first, she and the others in the group begin
to find strength and support in each other. They grow through the relationships
built with one another and their culture. However, a series of events and losses
continue to make Kaitlyn's recovery uncertain. It's not until she almost loses
one of her new close friends, that she begins to see clearly how precious life
is. More about this
film... |
