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Grierson

This feature film is a portrait of John Grierson, the first Canadian Government Film Commissioner and founder of the National Film Board in 1939. Interweaving archival footage, interviews with people who knew him and footage of Grierson himself, this film is a sensitive and informative portrait of a dynamic man of vision. Grierson believed that the filmmaker had a social responsibility, and that film could help a society realize democratic ideals. His absolute faith in the value of capturing the drama of everyday life was to influence generations of filmmakers all over the world. In fact, he coined the term …
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This feature film is a portrait of John Grierson, the first Canadian Government Film Commissioner and founder of the National Film Board in 1939. Interweaving archival footage, interviews with people who knew him and footage of Grierson himself, this film is a sensitive and informative portrait of a dynamic man of vision.

Grierson believed that the filmmaker had a social responsibility, and that film could help a society realize democratic ideals. His absolute faith in the value of capturing the drama of everyday life was to influence generations of filmmakers all over the world. In fact, he coined the term "documentary film."

Film and Video Arts All subjects
  • director
    Roger Blais
  • producer
    Roger Blais
  • executive producer
    David Bairstow
  • commentary
    Donald Brittain
  • photography
    Eugene Boyko
    Lewis McLeod
    Michel Thomas-d'Hoste
    Magi Torruella
    Jacques Fogel
  • animation camera
    Raymond Dumas
  • sound
    Bev Davidson
    Colin Charles
    Gildas LeSausse
    Ron Seltzer
    Hans Oomes
  • editing
    Les Halman
    John Kramer
    Annick de Bellefeuille
  • sound editing
    Bernard Bordeleau
    André Galbrand
  • re-recording
    Jean-Pierre Joutel
  • narrator
    Michael Kane
  • advisor
    James Beveridge

Education

Ages 16 to 17

Notes

Ask filmmaking students to discuss Grierson's view that reality must be shaped into a narrative in order to be comprehended. Have students practise short documentaries on the same subject, to compare how the message changes with the filmmaker. Ask students to examine the relationship between documentary and democracy, and why Canada was a fertile ground for documentary development. Have students debate Grierson's view that TV is a "domestic instrument of ease."

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Grierson
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