Long métrage documentaire sur John Grierson, père du documentaire ainsi que fondateur et premier commissaire de l’Office national du film. Des gens qui l'ont connu et de proches collaborateurs dressent le portrait de ce cinéaste original, de ce travailleur consciencieux, qui a radicalement renouvelé le documentaire comme genre cinématographique.
Ages 16 to 17
History and Citizenship Education - Culture and Currents of Thought (1500-present)
Media Education - Documentary Film
Media Education - Film and Video Production
Technology Education - Society and Technology
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."