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Communications and Technology (22)
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Available in English Options
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AccordionMichèle Cournoyer 2004 5 minThis animated short explores the connections between sex, love and technology. A woman connects to the Internet. She not only embraces technology but surrenders to it entirely as she sends her entire body and soul to her electronic lover. In this world of Pandora's boxes, sexual desire and dehumanizing machine intertwine till they're finally and brutally disconnected. -
The Boy Who Saw the IcebergPaul Driessen 2000 8 minThis animated short by Paul Driessen tells the story of a boy with an overactive imagination. The young protagonist, bored with his lot, imagines a diabolic and dangerous life of adventure. But when he finally finds himself facing a real-life drama, the mundane life that he always wanted to escape is what he wishes to recapture.
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Boogie-DoodleNorman McLaren 1941 3 minIn this short animation film, the "boogie" is played by Albert Ammons and the "doodle" is drawn by Norman McLaren. Made without the use of a camera, Boogie-Doodle is a rhythmic, brightly coloured film experiment.
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Bush Pilot - Into the Wild Blue YonderBruno Boulianne 2000 48 minThis documentary paints a vivid portrait of the bush pilots who soar daily above the boreal forests and tundra of Quebec's Great North. Who hasn't dreamed of flying? Head in the clouds, light-hearted giddiness, a surge of adrenaline, exhilarating freedom. Bush pilots of northern Quebec, the last of a dying breed, experience these sensations every day aboard their hydroplanes. Lakes, rivers, forests: this majestic North of open spaces and infinite silence is all theirs.
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A Cow's TaleJohn Tanasiciuk 2006 5 minDoes technology make our lives easier?
Audrey works away at her computer and she encounters a problem. Nothing seems to help: neither a co-worker's advice, nor the user manual, nor the help line. Stuck on hold, Audrey dreams of how simple life must have been before the age of technology.
This animated tale, with a real animal soundtrack, makes for a funny and witty dig at how little we've really evolved. A film without words. -
End of MessageBenjamin Mugica 2014 1 minVoicemails get lost and found in space in this thoughtful commentary on the fractured act of communication and the spaces between people trying to express themselves.
Produced as part of the 10th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
The Films of Fogo IslandDerek Norman & Jeff Webb 2019 43 minIn 1967, NFB and MUN made a series of 27 films on Fogo Island that pioneered using film as a tool in community economic development.
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The StampIris Boudreau & Francis Papillon 2019 2 minIris wants to send her grandfather a birthday card. Touching, right? But Cathon doesn't want her friend to raid her collection looking for a stamp. Did someone really once pay $9.5 million for a single stamp?
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Universe Within - AccraKaterina Cizek 2015 3 minJohn is a 30-year old that operates PC Clinic Air, a wireless Internet café in his apartment building. He wants to provide Internet access at an affordable rate, and considers his work in the public interest. Currently, his customers pay half of what they would with any of Ghana’s major network providers. In addition, his clients save the cost of purchasing a modem, or Internet stick. People use the Wi-Fi on their mobile phones, laptops or smart TVs.
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enfants du silence, LesMichel Brault 2006 23 minThis film looks at the world of children with hearing loss and the importance of early diagnosis. With its straightforward, rigorous cinematic style and intimate approach to the subject, the film focuses on the human rather than the technical side of the problem of hearing impairment. It urges parents to be vigilant, because early diagnosis facilitates treatment. In French with English subtitles.
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Let's Talk About FilmsJulian Biggs 1953 18 minAn approach-to-film discussion showing some of the problems encountered and how they may be overcome. A group of leaders tries to recognize the factors leading to successful film discussion by observing an audience actively discussing a familiar film. In retrospect one of the group recalls being unable to arouse any response whatever with the same film. Why did one effort fail and the other succeed? These questions are closely examined by the group leaders in a workshop meeting; the centring of discussion in the group rather than in the leader is seen to be an effective technique.
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Mr. Symbol ManBruce Moir & Bob Kingsbury 1974 49 min"Blissymbols" are giving children without speech a joyous new means of communication. This film tells the story of a remarkable man, Australian Charles K. Bliss, who invented a symbol language (pictographs) originally as a means of overcoming the barrier of differing languages, and then found that it has an even greater, more rewarding application when used with speech-handicapped children. This is witnessed in Toronto and Montréal, where the Blissymbols are being used.
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Mr. Bear's SongElizabeth Walker 1997 16 minFollowing Fiona Garrick in her print shop, this short film reveals the story behind the creation of a children's book. Whether writing, engraving, mixing ink colours, operating a 100-year-old printing press or hand binding, she treats every aspect of bookmaking with extraordinary skill and craft. In the era of superstores and media conglomerates, Garrick takes us along on a special journey of careful, contemplative creation.
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Monsieur PugJanet Perlman 2014 9 minWho is Monsieur Pug? Why, a dog with bad cholesterol and high blood pressure! And a dog who loves his pie and ice cream. Who relaxes by making origami. In other words, definitely not your ordinary pooch! For he’s also a paranoiac, convinced he’s the target in a vast conspiracy, and pretending to be a pet, the better to hide from his pursuers. Schizoid, perhaps? Hmm… but is Monsieur Pug even a real dog to begin with?
A delirious fable about a particular brand of modern madness—that brought on by the omnipresence of smartphones in our lives—Monsieur Pug is directed with verve by Janet Perlman, whose The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Animated Short in 1982.
Monsieur Pug is one strange film about the life of one strange dog! -
The PirateMichel Murray 1991 19 minIn this short fiction film, Estelle, the scientist in charge of a research project on water, is getting ready for a conference with the help of her "intelligent" satellite Zenon. But a teenage hacker has found an illegal way to consult Zenon's files. Things look very bad when the hacker accidentally infects Zenon with a virulent computer virus.
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SynchromyNorman McLaren 1971 7 minThis animated short by Norman McLaren features synchronization of image and sound in the truest sense of the word. To make this film, McLaren employed novel optical techniques to compose the piano rhythms of the sound track, which he then moved, in multicolor, onto the picture area of the screen so that, in effect, you see what you hear.
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Social MeKatia Café-Fébrissy 2015 23 minThis short documentary examines the role of social media in the lives of teenagers. To the younger generation, social media is more than just a communication tool: it’s a way of life, a sphere in which to explore and create their own universes -- often at the expense of face-to-face interaction. As young Nya enters adulthood, she takes a critical look at how social media has impacted and continues to influence the shaping of her identity, experiences and values.
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Sweet ChildhoodZviane 2017 3 minIn this animated short, cartoonist Zviane comes across an old audiocassette while packing up before a move. Just the sight of the tape plunges her back into her childhood fantasies and her perceptions of the world. But the reality of what's on the tape results in a hilarious episode that questions just how "sweet" childhood really is. This film is part of the Comic Strip Chronicles, a collection of shorts celebrating the strong affinity between comic strips and animated film. Inspired by moments of everyday life, these films showcase the playful imaginations of renowned artists Guy Delisle, Zviane, Aude Picault, Lewis Trondheim, and Jean Matthieu Tanguy. Produced by the NFB, Canal+, and Sacrebleu.
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Walk-in-the-ForestDiane Obomsawin 2009 3 minDiane Obomsawin's whimsical animated short follows medicine man Walk-in-the-forest on a walk in the woods that leads to the discovery of an intriguing secret world.
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WavemakersCaroline Martel 2012 1 h 37 minThis feature documentary takes us on an intriguing human and musical discovery of the most expressive of electronic instruments, the Ondes Martenot. A group of Martenot aficionados pursues the legacy of Maurice Martenot (1898–1980), inventor of an instrument as rare and fragile as it is magical. Musicians, artisans and scientists strive to unravel the mysteries of this “Stradivarius of the electronic age.”
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The Wobble IncidentClaire Blanchet & Sam Vipond 2009 4 minThe Wobble Incident is an erratic journey through layers of cinematic illusion. When the First Sound rings out in a silent cartoon world, two characters experience momentous change as their universe goes bananas. NOTE: While the original version of this film is a 3D animation produced on Sandde, the streaming version is available in 2D only.
