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Best of the Best
Searching for clues when no one else will
this river (2016)
Watch this brand-new short doc that offers an Indigenous perspective on the devastating experience of searching for a loved one who has disappeared.
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MobilizeCaroline Monnet 2015 3 minThis short film, crafted entirely out of NFB archival footage by First Nations filmmaker Caroline Monnet, takes us on an exhilarating journey from the Far North to the urban south, capturing the perpetual negotiation between the traditional and the modern by a people moving ever forward. Part of the Souvenir series, it's one of four films by First Nations filmmakers that address Indigenous identity and representation, reframing Canadian history through a contemporary lens. -
Quiet ZoneDavid Bryant & Karl Lemieux 2015 14 minCombining elements of documentary, film essay and experimental film, filmmakers Karl Lemieux and David Bryant (Godspeed You Black Emperor!) take us deep into the world of those who suffer from electromagnetic hypersensitivity. Stubbornly defying traditional genres, Quiet Zone weaves together an unusual story in which sound and image distort reality to make the distress of these “wave refugees” palpable.
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Quiet ForcesSophie Dupuis 2015 15 minIn this non-narrative short, director Sophie Dupuis documents the daily lives of sailors aboard the frigate HMCS Ottawa on a mission in the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between the coasts of British Columbia and California. Composed of a series of contrasting scenes, the film immerses us in a maelstrom of sound and images, revealing the unique facets of a widely unknown world.
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Etlinisigu'niet (Bleed Down)Jeff Barnaby 2015 5 minIn five short minutes, this short film destroys any remaining shreds of the myth of a fair and just Canada. Children forced from their homes and sent to residential schools, families examined like livestock in crowded tuberculosis clinics, tainted water and land, poisoned for industry and profit at the cost of Indigenous lives, and the list goes on. But filmmaker Jeff Barnaby's message is clear: We are still here. Featuring the music of Tanya Tagaq. This film is part of Souvenir, a series of four films addressing Indigenous identity and representation by reworking material in the NFB's archives.
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MabelTeresa MacInnes 2016 20 minFeisty, fiercely independent and firmly rooted in place, 90 year-old Mabel Robinson broke barriers back in the 40s when she became the first woman in Hubbards, Nova Scotia, to launch her own business—a hairdressing salon where she still provides shampoo-n-sets over 70 years later. Weaving animation and archival imagery with intimate and laugh out loud moments in the salon, the film celebrates the power of friendship, doing what you love and staying active. With no desire to retire anytime soon, Mabel gives voice to a generation who are not front and center of cinema or the pop hairstyles of the day, and subtly shifts the lens on our perception of beauty and the elderly.
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Red PathThérèse Ottawa 2015 15 minThis short documentary tells the story of Tony Chachai, a young Indigenous man in search of his identity. Moved by the desire to reconnect with his Atikamekw roots, he delivers a touching testimony on the journey that brought him closer to his family and community. On the verge of becoming a father himself, he becomes increasingly aware of the richness of his heritage and celebrates it by dancing in a powwow. This film was produced as part of Tremplin NIKANIK, a competition for francophone First Nations filmmakers in Quebec.
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Nimmikaage (She Dances for People)Michelle Latimer 2015 3 minBoth a requiem for and an honouring of Canada's First Nations, Métis and Inuit women, this short film deconstructs the layers of Canadian nationalism.
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We Drink Too MuchChris Lavis & Maciek Szczerbowski 2016 47 sWE DRINK TOO MUCH. An unapologetic take on the vicious cycle of earning too little and consuming too much.
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BAMHowie Shia 2015 5 minA modern adaptation of the myth of Hercules, BAM tells the story of a young boxer struggling to negotiate between his shy, bookish nature and a divinely violent temper. Where does this rage come from? Is it psychological or environmental - or is it something altogether more primordial?
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Rock the BoxKatherine Monk 2015 9 minCritic-turned-filmmaker Katherine Monk trains her lens on DJ Rhiannon Rozier in this short film about breaking the glass ceiling in a music industry dominated by men. The Vancouver-raised, university-educated Rozier was so intent on making a career in the Electronic Dance Music (EDM) scene that she did something she never thought she’d do: she posed for Playboy.
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Be CoolChris Landreth 2017 41 s2/3 OF US DON’T KNOW WE’RE ASSHOLES. An unapologetic poke at the self-consumed selfie culture.
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Sisters & BrothersKent Monkman 2015 3 minIn a pounding critique of Canada's colonial history, this short film draws parallels between the annihilation of the bison in the 1890s and the devastation inflicted on the Indigenous population by the residential school system. This film is part of Souvenir, a series of four films addressing Indigenous identity and representation by reworking material in the NFB's archives.
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this riverErika MacPherson & Katherena Vermette 2016 19 minThis short documentary offers an Indigenous perspective on the devastating experience of searching for a loved one who has disappeared. Volunteer activist Kyle Kematch and award-winning writer Katherena Vermette have both survived this heartbreak and share their histories with each other and the audience. While their stories are different, they both exemplify the beauty, grace, resilience, and activism born out of the need to do something.
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DetentionElle-Máijá Tailfeathers & David Seitz 2017 37 sThis ultra-short film proves that walls are real and borders are imaginary with an animated critique of long-term detention for minors in immigration centres.
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Survival of the FittestEva Cvijanovic 2017 39 sFEELS GOOD TO BE KIND. A reminder that there is power in small acts of kindness.
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Hipster HeaddressAmanda Strong 2017 40 sThis ultra-short film is an unapologetic confrontation of cultural appropriation and everything that's wrong with hipsters in headdresses. The takeaway? Just don't do it.
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PumpersPascaline Lefebvre 2016 1 minInspired by found sound of baby noises, this very short animation takes a good hard look at the bizarre behaviour of people working out in a gym.
Produced as part of the 11th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
FyoogCurtis Horsburgh 2016 1 minPlease stand clear of the doors... This very short surreal hybrid of stop-motion and 2D animation is a story about a dream about a train, inspired by found sound of a Toronto subway car.
Produced as part of the 11th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
DebrisJohn Bolton 2015 14 minThis short film is a portrait of Tofino, BC intertidal artist Pete Clarkson as he crafts his most ambitious and personal project to date: a memorial to the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami. He, like so many of us around the world, was deeply affected by the disaster. Years later, as splintered and mangled timber and other objects started to wash ashore, the disaster hit home again for Clarkson, and the inspiration for his memorial was born. In Clarkson’s caring hands, the remnants from the Tohoku region take on a life of their own as he shapes them into a unique public sculpture. The result is an evocative memorial that is a site of remembrance and contemplation, and an emotional bridge connecting an artist, his community and a people an ocean away.
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MindforkCatherine Dubeau 2016 1 minIncorporating found sound of an English language lesson, this very short animation depicts a visual descent into madness triggered by the effort to keep it all together—even when it seems damn near impossible.
Produced as part of the 11th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
Gun RunnersAnjali Nayar 2016 1 h 29 minFor years, Julius Arile and Robert Matanda thrive among the bands of warriors that terrorize the North Kenyan countryside. Stealing cattle, raiding and running from the police is the only life they know. So when both warriors suddenly disappear from the bush, many assume they are dead or have been arrested. Instead, they trade in their rifles for sneakers—in the hopes of making it big as professional marathon runners.
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U.F.O.Rhayne Vermette 2016 1 minIn this very short animation, an apparition reveals itself through celluloid and transmits vestiges of a forgotten provenance. Have the onlookers interpreted its signs correctly or was the message misunderstood? Inspired by found sound of two people’s discovery of a mysterious event in the sky.
Produced as part of the 11th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
If I Was God...Cordell Barker 2015 8 minIn this short animated film, a Grade 7 boy’s mind starts to wander while dissecting a frog in Biology class. What would you do if you suddenly found yourself charged with God-like powers? Would you use them for good? For bad? Perhaps a little of both? The possibilities seem endless. Oh to have the power to toy with life and death, to create monsters who can punish those who torment him daily, or better yet, to create that one perfect day with Lily, the love of his 12-year-old life!
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CarfaceClaude Cloutier 2015 4 minIn this animated short, a Chevrolet Bel Air 1957 offers an ironic take on the iconic American ballad “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)”. The Chevy’s bumper transforms into a pair of seductive lips, from which emerge the song’s reassuring lyrics, while a choir of cars performs a breathtaking dance number in the background.
A biting satire of our Big Oil-based civilization, Carface is a musical comedy of spectacular proportions, in which acclaimed animator and illustrator Claude Cloutier (The Trenches, Sleeping Betty) pokes at our contemporary insouciance about the environmental perils that threaten the planet. -
Blind VayshaTheodore Ushev 2016 8 minThis short film tells the story of Vaysha, a young girl born with one green eye and one brown eye. But colour isn’t the only thing that’s different about Vaysha’s gaze. While her left eye sees only the past; her right sees only the future. Like a terrible curse, Vaysha’s split vision prevents her from inhabiting the present. Blinded by what was and tormented by what will be, she remains trapped between two irreconcilable temporalities. “Blind Vaysha,” they called her.
In this metaphoric tale of timeless wisdom and beauty based on the eponymous short story by Georgi Gospodinov, filmmaker Theodore Ushev reminds us of the importance of keeping our sights on the present moment.
