Skip to content
-
J.A. Martin PhotographerJean Beaudin 1977 1 h 41 minIn this feature drama, a wife takes the courageous decision to leave her 5 children at home and accompany her husband on his yearly summer tour as an itinerant photographer. This despite housework, routine and 14 years of marriage having created a mutual indifference. They travel through a turn-of-the-century countryside of narrow lanes and old-time weddings, but most importantly, to an eventual rediscovery of each other. -
JablonskiReevan Dolgoy 1971 49 minA film on the life of Canadian concert pianist Marek Jablonski. He is seen at a concert debut in Spain, on a visit to his native Poland, where he began his piano studies at the age of four, in Montréal playing to an audience of school children, and in Edmonton where he lives. This is a memorable portrait of a man who lives for music.
-
Jack BushMurray Battle 1979 56 minThe late Canadian painter Jack Bush said he painted "from the belly." Born in Montreal in 1909, he earned his living as a commercial artist until his work gained recognition in the New York art market in 1968. In an interview he gave before his death, Bush talks about his life, his work, and the development of art in Canada over the past 25 years. Exhibitions of his work are shown, in particular a retrospective at which he and his friend Clement Greenberg, noted New York art critic, talk about his paintings.
-
Jack Hodgins' IslandRobert Duncan 1981 56 minOne of Canada's most exciting new literary talents, West Coast author Jack Hodgins talks about his world and his work. Using passages from his short stories and novels, the film enters the world of logging camps and saloons, of people and events on Vancouver Island. At times serious, sometimes hilarious, other times introspective, it is a reflection of a storyteller who writes about what goes on around him.
-
Jack Kerouac's Road - A Franco-American OdysseyHerménégilde Chiasson 1989 54 minPart documentary, part drama, this film presents the life and work of Jack Kerouac, an American writer with Québec roots who became one of the most important spokesmen for his generation. Intercut with archival footage, photographs and interviews, this film takes apart the heroic myth and even returns to the childhood of the author whose life and work contributed greatly to the cultural, sexual and social revolution of the 1960s.
-
Jack RabbitWilliam Brind 1975 28 minThis short film retraces the life of Herman Smith Johannsen – the man who introduced the sport of cross-country skiing to Canadians. From past to present, his life story is portrayed through pictures from sports newsreels, Norwegian archives and his family album. The film catches up with him at both the Canadian Ski Marathon, where he is the honoured guest, and on a return trip to his native Norway.
-
JadedCal Garingan 2010 14 minThis sharp and funny mockumentary uses role reversal to illustrate the realities of overt and systemic racism in the workplace.
-
Jaime Lo, Small and ShyLillian Chan 2006 7 minIn this animated short, Jaime Lo's father is sent to Hong Kong for a year-long work assignment. A shy Chinese-Canadian girl, Jaime Lo must use her creativity to cope with his absence. This story offers us a lighthearted glimpse into a common dilemma that many immigrant families face, where one parent must work overseas in order to provide for the rest of the family back home.
Part of the Talespinners collection, which uses vibrant animation to bring popular children’s stories from a wide range of cultural communities to the screen. -
Jamie Really Liked to EatJocelyn Rehder 1985 6 minJamie Really Likes to Eat shows the life of a young boy living on a homestead around 1830 and how many pioneer parents depended on their children to help them gather and prepare the family's food. Jamie fishes, plucks ducks, and traps rabbits. He helps his mother churn butter, collect eggs and bake bread. Children can compare the food Jamie eats with the food they eat - some of it the same, like buckwheat pancakes and blueberry muffins, and some of it different, like rabbit stew and duck pie.
-
Janine Sutto: 70 Years of PassionMichel La Veaux 2014 5 minFor more than 70 years, actress Janine Sutto, the grande dame of Quebec theatre, has brought to the stage her passion for her art: portraying life. An impeccable woman of slight build but great vitality, she has the look of someone who has fulfilled her dreams.
This film was produced by the NFB in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2014 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards. -
Japan Inc: Lessons for North America?Kalle Lasn 1980 27 minThis short documentary is an absorbing study of Japanese business and industry. Discipline and productivity in Japan are much more regimented than in many other parts of the world. For the 110 million Japanese, survival means doing things together, rather than asserting a North American-style individualism. Japan's industry has automated and computerized at an unparalleled rate. Open-concept offices and collaborative work styles offer a model of the changing style of modern work that could inspire the West to modify their processes as well.
-
Jean Giguère: The Measure of a PlaceDeco Dawson 2014 6 minThis short film profiles Jean Giguère, a lifelong volunteer and champion for the arts. Giguère has witnessed the transformative power of the arts in our society—an experience that’s enriched her life immeasurably. Jean Giguère: The Measure of a Place offers a creative representation of Giguère’s arts community and celebrates her particular brand of volunteerism—one marked by humour, compassion and a dedication to changing the world.
This film was produced by the NFB in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2014 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards. -
Jelena's SongPablo Alvarez-Mesa 2010 28 minIn this short lyrical film, haunting childhood memories, photographs and family stories form the heart of a woman’s search for transformation. A descent into the labyrinths of memory, the film documents Jelena’s recollections of her childhood in both Croatia and Canada, resulting in a fragmentary reconstruction of her past. With candour and sensitivity, Jelena reclaims her own identity, disarming us with her courage and will.
-
Jenny Belzberg: Home is Where the Art IsWill Prosper 2024 4 min“Being part of communities is how you understand them.” Taking audiences into the renowned Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and featuring live music and imagery from some of Canada’s most exciting creative talents, Home Is Where the Art Ispays homage to Calgary’s Jenny Belzberg and her unwavering dedication to the power of community and creativity in people’s lives.
-
Jean Pierre LefebvreSimon Galiero 2013 6 minThis short film pays tribute to filmmaker Jean Pierre Lefebvre. A seminal figure in Canadian cinema, Lefebvre has received international acclaim for his innovative, thoughtful and fiercely independent films. Here, a montage consisting entirely of excerpts from his films offers a brief foray into the depths of a body of work that is ironic, critical, intuitive, sensual, and “political” in the broadest sense of the term.
Produced by the NFB in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2013 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards. -
The Jean RichardRené Bonnière & Pierre Perrault 1963 29 minThe building of a goélette, the wooden coastal freighter of the St. Lawrence River. Although ships of steel may replace these sturdy wooden vessels, the Jean Richard, shown in construction in this film, is still one ship built with all the old pride in craftsmanship.
-
Jerry Brown’s Summer RecordsGraeme Mathieson & Chris Flanagan 2024 15 minJerry Brown’s Summer Records was one of the first recording studios to give Canadian reggae artists a voice. Four decades later, never-before-seen footage lets us meet the man behind the mixer for the very first time.
-
Jet PilotJoseph Koenig 1964 16 minA film showing how the introduction of jet travel changed traditional ideas of space and time. The jet pilot in this film sped from northern cold to tropical heat in only a few hours. The film is a dramatic illustration of how high speed-travel shrinks the world and brings people together.
-
JeuGeorges Schwizgebel 2006 3 minIn this animated short, the viewer is placed in a landscape whose scenery constantly morphs and mutates and the helter-skelter world evokes the chaos of modern life.
-
The Jews of WinnipegBill Davies 1973 27 minThis short documentary tells the story of the first Jewish settlers to Winnipeg, people who fled European persecution at the turn of the century and founded a new community in a Canadian city.
-
JiaWeiye Su 2020 10 minA young Chinese-Canadian couple is visiting family in Wuhan, epicentre of the virus, at the very moment the pandemic is declared. Interviewing his subjects in a novel socially distanced mode, director Weiye Su explores the culturally specific concept of Jia—an idea evoking family or home that acquires sharp new meaning during COVID times.
-
Jigging for Lake TroutQuentin Brown 1967 31 minFilmed over a period of three years, from summer 1963 to the late winter of 1965, and released in 1967, the Netsilik series was an attempt to recreate the traditional lifestyle of Netsilingmiut living in the area around Kugaaruk.
In this episode, the man and woman are ice fishing.
Please note that this is an archival film that makes use of the word “Eskimo,” an outdated and offensive term. While the origin of the word is a matter of some contention, it is no longer used in Canada. The term was formally rejected by the Inuit Circumpolar Council in 1980 and has subsequently not been in use at the NFB for decades. This film is therefore a time-capsule of a bygone era, presented in its original version. The NFB apologizes for the offence caused. -
Jim Decker Builds a LonglinerColin Low 1967 19 minBy using film as a catalyst for change, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. This film shows how one of the Islanders built a longliner (a fishing boat using long lines) with the help of his friends, overcoming the problems of financing and the lack of tools and government support.
-
Jobs that Are Different1959 7 minTravelling Blacksmith: A glimpse of a vanishing trade in Nova Scotia--blacksmithing and horseshoeing. A House Full of Ships: Eugène Leclerc, French-Canadian craftsman, carves replicas of sailing ships. Gold in the Cariboo: Miner John McDougall works abandoned gold mines in the Cariboo district of British Columbia. No. 9 in the series.
-
JoeJill Haras 2002 8 minThis animated short tells the story of Seraphim "Joe" Fortes, one of Vancouver's most beloved citizens. Born in the West Indies, Joe Fortes swam in English Bay for over than 30 years. A self-appointed lifeguard at first, he became so famous that the city of Vancouver finally rewarded him with a salary for doing what he loved best. He taught thousands of people to swim and saved over a hundred lives. Yet there were some who did not respect him because of his skin colour. Through his determination, kindness and love for children, Joe helped shift attitudes.
-
Joe and RoxyDon Haldane 1957 28 minThis short is the second installment in a series of three dramatic films on adolescence, this one dealing with teenage romance. Joe and Roxy, at 15 and 16 respectively, face more than the average teenage problems. Roxy, a child of divorced parents, tries to keep her illusions about love and life alive despite her upbringing, while Joe unsuccessfully seeks guidance and direction from his less-than-capable father.
-
Joe Kinsella on EducationColin Low 1967 7 minJoe Kinsella talks about the problem of young people leaving Fogo Island after they finish their education.
-
John A. Macdonald: The Impossible IdeaGordon Burwash 1961 27 minThis short fiction film tells the story of John A. MacDonald’s rise to power. Canada’s first Prime Minister and one of the Fathers of the Confederation, MacDonald didn’t enjoy an easy political career. When he first shared his vision of a Dominion reaching from sea to sea – an audacious proposal regarded as uncertain even by his supporters – his opponents derided him. “The fox is out of tricks," they taunted. "Bankrupt of ideas, he offers us clouds." This film offers us a memorable flashback
-
John and MichaelShira Avni 2004 10 minThis animated short pays tribute to two men with Down syndrome who shared an intimate and profoundly loving relationship that deeply affected the filmmaker. Narrator Brian Davis brings the characters to life with great sensitivity.
