Qu'est-ce que le peuple canadien? D'où vient-il? D'une colonie française, d'abord toute modeste, établie sur les bords du Saint-Laurent; puis d'une victoire anglaise, qui donna au pays un nouveau régime et une deuxième langue. Notant l'arrivée des Loyalistes américains, on décrit ensuite la conquête de l'Ouest où, sur les traces des pionniers et des chercheurs d'or, une grande vague humaine a déferlé de tous les coins du monde. Ancien ou nouveau, chaque groupe ethnique fournit son apport culturel et social - et dans le respect de cette infinie variété s'est forgée l'unité solide de la nation.
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directorEvelyn LambartGeorge Dunning
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animationEvelyn LambartGeorge Dunning
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producerTom Daly
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musicEldon Rathburn
Suggestions
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![Family Tree]()
This short film presents an animated rendition of the story of the settlement of Canada. From the arrival of Jacques Cartier to the battle of the Plains of Abraham, we watch the whole country mature into a nation, its traditions enriched by all who touched it.
Please note that this film was produced in 1950 and reflects the attitudes and thinking of its era. To modern audiences, parts of the film may be perceived as offensive, but it must be seen as a cultural product of the era in which it was produced. The perspectives of Canadians (and the NFB) have evolved and become more conscious of Indigenous and visible minority rights, realities and points of view since the making of the film. Most notably, through its rich collection of Indigenous-made films, available at Indigenous Cinema , and films on at Black Communities in Canada, the NFB continues to strive to challenge stereotypes and accurately depict the diverse experiences of underrepresented communities. -
![Lines Vertical]()
An experiment in pure design by film artists Norman McLaren and Evelyn Lambart. Lines, ruled directly on film, move with precision and grace against a background of changing colors, in response to music specially composed for the films. Lines - Vertical is accompanied by composer Maurice Blackburn on the electronic piano.
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![Mosaic]()
This short experimental animation tempts the eye with gradually unfolding yet increasingly complex movement, colour and sound. Reminiscent of the mid-20th-century style of “op art,” McLaren and Lambart’s film follows a single tiny square as it divides and multiplies, eventually forming a colourful, hypnotic mosaic set to the animators’ precise and deliberate musical orchestration.
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![Mr. Frog Went A-Courting]()
In this colourful animated short by renowned filmmaker Evelyn Lambart, a handsome frog courts and wins a mouse for his bride. The story was inspired by a popular old folk song and nursery rhyme, originally published in 1548. Sung by Derek Lamb to lute accompaniment.
The film’s ending, which is also taken from the original song, might not be suitable for some audiences, especially very young audiences. Parental discretion is advised. -
![Lines Horizontal]()
An experiment in pure design by film artists Norman McLaren and Evelyn Lambart. Lines, ruled directly on film, move with precision and grace against a background of changing colors, in response to music specially composed for the films. Lines - Horizontal is accompanied by American folk musician Pete Seeger on wind and string instruments.
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![The Hoarder]()
In this short animation by Evelyn Lambart, a greedy little blue jay carries away whatever his beak can grasp. Berries, birds' eggs (nests and all), and even the sun in the sky go into his secret cache. Nothing is safe from his consuming avarice. But, as in Lambart’s film Fine Feathers, there is a moral tucked away. The blue jay learns a lesson about the importance of sharing, and he and his friends are all the merrier for it.
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![Rythmetic]()
An animated film by Norman McLaren and Evelyn Lambart that endows arithmetic with lively humour. The screen becomes a numerical free-for-all as digits meet in playful encounter, add and subtract, jostle, attack and elude one another.
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![Begone Dull Care]()
In this extraordinary short animation, Evelyn Lambart and Norman McLaren painted colours, shapes, and transformations directly on to their filmstrip. The result is a vivid interpretation, in fluid lines and colour, of jazz music played by the Oscar Peterson Trio.
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![The Story of Christmas]()
This short animation tells the familiar story of Christmas in an innovative and colourful way. Filmmaker Evelyn Lambart uses glowing zinc cut-outs to give this traditional tale a contemporary twist. Akin to a joyful medieval manuscript, the film is embellished by the artist's own whimsy—heraldic trumpet sounds, luminescent light, and wildflowers in every scene tell the message of rebirth. A film without dialogue.
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![The Impossible Map]()
Development in long-range travel and the growing importance of the Arctic and Antarctic regions make it necessary to understand how maps may be misleading. Experiments with a grapefruit illustrate the difficulty of presenting a true picture of the world on a flat surface and it is concluded that the globe is the most accurate way of representing the earth.
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![The Lion and the Mouse]()
This animated short by Evelyn Lambart is a visual adaptation of the famous Aesop fable "The Lion and the Mouse," in which a mouse proves to a lion that the weak and small may be of help to those much mightier than themselves.
