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A Drop in the Ocean

2002 48 min
Coming soon

When Doctors without Borders, the humanitarian medical aid agency, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999, Dr. Claudette Picard was in Liberia. Her first mission with the agency had begun in this small country of West Africa six years before. In the meantime, she had practised medicine in other wartorn countries such as Zaire and Afghanistan, always in extremely hazardous conditions. What impels women and men like Dr. Picard to leave their easy lives behind and go off to do what little they can to alleviate human suffering? Whatever the motivation, the doctors are in the field, providing medical care …

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This work deals with mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
A Drop in the Ocean

Details

When Doctors without Borders, the humanitarian medical aid agency, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999, Dr. Claudette Picard was in Liberia. Her first mission with the agency had begun in this small country of West Africa six years before. In the meantime, she had practised medicine in other wartorn countries such as Zaire and Afghanistan, always in extremely hazardous conditions.

What impels women and men like Dr. Picard to leave their easy lives behind and go off to do what little they can to alleviate human suffering? Whatever the motivation, the doctors are in the field, providing medical care and helping to draw attention to distant places often forgotten by the world's media. Places like Harper, a small town in Liberia devastated by a decade of civil war. This is where we follow Dr. Picard on her rounds. With her halting English, her comforting presence and a few scarce drugs, she sometimes manages to do the impossible. But not always...

Some subtitles.

This work deals with mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
  • participation
    Claudette Picard
  • research
    Lise Éthier
  • script
    Lise Éthier
  • direction
    Lise Éthier
  • camera
    Jorge Martinho
    François Vincelette
  • location sound
    Serge Bouvier
    Diane Carrière
  • editing
    Hélène Girard
  • production assistant
    Ryofa Chung
  • sound editing
    Leopoldo Gutierrez
  • foley
    Lise Wedlock
  • original music
    Yves Chamberland
  • re-recording
    Jean Paul Vialard
    Shelley Craig
  • music recording
    Studio M. Dusty
  • administration
    Colette Brodeur
    Denise DesLauriers
  • administration assistant
    Dany Delpy
    Josée Trudel
    Marie-Christine Guité
    Brigitte Sénéchal
  • technical coordination
    Richard Cliche
    Jean-François Laprise
  • distribution officer
    Joanne Carrière
  • online editing
    Sylvain Desbiens
  • titles
    NFB Postproduction Image Service
  • translation
    Claude Dionne
  • subtitles
    Claude Dionne
  • assistant to the producer
    Christiane Germain
    Johanne Bergeron
  • producer
    Yves Bisaillon

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