Jean Pierre Lefebvre

This 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.

This revealing portrait of NFB filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin was shown at a gala ceremony in 2008, where Obomsawin received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. Her work has captured some of the most startling events in Canadian history, including the armed standoff between the Canadian Army and Mohawk warriors in 1993. Her films cross a spectrum of social issues, but they are always human. Obomsawin explains in the interview, "For me, a real documentary is when you're really listening to somebody; they are the ones that will tell you what the story is, not you."

When William Shatner gets a Lifetime Achievement Award from Canada's Governor General, he shows appreciation as only Shatner can. In this short film, the most famous space cadet in showbiz takes helm of our heritage and treats us to a memorable rendition of Canada's national anthem.

Produced by the National Film Board of Canada in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2011 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

Watch more NFB comedy here.

This short film pays tribute to actress and comedian Mary Walsh. Layering archival photographs of downtown St. John’s and evocative imagery, it tells the remarkable story of a little girl who grew up next door to her family. Inspired by Mary Walsh’s one woman play Dancing with Rage, the film reveals the heart of the unique characters created by Newfoundland’s grand dame of comedy.

Produced by the National Film Board of Canada in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2012 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

An award-winning actor, writer, producer and director, Paul Gross has struggled to find the right balance between the heart and the head, between intellect and emotions. But sometimes a story comes along, captivates a filmmaker and simply won't leave. For Gross, this story was Passchendaele, a film based on his grandfather's experiences in a WWI battle that became synonymous with Canada's courage and resolution in the face of epic tragedy. This film was produced for the 2009 Governor General's Performing Arts Award.

Sculpting Memory places Atom Egoyan in an audiovisual environment woven from the fabric of his own films―a conceptual move that references Egoyan’s adaptation of Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape while evoking Egoyan’s own work as a moving-image installation artist and his concern with the recording and displaying of images. Directed by Toronto-based writer/director Daniel Cockburn and produced by Justine Pimlott.

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 2015 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

This short film pays tribute to director, screenwriter and actress Sarah Polley. Her latest film, Stories We Tell, a feature length documentary about her family history, premiered at the 2012 Venice Film Festival, then screened to unanimous acclaim at the Telluride Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, and the Sundance Film Festival. It was called “a brilliant film: an enthralling, exquisitely layered masterpiece” by Maclean’s film critic Brian D. Johnson. Here, a whimsical, playful film tells the story of the kinds of stories Polley tells. Using humorous, simple line animation, the film comments on the messiness of life and art.

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.

In this short film, filmmaker Denis Villeneuve takes a playful stab at mass hypnosis. Celebrating the mesmerizing power of movies, he offers mischievous glimpses into a subconscious world inhabited by Bergman, Spielberg... and Bo Derek.

The audacious creative force behind Polytechnique and the Oscar®-nominated Incendies, Villeneuve has earned a place among the world's most influential young directors.

Produced by the National Film Board of Canada in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2011 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

This short film is a tribute to award-winning director and screenwriter Deepa Mehta. A true cultural hybrid, Mehta has been described as a “transnational” artist, able to tell universally meaningful stories from a uniquely Canadian point of view. In a career spanning over 30 years she has consistently broken new ground, tackling such controversial issues as intolerance, cultural discrimination and domestic violence. As an Indian who grew up speaking English first in a British Colonial School and then learning Hindi, she finds her passion and her stories in India, and the freedom to choose how to tell those stories in Canada.

Produced by the National Film Board of Canada in co-operation with the National Arts Centre and the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation on the occasion of the 2012 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

This short film is a tribute to Eric Peterson, one of Canada’s most accomplished actors. In a career spanning over 4 decades he has portrayed a broad range of memorable characters, from a World War I flying ace in Billy Bishop Goes to War to left-wing lawyer Leon Robinovitch in Street Legal (CBC TV) and the irascible Oscar Leroy in Corner Gas (CTV). Having secured a place in the nation’s cultural treasure trove, Peterson decides to express gratitude to the Canadians who prize his talents—and sets out, on foot, to thank every single one of them…

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 2013 Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

Claude Jutra's sweeping portrait of village life in 1940s Quebec has been called one of the greatest Canadian films of all time. Recalling a time when the local general store was the crossroads of life, the film illustrates the way a young boy sees the world and those closest to him – first through the eyes of a teenager, and later, as events change him, through the eyes of an adult. In French with English subtitles.