The Juggler

Ten-year-old Ti-Jean's feats dwarf those of even the strongest lumberjack as he fells timber, cuts, carries and piles heavy logs, and comes out the victor in every contest. This short French-Canadian folk tale portrays typical life and work in a winter logging camp.

An animated cartoon to help children explore why and how animals move as they do. A little boy discovers that he cannot compete with a monkey, a snake or a horse by imitating the way they move. He can only outdistance them when he climbs into a vehicle that can travel in any environment, proving that the human capacity for technological invention creates a wholly different relationship to our environment.

No challenge is too great for 10-year-old Ti-Jean. As in his other exploits, he proves equal to every situation. Working his boat passage, flying an aircraft, saving a mine from disaster—all are in day's work for him before he mounts his white horse and rides off in search of new adventures.

Created by award-winning animator/director Les Drew, this animated short features Doris Dingle and her family of three cats. Sure to appeal to children of all ages, The Dingles shows what happens when an unexpected violent wind disrupts the family's idyllic life. The film is based on the book The Dingles, written by Helen Levchuk and illustrated by John Bianchi.

Part comic adventure, part travelogue, this short film features the folkloric character of Ti-Jean, a French-Canadian kid endowed with magic powers. He travels west, drawing upon his superhuman strength to save a farmer’s crops. In their day (the 1950s) the Ti-Jean films were among the NFB’s most popular titles.

In this animated short, Roch Carrier recounts the most mortifying moment of his childhood. At a time when all his friends worshipped Maurice "Rocket" Richard and wore his number 9 Canadiens hockey jersey, the boy was mistakenly sent a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey from Eaton's. Unable to convince his mother to send it back, he must face his friends wearing the colours of the opposing team. This short film, based on the book The Hockey Sweater, is an NFB classic that appeals to hockey lovers of all ages.

The NFB's 23rd Oscar®-nominated film.

Based on Holling C. Holling's book of the same name, Paddle to the Sea is Bill Mason's film adaptation of the classic tale of an Indigenous boy who sets out to carve a man and a canoe. Calling the man "Paddle to the Sea," he sets his carving down on a frozen stream to await spring’s arrival. The film follows the adventures that befall the canoe on its long odyssey from Lake Superior to the sea.

This animated short tells the story of a young boy who finds an injured snow goose and nurses it back to health. Constant companions through the sun-filled days of summer, the two sadly separate in the fall when the bird obeys the call to join its flock for the annual flight south. Will the friendship endure?

In this animated short, young Winston, who suffers from chronic asthma, isn’t able to participate in the everyday activities of his peers and classmates. He copes with the predicament through his vivid imagination, with paper and crayons. On one particularly rainy afternoon, Winston discovers that the magic of imagination has the power to transform and empower, and his skills and talents save the day.

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.

How Do They Put the Centres in Chocolates? is one of a series of short films that reveal the mysteries of how things are made. Viewers are taken on a visit to the factory to see how a whole variety of chocolate treats are produced.

A variation on a fable by Aesop ("The Lion and the Mouse") in which a mouse aids a mighty lion who had once spared his life. This children's film casts real animals – with a big brown bear in the role of the lion, and proves that little friends can prove to be great friends indeed.