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The Immigrant Experience in Canada (Ages 15-17)

The Immigrant Experience in Canada (Ages 15-17)

Gain a better understanding of the immigrant experience with a selection of documentaries offering the perspective of both those arriving in Canada and those welcoming them. These films examine what it means to arrive in a new country and leave one’s home behind.

Pour visionner cette sélection en français, cliquez ici.

Films in This Playlist Include
Who Gets In?
Becoming Labrador
Film Club
In Canada
Baggage
Where I Belong

  • Who Gets In?
    1989|52 min

    Who Gets In? explores the many questions raised by Canada's immigration policy in the face of one of the world's largest immigration movements. Shot in 1988 in Africa, Canada and Hong Kong, the film reveals first-hand what Canadian immigration officials are looking for in potential new Canadians, and the economic, social and political priorities orienting their choices.

  • Becoming Labrador
    2018|1 h 10 min

    In the stark Labrador interior, a growing number of Filipino workers have recently landed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, travelling halfway around the world for jobs they hope will offer their families new opportunities and a better life. Becoming Labrador follows a handful of those women and men as they make a place for themselves in Labrador while dealing with the unexpected costs of living far from their family.

  • Film Club
    2001|44 min

    This documentary brings together a group of long lost classmates who used to belong to an after-school film club. Formed at the initiative of a Grade 8 teacher eager to pass along his love of cinema, the club attracted a klatch of immigrant kids eager to embrace their new country. Stimulating and creative, the club was a complete departure from anything they had known and provided a safe haven from the harsh world around them. Together, they made a tiny 8mm award-winner called Ohh Canada. Twenty-five years later, the group looks back to marvel at their childhood dreams and the bond they share with the teacher who brought them together.

    This film was produced as part of the Reel Diversity Competition for emerging filmmakers of colour. Reel Diversity is a National Film Board of Canada initiative in partnership with CBC Newsworld.

  • In Canada
    2014|21 min

    20-minute, bilingual film features the personal stories and experiences of diverse immigrants to Canada from all over the world. The impressions and reflections shared in the film touch on the themes of Journey, Arrival and Belonging. in Canada is at times moving, funny and thought-provoking and will show you the personal side of the Canadian immigration experience.

  • Where I Belong
    2007|45 min

    This documentary tells the story of a young man’s struggle to balance his African traditions and new Canadian home. Arinze Eze was born in Canada and raised in Nigeria. An engineer by trade, he returned to his birthplace after 20 years. There, he starts a new career in the arts and falls in love with Canadian woman. All is well until his parents come for a visit. How will they react to this new life?