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Canadian Politics and Government (26)
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Alexander Galt: The Stubborn IdealistJulian Biggs 1962 27 minFor Alexander Galt it was the middle of the road, until he saw some hope for his dream of a united Canada. What was he like, this stubborn idealist? How did he measure up to other political strongmen of his time? In this film you sense the personal clashes and the interplay of political ambitions that left their mark on history. -
Acadia Acadia ?!?Michel Brault & Pierre Perrault 1971 1 h 57 minIn the late 1960s, with the triumph of bilingualism and biculturalism, New Brunswick's Université de Moncton became the setting for the awakening of Acadian nationalism after centuries of defeatism and resignation. Although 40% of the province's population spoke French, they had been unable to make their voices heard. The movement started with students-sit-ins, demonstrations against Parliament, run-ins with the police - and soon spread to a majority of Acadians. The film captures the behind-the-scenes action and the students' determination to bring about change. An invaluable document of the rebirth of a people. In French with English subtitles.
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Buying SexTeresa MacInnes & Kent Nason 2013 1 h 15 minThis feature documentary explores the state of prostitution laws in Canada. It captures the complexity of the issue by listening to the frequently conflicting voices of sex workers, policy-makers, lawyers, and even the male buyers who make their argument for why prostitution is good for society. Warning: This film deals with mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
Following the release of Buying Sex, Professor Alan Young, counsel for the applicants in Bedford v. Canada and a participant in the film, contacted the NFB to complain that the film provides an incomplete and inaccurate account of the case. The NFB acknowledges that the constitutional challenge is not the focus of the film. Rather, the aim of the film is to examine the current controversy in Canada around the decriminalization of prostitution, of which the Bedford case is one aspect. The goal is to create a film which encourages Canadians to engage in an informed debate about sex work from a national and international perspective. The NFB believes the film achieves this purpose. In the spirit of furthering an informed debate on these issues, including the constitutional challenge, and in response to Prof. Young's concerns, the NFB provides below links to the legal briefs filed by the parties before the Supreme Court of Canada as well as links to the judgments of all three Canadian Courts. The third judgment, from the Supreme Court of Canada, was released in December 2013, following the completion of the film. The Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the three prostitution related laws challenged by Prof. Young, but suspended its judgment for one year to allow Parliament to consider whether to enact new laws, thus ensuring that the debate surrounding the decriminalization of prostitution will continue in Canada for some time. -
The Champions, Part 2: Trappings of PowerDonald Brittain 1978 55 minPart 2 of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque covers the years between 1967 and 1977, a colourful decade that saw Trudeau win three federal elections, the 1970 October Crisis and the sweeping rise to power of the Parti Québécois.
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The Champions, Part 1: Unlikely WarriorsDonald Brittain 1978 57 minIn Part 1 of this 3-part documentary series, director Donald Brittain chronicles the early years of Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque. From their university days in the 1950s to 1967 when Lévesque left the Liberal Party and Trudeau became the federal Minister of Justice, Brittain attempts to get at the heart of what makes these men so fascinating.
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Canada's SnowbirdsJoan Henson 1980 1 minThis installment in the Canada Vignettes series depicts the Canadian Forces Air Demonstration Aerobatics team at work.
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Coal Face, CanadaRobert Edmonds 1943 20 minA young man, discharged from the army, returns to his coal town. As he wanders the streets, he sees that life remains much as he left it. He takes a room with a miner who had known his father and who recalls the tragedy of his death in the mines. When the young dischargee attends a union meeting he hears the labourers speak of their relation to the war effort and, realizing the importance of coal to victory, he joins a night shift and goes to work in the mine.
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The Champions, Part 3: The Final BattleDonald Brittain 1986 1 h 27 minThe final instalment of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque spans the decade between 1976 and 1986. The film reveals the turbulent, behind-the-scenes drama during the Quebec referendum and the repatriation of the Canadian Constitution. In doing so, it also traces both Trudeau's and Lévesque's fall from power.
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DannyJustin Simms & William D. MacGillivray 2014 1 h 23 minDanny Williams was the charismatic and unflinching Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador from 2003 to 2010. By the time he left office, he had become the most popular—and controversial—Canadian politician of his era.
Laced with humour and revealing back-room anecdotes, Danny is the story of how Williams turned a “have not” into a “have” province. Known as a fighter, Williams famously took on prime ministers and Big Oil to ensure that benefits from the province’s abundant natural resources flowed back to its people. His mantra “no more giveaways” was key to his unprecedented popularity, but pride in his province made Williams a hero to its people. -
Democracy on Trial: The Morgentaler AffairPaul Cowan 1984 58 minPaul Cowan's film captures the spirit of the legal battle over abortion waged by Dr. Henry Morgentaler in Quebec and in federal courts between 1970 and 1976. Using a combination of newsreel footage, interviews and re-enactments, this docudrama unravels the complexities of the case that began as a challenge to Canada's abortion laws and turned into a precedent-setting civil rights case.
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Everybody's ChildrenMonika Delmos 2008 51 minMonika Delmos's documentary captures a year in the life of two teenage refugees, Joyce and Sallieu, who have left their own countries to make a new life in Ontario. Joyce, 17, left the Democratic Republic of Congo to avoid being forced into prostitution by her family. Sallieu, 16, had witnessed the murder of his mother as a young boy in wartorn Sierra Leone.
Delmos follows them as they bear the normal pressures of being a teenager while simultaneously undergoing the refugee application process. She shows how the guidance and support of a handful of people make a real difference in the day-to-day lives of these children. -
Georges P. Vanier: Soldier, Diplomat, Governor GeneralClément Perron 1960 29 minThis short documentary looks at Governor General Georges Vanier: his military service in two world wars, his diplomatic service between the wars and his investiture as Canada's 19th Governor General.
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Honour of the CrownTom Radford 2001 47 minFrançois Paulette has devoted more than 25 years of his life to resolving a battle that is more than a century old. Senior negotiator for the Smith's Landing First Nation, Paulette is determined to see the Canadian government honour promises made to the Thebatthi (Chipewyan) people in an 1899 treaty. Shot in northern Alberta and Ottawa, Honour of the Crown is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the turbulent final years of this fight.
Plunged into seemingly endless negotiations, Paulette and his brother, Chief Jerry Paulette, struggle to reclaim nine tracts of land and $33 million in compensation. Featuring interviews with tribal, provincial and federal government representatives, this documentary provides a rare glimpse into one community's success in settling a 100-year-old treaty obligation of the Crown. -
Hebron RelocationHolly Andersen 2022 15 minIn Hebron Relocation, Holly Andersen explores what makes a place a home as she learns more about her community’s connection to generations of displaced northern Labrador Inuit.
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Hebronnimit NotitausimajutHolly Andersen 2022 15 minAtjiliugutik Holly Anderseni Makkovimiuk, Nunatsiavumi, Kaujimajuk illungani inoligijuk atjajuk iluani avalumini akinitsamik nollititausimajunik TakKani Labradorimi inunganut. Tapkunani Hebron nolititausimajut, Anderseni takunaajuk sunanik angiggaliusongujut uKalautiliguni ilannaganut amma ilageminut Kanuk nolititausimajunit anitausimamatta unuttunik jarikut Labradoriup inunganut.
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High WireClaude Guilmain 2019 1 h 22 minHigh Wire examines the reasons that Canada declined to take part in the 2003 US-led military mission in Iraq, shining a spotlight on the diplomatic tug of war that took place behind the scenes with our neighbours to the south, who have often adopted an interventionist foreign policy to serve their own economic and geopolitical interests. Canada’s historic refusal could have had disastrous consequences, but a number of key players and other analysts remind us of the terrible price we pay when diplomacy fails.
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Imperfect Union: Canadian Labour and the Left - Part 3 - Falling Apart and Getting TogetherArthur Hammond 1989 53 minWorld War II turns Canada into an industrial power, and creates a mass trade-union movement. Mackenzie King responds with unemployment insurance and full legal status for unions. In 1944, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation comes to power in Saskatchewan, under Tommy Douglas, the first socialist government in North America. With the formation of the Canadian Labour Congress in 1956, CCF and CLC energies are directed toward the formation of the New Democratic Party in 1961. Part 3 of the series.
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Imperfect Union: Canadian Labour and the Left - Part 1 - International Background - Canadian RootsArthur Hammond 1989 54 minA look at the problematic relationship of Canadian unions and the New Democratic Party on the eve of the 1980s, as the Socialist International meets in Vancouver. This triggers a flashback to the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain, and the birth of both modern trade unions and democratic socialism. The influence of British, American and European immigration, of American trade unions, World War 1 and other events provide a turbulent and fascinating backdrop to the evolution of the Canadian labour-socialist alliance. Part 1.
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Lord Elgin: Voice of the PeopleJulian Biggs 1959 28 minThis short film tells the story of Lord Elgin, a man’s whose faith in a nation’s right to self-determination was stronger than the threat of the mob or his own fear of failure. Successor to Lord Durham, he established the principles on which Canadian government stands today.
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Mackenzie King and the Conscription CrisisErna Buffie 1991 31 minFrom the beginning of the Second World War in 1939, Mackenzie King tried to avoid conscription. Most English Canadians thought young men should be sent to fight, while most French Canadians vehemently disagreed. This same division had nearly torn the country apart during the First World War. King had to make a decision in the final year of the war. This docudrama combines archival footage with excerpts from The King Chronicles, a dramatic series written and directed by Donald Brittain.
Some scenes contain graphic language. -
Michaëlle Jean: A Woman of PurposeJean-Daniel Lafond 2016 52 minIn 2005, Michaëlle Jean became the Governor General of Canada. A social activist, global citizen, and black woman, she would redefine the possibilities of that office. While her national priorities were at-risk youth, women, and Indigenous peoples, her international success came from her cultural diplomacy. 2010: the earthquake in Haiti tragically brings her back to her homeland. Michaëlle Jean: A Woman of Purpose is an intimate and sensitive portrait of the stateswoman she came to be.
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People of the PotlatchLaura Boulton 1944 21 minThe Indigenous peoples of northern British Columbia still hunt and fish, using a combination of traditional ways and modern equipment and techniques where appropriate. Lumbering and trapping bring them money and goods. Their traditional arts and crafts, however, remain essentially unchanged. This archival film reflects the social and cultural values and beliefs prevalent at the time of production.
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Sweet TalkEsteban Azuela 2014 1 minOil-covered fish meet skateboards and the War on Terror in this razor-sharp satire of media, government, and the tycoons who take advantage of the system.
Produced as part of the 10th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship. -
Sabrina's LawBarry Lank 2007 42 minA documentary on the creation of Sabrina's Law in the province in Ontario, the first legislation in the world to protect children with deadly allergies. On a September morning in 2003, Sara Shannon handed her 13-year-old daughter Sabrina lunch money, gave her a kiss and watched her walk into the halls of a high school in Pembroke, Ontario. The next day Sabrina Shannon died of complications brought about by anaphylactic shock. Suspected cause of death: french fries from the school cafeteria. French fries that she had eaten before, only this time the cafeteria was also serving poutine. All it would take is for the same tongs to be used in both dishes to set off Sabrina's reaction to dairy. Since then her parents have dedicated their lives to ensuring that what happened will never happen to another child.
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Tommy Douglas: Keeper of the FlameElise Swerhone 1986 57 minThis feature documentary traces the political career of T.C. (Tommy) Douglas, former premier of Saskatchewan and leader of the New Democratic Party, who was voted the Greatest Canadian in 2004 for his devotion to social causes, his charm and his powers of persuasion. Known as the "Father of Medicare," this one-time champion boxer and fiery preacher entered politics in the 1930s and never looked back.
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TrapperShannon Letandre 2009 2 minThis beautiful short film captures the quiet dignity of a day in the life of a Northern trapper, without use of any dialogue.
