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British Columbia (21)

  • Bird of Passage
    Bird of Passage
    Martin Defalco 1966 10 min
    A young Japanese-Canadian businessman, now established in Montréal, recalls the time during World War II when the Japanese-Canadian community of Canada's west coast was uprooted and moved inland. There are some flashbacks to the events he describes, but the film is mainly about his home and family life in Montréal and his successful career as a chemical engineer.
  • David and Bert
    David and Bert
    Daryl Duke 1975 27 min
    This short documentary is a portrait of two remarkable old-timers of Vancouver Island's west coast. Both are in their 80s; both have an enviable zest for life. Chief David Frank teaches the ancient Indigenous songs and dances of his people to some 60 grandchildren. Bert Clayton still backpacks his prospector's gear through high mountain bush. From different cultures, these two men share a mutual life philosophy and over 40 years of friendship.
  • Eye Witness No. 2
    Eye Witness No. 2
    1948 10 min
    Canada takes her seat on the United Nations Security Council and speeches by delegates are heard. Following scenes at Lake Success are scenes of British Columbia's Pacific slope, where, through the enterprise of a family of new Canadians, once worthless stands of hemlock are turned into a resource of immense value and usefulness.
  • Eye Witness No. 33
    Eye Witness No. 33
    1951 11 min
    These vignettes from 1951 covered various aspects of life in Canada and were shown in theatres across the country. Subjects included here are the S.S. Lurcher, an anchored boat that serves as both lighthouse and weather station; a 3-day celebration in Windsor, Ontario, to commemorate the freeing of American slaves; and British Columbia’s fabulous Sullivan Mine, where vast quantities of lead and zinc are being blasted from the belly of a mountain.
  • Everything Will Be
    Everything Will Be
    This content is not available for free viewing in your location.
    Julia Kwan 2014 1 h 26 min
    Julia Kwan’s feature-length documentary Everything Will Be captures a significant moment of time in Vancouver’s Chinatown, with the influx of condos and new, non-Chinese businesses. The film follows a year in the life of several Chinatown denizens, including a 90-year-old Chinese newspaper street vendor and a second-generation tea shop owner, as they navigate this community in flux.
  • Gurdeep Singh Bains
    Gurdeep Singh Bains
    Beverly Shaffer 1977 11 min
    Gurdeep is a thirteen-year-old Canadian Sikh whose family runs a dairy farm near Chilliwack, British Columbia. They have retained their language and religion. Attendance at the Sikh temple, playing soccer with his schoolmates, and working on the farm are all part of Gurdeep's well-integrated life, but sometimes he feels a little different from the other children because he wears a turban. This film is part of the Children of Canada series.
  • Harry Jerome : The Fastest Man on Earth
    Harry Jerome : The Fastest Man on Earth
    Ileana Pietrobruno 2011 10 min
    This short film is a condensed version of our feature documentary Mighty Jerome, made especially for elementary and middle-school classes. Canadian athlete Harry Jerome overcame racism to reach the height of track-and-field success. When an injury ended his career, Jerome continued training and went on to achieve one of the greatest comebacks in sports history.
  • Joe
    Joe
    Jill Haras 2002 8 min
    This animated short tells the story of Seraphim "Joe" Fortes, one of Vancouver's most beloved citizens. Born in the West Indies, Joe Fortes swam in English Bay for over than 30 years. A self-appointed lifeguard at first, he became so famous that the city of Vancouver finally rewarded him with a salary for doing what he loved best. He taught thousands of people to swim and saved over a hundred lives. Yet there were some who did not respect him because of his skin colour. Through his determination, kindness and love for children, Joe helped shift attitudes.
  • The Last Key
    The Last Key
    Julien Capraro 2017 23 min
    A young immigrant arrives in Canada from France—and brings his Citroën 2CV with him. The iconic post-war car stands out on the streets of Vancouver, and before long he meets up with a group of like-minded car buffs. In Julien Capraro’s documentary short, Franck, Lionel, Harjeet and Johnny Mac, who are busy preparing for an upcoming antique-car show, explain how these vehicles not only evoke nostalgia for a past era but are also a powerful marker of identity and a link between two cultures. Produced as part of the Tremplin competition, in collaboration with ICI Radio-Canada Télé.
  • Minoru: Memory of Exile
    Minoru: Memory of Exile
    Michael Fukushima 1992 18 min
    The bombing of the American naval base at Pearl Harbor thrust 9-year-old Minoru Fukushima into a world of racism so malevolent he would be forced to leave Canada, the land of his birth. Like thousands of other Japanese Canadians, Minoru and his family were branded as an enemy of Canada, dispatched to internment camps in British Columbia and finally deported to Japan. Directed by Michael Fukushima, Minoru's son, the film combines classical animation with archival material. The memories of the father are interspersed with the voice of the son, weaving a tale of a birthright lost and recovered.
  • Mighty Jerome
    Mighty Jerome
    Charles Officer 2010 1 h 23 min
    From acclaimed filmmaker Charles Officer comes the story of the rise, fall and redemption of Harry Jerome, Canada's most record-setting track and field star. Gorgeous monochrome imagery, impassioned interviews and astonishing archival footage are used to tell the triumphant and compelling story of what Harry Jerome's own coach called "the greatest comeback in track and field history."
  • Mighty Jerome (Short Version)
    Mighty Jerome (Short Version)
    This content is not available for free viewing in your location.
    Charles Officer 2010 52 min
    In 1959, at just 19, Harry Jerome was Canada's most promising track and field star on his way to the Olympics in Rome. By 1962, after suffering a gruesome leg injury, there was every reason to think that his racing days were over. But Jerome was not just a champion on the track; he was doubly determined off it. And so began his climb to what his coach, Bill Bowerman, called "the greatest comeback in track and field history."

    Through years of unparalleled political turbulence, racial conflict and his own personal challenges, Harry Jerome kept his head down and ran, displaying strength of character and willful perseverance every bit as impressive as his record-setting athleticism.

    Filmmaker Charles Officer uses gorgeous monochrome imagery, impassioned interviews and astonishing archival footage to tell the runner's triumphant story, from his early days in North Vancouver, through his three Olympics and his unequalled streak of records, to his sudden and tragically premature death. Family, friends and teammates recall a man who forever changed the Canadian sports landscape and made an indelible mark upon the world.

    Compelling, surprising and urgently paced, Mighty Jerome will electrify sports fans, history buffs and all those with an appreciation for tales of courage and redemption.

  • One of Many—Dr. Nhan
    One of Many—Dr. Nhan
    This content is not available for free viewing in your location.
    Jan-Marie Martell 1983 16 min
    This short documentary profiles acupuncturist Dr. Nhan, an ethnic Chinese refugee from Vietnam who emigrated to Canada in the late 1970s. Although Dr. Nhan practiced acupuncture in Saigon for many years, British Columbia law would not recognize her profession. This film documents Dr. Nhan's efforts to overcome the obstacles that prevent her from using her knowledge. The film leaves no doubt about Dr. Nhan's commitment to people and medicine, and her determination to one day practice acupuncture in her new country.
  • Quo Vadis, Mrs. Lumb?
    Quo Vadis, Mrs. Lumb?
    Ron Kelly 1965 27 min
    A portrait of Jean Bessie Lumb, a Chinese-Canadian woman. Mrs. Lumb talks candidly about the prejudice she felt during her childhood in Vancouver, her arranged marriage, her occupation, raising children, and intermarriage.
  • Soccer
    Soccer
    Shelah Reljic 1974 27 min
    This documentary short shines a light on British Columbia’s soccer culture. With a special focus on the successful Vancouver Italia team, the film celebrates the province’s most popular sport.
  • Sleeping Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story
    Sleeping Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story
    Jari Osborne 2002 50 min
    This feature-length documentary tells the story of the Asahi baseball team. In pre-World War II Vancouver, the team was unbeatable, winning the Pacific Northwest Championship for five straight years. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, all persons of Japanese descent in Canada were sent to internment camps. The former Asahi members survived by playing ball. Their passion was contagious and soon other players joined in, among them RCMP officials and local townspeople. As a result, the games helped break down racial and cultural barriers. This remarkable story is told with a combination of archival footage, interviews and dramatic re-enactments.
  • A Time to Rise
    A Time to Rise
    This content is not available for free viewing in your location.
    Anand Patwardhan  &  Jim Monro 1982 39 min
    On April 6, 1980, the Canadian Farmworkers Union came into existence. This film documents the conditions among Chinese and East Indian immigrant workers in British Columbia that provoked the formation of the union, and the response of growers and labour contractors to the threat of unionization. Made over a period of two years, the film is eloquent testimony to the progress of the workers' movement from the first stirrings of militancy to the energetic canvassing of union members.
  • A Tribe of One
    A Tribe of One
    Eunhee Cha 2003 38 min
    Featuring archival images and compelling interviews, this documentary captures Rhonda Larrabee's quest to unearth the Indigenous heritage her mother felt forced to hide from her. Now, as proud Chief of the New Westminster Band, she works tirelessly to revitalize the Qayqayt First Nations. Tribe of One was produced as part of Reel Diversity, an initiative organized in partnership with CBC Newsworld.
  • The Third Heaven
    The Third Heaven
    Georges Payrastre 1998 48 min
    This documentary gives us a glimpse inside the influential but little-known community of Vancouver’s Hong Kong Chinese. Prejudices fall by the wayside as we discover the community's way of life and the vital role it plays in the Canadian and world economy through a moving, intimate portrait of the Lam family, who arrived here in 1991.
  • Unarchived
    Unarchived
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    Hayley Gray  &  Elad Tzadok 2022 1 h 24 min
    In community archives across British Columbia, local knowledge keepers are hand-fashioning a more inclusive history. Through a collage of personal interviews, archival footage and deeply rooted memories, the past, present and future come together, fighting for a space where everyone is seen and everyone belongs. History is what we all make of it.
  • Warrior Boyz
    Warrior Boyz
    Baljit Sangra 2008 43 min
    Director Baljit Sangra's documentary takes an unflinching look at the root causes of gang violence in the South Asian community of Vancouver. To date, more than a hundred young men in the community have died in gang-related violence. Gangs are a reality of urban life, yet behind the body count and the headlines, a far different battle is being waged. Educators and parents are taking action against gang violence, seeking real solutions and fighting for change.