Skip to content
Accessibility
Urban Sociology (9)
-
City LimitsLaurence Hyde 1971 28 minThis short documentary features acclaimed author and activist Jane Jacobs' forthright, critical analysis of the problems and virtues of North American cities. Jacobs orients her fascinating observations around Toronto, to which she moved after leaving New York City because Toronto "is a city that still has options ... it hasn't made so many mistakes that it's bound to go downhill.” Her remarks, made in 1971, are prescient yet earnest and will interest all urban stakeholders. This colourful city film, accompanied by an upbeat, jazzy soundtrack, is a must-see for all civic and community groups—indeed, for all urban dwellers worldwide. -
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 6: The City and the FutureMogens Gander , Jacques Giraldeau , … 1963 28 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. In this episode, Mumford considers the “loss of vitality” that he perceives in contemporary cities that have become crowded and resulted in suburban flight. “The overfilled urban container has burst,” he proclaims. What will become of the faceless, formless contemporary city? This mid-20th century film is a prescient look at today’s urban landscapes.
-
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 1: The City: Heaven and HellChristopher Chapman , Robert Humble , … 1963 27 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. This episode presents an outline of the opposed natures—creative and destructive—of the city throughout history. In this film, the focus is on the elements that created the first cities about 5000 years ago, and the forces that now threaten our "most precious collective invention."
-
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 4: The Heart of the CityYtzen Brusse , Jean-Claude Chiabaut , … 1963 27 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. This episode presents a study of the growing sterility, dullness and congestion that is destroying the vitality, variety and breadth that once made cities physically attractive and humanly creative.
-
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 2: The City: Cars or People?Christopher Chapman , Jean-Claude Chiabaut , … 1963 27 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. This episode presents a study of an old but still-growing problem: how to ensure the city is accessible to all without allowing cars to make it congested and uninhabitable.
-
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 5: The City as Man's HomeMogens Gander , Jacques Giraldeau , … 1963 27 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. In this episode, Mumford meditates on the “ugly and savagely debased surroundings” of the industrial cities that sprung up in formerly empty rural areas during the Industrial Revolution. Mumford juxtaposes the squalor of the working poor with the relative safety and security of the wealthy. He asks what can be done to address “the spirit of social hopelessness” that thrives in the overcrowded slums where a city’s poorest residents live.
-
Lewis Mumford on the City, Part 3: The City and Its RegionChristopher Chapman , George Fenyon , … 1963 27 minThis short documentary is part of a series hosted by American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic Lewis Mumford, who was particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture. This episode explores the tension and mutual dependence of urban and rural areas. History shows that cities thrive best when they live in harmony and balance with the countryside. How can this balance be maintained or restored in sprawling metropolitan regions? The film is a revealing portrait of the discourses of urbanization that were circulating in the middle of the 20th century, including the development of what we know today as the suburbs.
-
Manufactured LandscapesJennifer Baichwal 2006 1 h 26 minFor almost three decades, internationally renowned Canadian artist Edward Burtynsky has been creating large scale photographs of landscapes transformed by industry: quarries, scrap heaps, factories, recycling yards, dams. Manufactured Landscapes follows Burtynsky to China as he travels the country capturing the evidence and effects of China's massive industrial revolution. Rarely witnessed sites such as the Three Gorges Dam (50% larger than any other dam in the world), the interior of a factory which produces 20 million irons a year, and the breathtaking scale of Shanghai's urban renewal are subjects for his lens and our motion picture camera. Shot in sumptuous super 16mm film, Manufactured Landscapes extends the narratives of Burtynsky's photographs, meditating on human impact on the planet without trying to reach simplistic judgements or reductive resolutions. In the process, the film shifts our consciousness about the world and the way we live in it.
-
World In a CityBrett Story 2016 13 minWorld in a City is a portrait of Toronto and the steps Torontonians are taking to create a society that welcomes and encourages new immigrants to flourish. Join photographer Colin Boyd Shafer as he celebrates diversity in this short film, Canada’s contribution to the Big Cities project, an exciting international collaboration that uses documentary storytelling to outline both the challenges facing growing urban areas and the bold solutions to these ongoing problems.
