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Subjects (64)
Literature and Language - Canada (18)

English as a Second Language (8)

  • Celebrating Chiac - Part II
    Celebrating Chiac - Part II
    Marie Cadieux 2009 1 h 17 min
    A documentary about Francophone Acadians in southeastern New Brunswick, and their relationship to language. 40 years after Michel Brault’s Éloge du chiac, Marie Cadieux travels to Moncton, Shediac, Bouctouche and even France, meeting people committed to safeguarding and valuing the specific character of Chiac. Featuring animated clips from Acadieman, this film elicits laughter and some teeth-gnashing, but is above all thought-provoking.
  • From Far Away
    From Far Away
    Shira Avni  &  Serene El-haj Daoud 2000 6 min
    This short animation tells the story of Saoussan, a young girl struggling to adjust to life in Canada after being uprooted from her wartorn homeland. She has come to seek a quieter and safer life, although memories of war and death linger, memories that are awakened when the children at her new school prepare for a scary Halloween. From Far Away speaks to the power within us all to adapt like Saoussan and to welcome a newcomer.

    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.
  • A Foreign Language
    A Foreign Language
    Stanley Jackson 1958 29 min
    This short documentary focuses on a Montreal public school where thousands of immigrant children learn English for the first time. Part of the Candid Eye series.
  • How People Got Fire
    How People Got Fire
    Daniel Janke 2008 16 min
    This introspective short animation takes place In the village of Carcross, in the Tagish First Nation. Neighbourhood pillar Grandma Kay tell the local children the tale of how Crow brought fire to people. As the story unfolds, we also meet 12-year-old Tish, an introspective, talented girl who feels drawn to the elder. Here, past and present blend, myth and reality meet, and the metaphor of fire infuses all in a location that lies at the heart of this Native community’s spiritual and cultural memory.
  • If at First
    If at First
    Gilles Gascon 1969 22 min
    In learning a language such as French or English it is certainly a matter of trying again and then again. This film, made with the cooperation of teachers and students, takes a sympathetic look at the application and perseverance required in mastering all the idiosyncracies of a foreign language. It shows the methods of a language laboratory and, most important, the value of venturing into situations where expression in the language being learned must be attempted.
  • Mindfork
    Mindfork
    Catherine Dubeau 2016 1 min
    Incorporating found sound of an English language lesson, this very short animation depicts a visual descent into madness triggered by the effort to keep it all together—even when it seems damn near impossible.

    Produced as part of the 11th edition of the NFB’s Hothouse apprenticeship.
  • Soup of the Day
    Soup of the Day
    Lynn Smith 2013 3 min
    This animated short presents a dilemma faced by a couple every time they go out to eat. Will their culinary differences douse the flames of romance, or will love prevail? Set to a rollicking doo-wop song by Canadian songwriter Alexander (Zander) Ary, the film brings Lynn Smith's gouache paintings to life as she animates directly under the camera. This short is a tasty comic narrative that skips along an array of tantalizing dishes. Vocalists Susie Arioli and Zander Ary each bring a unique interpretation to this funny, charming song.
  • Sequence and Story
    Sequence and Story
    Don White 1983 5 min
    In this film a group of children manipulates reality using a series of photographs of their own activities. As they lay out the photos in different sequences, the story of their day changes. Simple, realistic dialogue and a combination of live action and still photographs capture the viewer's imagination.

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