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Working Life (12)
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The ArtisansDaniel Léger 2018 51 min“We’re beautiful, the whole gang. We’re special,” says Jean of the 15-odd employees at The Artisan—a workshop employing people with intellectual disabilities. Jean is the self-described “handyman and best-looking” member of the group. A moving celebration of difference, The Artisans captures daily life at an organization where the workers are as courageous as they are colourful. -
Between the LaughterBarbara K. Lee 2006 43 minThis feature-length documentary looks at Stephen O'Keefe, a deaf, stand-up comedian. Faced with the usual challenges that life presents - marriage, children and career - Stephen works extra hard just to be able to hear (with the aid of a cochlear implant) and communicate with those around him. While many hearing-impaired people find life isolating, Stephen embraces the spotlight and chooses to step forward and entertain people.
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Citizen SamJoe Moulins 2006 1 h 19 minThis feature documentary is a portrait of Sam Sullivan, a quadriplegic city councillor running for Vancouver mayor. Blending the rough and tumble of the campaign with intimate moments from Sullivan's daily life, the film is an unflinching portrait of the one-of-a-kind politician.
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Everyone's BusinessMary Armstrong 1982 20 minThe Churchill Park Greenhouse Cooperative in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, is a small produce business, much like any other trying to survive in a deteriorating economy. What makes it special is that eight out of the nine co-op members are disabled. Growing, washing, drying and packing vegetables, handling sales, bookkeeping, paying bills and sometimes postponing their own paycheques in order to see the co-op through hard financial times, these determined individuals are dynamic and self-sufficient members of society.
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Eye Witness No. 111949 11 minIn this installment of the Eye Witness series, we look at classrooms on rails, circa 1949. We visit Ontario forests north of Lake Superior, where children come from miles away to attend school in a school car. They receive a month's worth of homework at a time, to keep them busy until the next time the classroom comes around. In Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, we see a unique workshop that trains the physically-challenged as furniture makers and seamstresses, allowing them to earn a living and build self-reliance.
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Eye Witness No. 221950 10 minAlberta's Blood Indians: On their reserve near Cardston, Alberta, the Kainai take action against waste and want, to improve living standards. Music Master: All the world of music reaches blind Paul Doyon, piano virtuoso, through his "seeing fingers." Sky Sentries: Jet planes of the Royal Canadian Air Force's famed 401 Squadron scream through the skies over Montréal in an air defense exercise.
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Happiness Is Loving Your TeacherJohn N. Smith 1977 27 minThis short dramatic film describes the harrowing first assignment of a physically disabled substitute teacher confronted with a classroom full of unruly pupils. Tony is particularly hostile, and is given a detention that increases her hostility. One day at home, the teacher receives a call of apology from Tony, asking him when he will be returning to the school.
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He's Not the Walking KindSandra Wilson 1972 28 minA story from Victoria, British Columbia, of one young man who, despite a crippling malady, is determined to experience as many of life's offerings as possible. Brian Wilson is spastic, confined to a wheelchair, but he works at a job, looks after himself, and moves about from place to place on his own. Every day has its challenges and victories, and sometimes defeats. With this example of personal courage, the film provides insight into the private and daily struggle of the disabled.
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The Impossible Takes a Little LongerAnne Henderson 1986 45 minThe Impossible Takes a Little Longer documents the work and personal lives of five physically disabled women. It shows how they are coping with the problems they share with all women, the problems they share with other disabled women and those unique to their particular circumstances. The film affirms that disabled women can lead full and productive lives as workers, as mothers and as valued community members. It informs both disabled women and the able-bodied about the possibilities of adaptations in the workplace, the use of technological aids and the need for support systems if disabled women are to have satisfying and productive lives. The Impossible Takes a Little Longer undermines the stereotypes and prejudices that further hinder a large segment of our population.
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SHAMELESS: The ART of DisabilityBonnie Sherr Klein 2006 1 h 11 minArt and activism are the starting point for a funny and intimate portrait of five surprising individuals with diverse disabilities. Packed with humour and raw energy, this film follows the gang of five from B.C. to Nova Scotia as they create and present their own images of their disabilities.
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SHAMELESS: The ART of DisabilityBonnie Sherr Klein 2006 48 minArt, activism and disability are the starting point for what unfolds as a funny and intimate portrait of 5 individuals. Director Bonnie Sherr Klein (Not a Love Story and Speaking Our Peace) has been a pioneer of women’s cinema. SHAMELESS: The ART of Disability marks Klein's return to a career interrupted by a catastrophic stroke in 1987. She turns the lens on the world of disability culture and the transformative power of art.
Joining Klein are a group of artists with diverse (dis)abilities. Humorist David Roche is taking his one-man show, The Church of 80% Sincerity, to New York’s off-Broadway. Poet Catherine Frazee is navigating a jam-packed schedule of teaching and speaking engagements. Dancer and choreographer Geoff McMurchy is organizing KickstART, an international festival of disability art. Sculptor and writer Persimmon Blackbridge is creating mixed media portraits from “meaningful junk”.
Klein gathers these artists for a pyjama party where they take a subversive look at Hollywood stereotypes of people with disabilities: The Monster, The Saint, The Psycho, the Poor Little Crippled Girl, etc. The artists decide to turn the tables, making a pact to meet a year later at the KicksART Festival with the intent of creating their own images of disability.
The film tracks this motley gang of five while they create and then present their self-representations. As we get to know each of these remarkable people driven by a passion for art and transformation, the everyday complexities and unexpected richness of life with a disability are exposed. -
Working Like CrazyGwynne Basen & Laura Sky 1999 53 minWorking Like Crazy is a fresh look at the struggles and victories of some former mental health patients who work in businesses owned and run by other psychiatric survivors.
