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Life and Death (31)
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4 North AJordan Canning & Howie Shia 2020 10 minA woman sits in a hospital room, alone with her dying father. As the din of hospital noises pushes her to confront her inevitable loss, she escapes into a series of lush childhood memories. 4 North A is a celebration of the fleeting joys of life and a bittersweet reminder that we don’t always get the closure we seek. -
The ApprenticeRichard Condie 1991 9 minIn this animated short from Richard Condie (The Big Snit), an old fool meets a young fool at a crossroads in the 14th century. The old fool stays behind while the young fool skips blindly down the wrong road. The old fool must then teach his young apprentice about the consequences of taking the wrong road. A quirky tale told without words.
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Aftermath: The Legacy of SuicideLisa Fitzgibbons 2001 50 minThis documentary looks at how children deal with a parent who has died by suicide. Meet 3 people who lost their fathers to suicide at an early age but learned the truth much later, after years of confusion, grief and guilt. In French with English subtitles.
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Blood and WaterRohan Fernando 2007 1 h 17 minWhen the 2004 tsunami hit the coast of Sri Lanka, 65-year-old Anton Ambrose's wife and daughter were killed. "In five minutes," he says, "I lost everything."
A year later, Anton returns to Sri Lanka. With him is his nephew, award-winning filmmaker Rohan Fernando.
A Tamil, Anton moved to California in the 1970s and became a very successful gynecologist. His daughter, Orlantha, made the opposite journey, returning to Sri Lanka where she ran a non-profit group that gave underprivileged children free violin lessons. Anton and his wife, Beulah, were visiting her when the tsunami hit.
Blood and Water is the story of one man's search for meaning in the face of overwhelming loss, but it is also filled with improbable characters, unintentional comedy and situational ironies.
To honour Orlantha's work, Anton is building a music centre and hosting a fundraising concert. Eccentric characters and oddball events immediately take centre stage. Exiled Iranian country singer Ann Claire is focused on media attention as much as on the concert. Shondale, an energetic African American computer analyst, is so moved by Orlantha's story that she drops everything to become the concert's chief organizer. The concert itself loses money, although - in a final irony - some of the underprivileged children it is designed to serve come from among the richest families in the country.
Meanwhile, Anton tours his old neighbourhood, spends time with his daughter's closest friends and seeks out advice from the archbishop of Sri Lanka. ("That's life!" the archbishop says, when Anton describes his loss.)
All this against the backdrop of Sri Lanka - a country coming apart as the decades-old civil war between Tamil Tigers and the government heats up.
Ultimately, Blood and Water is a film about the coming to terms with loss. As Anton Ambrose seeks meaning in tragedy, he must re-evaluate all he has taken for granted. In so doing, he comes to understand his daughter better than he ever did when she was alive. -
eyeViviane Elnécavé 1972 8 minEyes may be the windows of the soul, but when the gaze is directed outward they become much more than organs for perceiving the world, they become also an instrument of involvement in all of life's drama. In this highly imaginative animation film, one disembodied eye (one is all it takes) embarks on life's adventures, entering into and disengaging from all the many passions, vicissitudes and conflicts that beset one's course.
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Ghosts of the SeaVirginia Tangvald 2024 1 h 37 minWhile searching for clues about the death of her brother, who was lost at sea, Virginia Tangvald embarks on a fascinating investigation into her family’s dark secrets. Calling into question the idyllic life of her father, legendary sailor Peter Tangvald, her quest dismantles the myth of absolute freedom and offers the hope that a toxic cycle has been broken.
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GriefwalkerTim Wilson 2008 1 h 10 minThis documentary introduces us to Stephen Jenkinson, once the leader of a palliative care counselling team at Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital. Through his daytime job, he has been at the deathbed of well over 1,000 people. What he sees over and over, he says, is "a wretched anxiety and an existential terror" even when there is no pain. Indicting the practice of palliative care itself, he has made it his life's mission to change the way we die - to turn the act of dying from denial and resistance into an essential part of life.
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Inhale ExhaleDanielle Sturk 2009 27 minThis short documentary filmed at Saint Boniface General Hospital, in Manitoba, focuses on the work of 2 women: Gisèle Fontaine, who helps women in childbirth; and Louise Saurette, who attends the dying. Birth and death, moments of transition that involve a transformative journey, have much in common. The midwife and the chaplain offer themselves as guides on the painful and essential path of letting go.
This documentary short was produced as part of the Tremplin program, which enables young Francophone filmmakers to make a first production in a professional context. -
I, BarnabéJean-François Lévesque 2020 15 minI, Barnabé takes a luminous look at a desperate man’s existential crisis. During a night of stormy drunkenness, he receives a visit from a mysterious bird and is forced to reconsider his life.
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John and MichaelShira Avni 2004 10 minThis animated short pays tribute to two men with Down syndrome who shared an intimate and profoundly loving relationship that deeply affected the filmmaker. Narrator Brian Davis brings the characters to life with great sensitivity.
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Kids Talkin' About DeathSue Huff 2005 19 minKids Talkin' About Death is an insightful look into how kids see and interpret death, from the loss of a parent to helping a grieving friend. Candid, charming and astute, the kids bring death out into the open in a positive way. The taboo of death and the afterlife is explored through honest and at times playful conversations and animation.
Entertaining and heart-warming, this documentary teaches all of us that death should be an important part of understanding life.
Made especially for children aged 9-12, Kids Talkin' About Death is a safe and welcoming discussion starter for an often difficult topic. The accompanying study guide provides ideas for taking discussions further in the classroom and at home. -
Like a Thief in the NightMarie-Thérèse François 2010 15 minThis short documentary about the city of Moncton, NB, explores 2 tragic endings: the obliteration of a much-loved historic neighbourhood, and the illness and death of the filmmaker's father. What survives when buildings, trees and a loved one all vanish? In French with English subtitles.
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Ludovic - Visiting GrandpaCo Hoedeman 2001 11 minIt's summer and Ludovic is invited to his grandfather's farm. The little teddy bear finds Grandpa very saddened by the death of Grandma, and Ludovic is fascinated by a room filled with mementos. Grandma's portrait comes to life, and Ludovic is able to kiss and hug her. This poignant tale evokes the closeness and understanding between a grandfather and his little grandson who gradually learn to accept the death of a loved one.
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Making Every Moment CountLeora Kuttner 2003 38 minDr Leora Kuttner, an award-winning filmmaker and an international expert in pediatric pain management, brings us this groundbreaking and comprehensive look at the emerging field of pediatric palliative care.
At the film's heart are five remarkable young people who speak with profound clarity and wisdom about being alive and their approach to death. Layering their stories with interviews, the film is a unique portrait of how families and professionals can come together during a highly emotional time to share in decision making, address fears of death and provide hope.
Dr Kuttner's films have been recognized by the Association for the Care of Children's Health, the Health Sciences Communications Association, and the National Council on Family Relations. -
Moments of LifeSamuel-A. Caron & France Gallant 2020 20 minThe phenomenon of perinatal grief has largely gone unrecognized; parents who live through the experience frequently find themselves isolated, with no resources to support them. Co-directed by Samuel-A. Caron and France Gallant, Moments of Life breaks the silence on this sensitive subject. We follow a group of bereaved parents who organize to offer support in their region, driven by a determination to reduce isolation. This film is both a conversation-starter and a source of hope and inspiration.
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Our Maternal HomeJanine Windolph 2023 27 minFilmmaker and educator Janine Windolph ventures from Saskatchewan to Quebec with her two teens and younger sister, tracing their familial origins to the Cree First Nation of Waswanipi. Against the scenic backdrop of these Traditional Lands, Elders offer newfound interdependence and hands-on learning, transforming this humble visit into a sensory-filled expression of reclamation and resilience. Our Maternal Home lovingly establishes a heart-centred form of resistance to confront and heal from the generational impacts of cultural disconnection, making space for what comes next.
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Reflections on SufferingMalca Gillson 1982 20 minIn a moving conversation with Dr. Balfour M. Mount, friend, colleague and treating physician, cancer victim Jean Cameron, a one-time volunteer social worker in the Palliative Care Unit of Montréal's Royal Victoria hospital, discusses how she has come to terms with her own illness and the perspective it has given her on the meaning of life. What she has to say is relevant to all. The depth of her insight and the grace of her being leave viewers moved and open to thinking more carefully about the meaning of their own lives.
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Sainte BarbeCédric Louis & Claude Barras 2007 7 minThis animated short about men and hair tells the story of little bald Léon and of his grandfather, an old man with a bushy black beard. A thing of legend, the grandfather's beard seems endowed with magic powers. It even turns caterpillars into butterflies! But Léon's grandmother wants to cut off the unkempt beard and regain the distinguished-looking man she married, who wore just a tidy moustache. When the old man's asleep, grandmother prowls, scissors in hand, but Léon's keeping a watchful eye on her. As long as grandpa lives, the beard will stay.
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She and IMarie-Pier Ottawa 2008 6 minThis short film is inspired by a stormy same-sex relationship in the Manawan community of the Atikamekw Nation, which led to a suicide. Since 2004, Wapikoni Mobile has been giving Indigenous youth the opportunity to speak out using video and music. This short film was made with the guidance of the traveling Wapikoni Mobile studios and is part of the 2007 Selection—Wapikoni Mobile DVD.
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Surviving Death: Stories of GriefElizabeth Murray 1998 47 minThis short documentary profiles a variety of individuals and families who have dealt with the death of a loved one. These people—parents, children, siblings, partners, friends—candidly share their experiences of negotiating a new relationship with life after losing a loved one. Hailing from different cultural backgrounds, the people in this film hope their stories will allow others to begin expressing and understanding their own grief. They speak about the pain and powerful emotions they have experienced, about their need to reassess values and relationships after a death, and about the ways they have found to survive their loss. Recognizing that there is no single or easy path to recovery, this film can act as a thorough, sincere, and helpful resource for those in grief.
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The SubjectPatrick Bouchard 2018 10 minAn animator dissects his own body, extracting memories, emotions and fears that will nurture his work. As he cuts into his skin with a scalpel, various symbolic objects recalling his past emerge. Reaching the heart after cracking his ribs, he succeeds in identifying the burden he’s been dying to cast off.
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ThanadoulaRobin McKenna 2020 6 minTwo sisters entwined by love. When Annie disappears, her younger sister, Natalie, seeks her out in an unconventional way: as a thanadoula, accompanying the dying in their final stages. Between their slow and final breaths, Natalie finds a bridge between life and death and, ultimately, a pathway to her sister.
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Tu as crié LET ME GOAnne Claire Poirier 1998 1 h 36 minFilmmaker Anne Claire Poirier captures the most terrible tragedy a mother can imagine – her own daughter's addiction, prostitution, and eventual murder. Determined to use her talent as a filmmaker to find the strength and courage needed to go on, Poirier created a cinematic tour-de-force that delves into the lives of street people. She unearths her daughter's past in order to better understand why she, and other young people, risk their lives for the drugs they believe will set them free.
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This Is MeRon Tunis 1979 27 minSome of life's most profound questions are tackled by ten children ranging in age from six to eleven. They give their spontaneous views on God, the beginning of life, what happens to the spirit when one dies, where one's soul goes at night, and numerous other questions about life. The magic of animation and modern camera techniques illustrate the children's imaginative ruminations and conclusions. This is a delightful film for children and adults.
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The Unfinished JourneyJean-Thomas Bédard 2002 1 h 11 minOn October 13, 1997 the village of St. Bernard in the Beauce region of Quebec acquired sudden fame, unintentionally and despite itself. It was Thanksgiving Day when a bus accident wiped out two percent of its tiny population. The local Golden Age club was on an excursion to Île-aux-Coudres when it plunged into the Éboulements ravine. Four years after the most serious road accident in Canadian history, friends and family of the victims recount their sad journey. During a six-month period, we accompany the survivors, and follow the rebirth of a community after the tragedy. In French with English subtitles.
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UnmotheredMarie-France Guerrette Dempsey 2018 1 h 12 minOn August 31, 1995, tragedy struck the Guerrette family when Mona, a mother of two, died from breast cancer at age 42, leaving behind a husband and their daughters, Mylène and Marie-France. But she also left behind a stirring farewell message that would serve as a testament to her life.
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Undertaker for Life!Georges Hannan 2022 52 minUndertakers are anything but gloomy; they’re funny, generous and dedicated. We would gladly go on vacation with them, but sadly, they never have any dead time.
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Very Nice, Very NiceArthur Lipsett 1961 6 minArthur Lipsett's first film is an avant-garde blend of photography and sound. It looks behind the business-as-usual face we put on life and shows anxieties we want to forget. It is made of dozens of pictures that seem familiar, with fragments of speech heard in passing and, between times, a voice saying, "Very nice, very nice." It was critically acclaimed and plays frequently in festivals and film schools around the world.
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When the Day BreaksWendy Tilby & Amanda Forbis 1999 9 minIn this animated short, Ruby the pig seeks affirmation in the city around her after witnessing the accidental death of a stranger… and finds it in surprising places. With deft humour and finely rendered detail, When the Day Breaks illuminates the links that connect our urban lives, while evoking the promise and fragility of a new day. Winner of over 40 prizes from around the world, the film also features singer Martha Wainwright.
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The Water LoverDélia Gunn , Sonia Brazeau , … 2009 4 minRoland Papatie of Kitcisakik drowned in the turbulent waters below the Dozois Dam in Abitibi. A tribute to a brother and friend. Since 2004, the travelling studios of Wapikoni Mobile have enabled Quebec First Nations youth to express themselves through videos and music. The 15 films presented here are a mosaic of contemporary and original works.
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Why MeJanet Perlman & Derek Lamb 1978 9 minThis short animation illustrates the reactions of one individual whose doctor has just told him he will soon die. In a terse and sometimes humorous dialogue with his doctor, Nesbitt Spoon runs the gamut of emotions commonly experienced by people trying to deal with this devastating yet universal situation.
