The NFB is committed to respecting your privacy

We use cookies to ensure that our site works efficiently, as well as for advertising purposes.

If you do not wish to have your information used in this way, you can modify your browser settings before continuing your visit.

Learn more
Skip to content Accessibility

Social Change (60)

  • Afghan Chronicles
    Afghan Chronicles
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Dominic Morissette 2007 52 min
    This feature documentary looks at democracy, freedom of speech and nation rebuilding in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban. With a radio station and 2 magazines - one of them aimed at women - the press agency Killid Media is a real media phenomenon. As it follows the distribution of these popular magazines across Kabul, this film shows the struggles within this changing society and paints a touching picture of a land that is a work in progress, dreaming of a better future.
  • The Baymen
    The Baymen
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Rex Tasker 1965 27 min
    Baymen, no matter where they go, remain above all else Newfoundlanders. They were born to the sea, to a place in the life of their cliffside village, but many of the younger generation are now looking to the city for their future. The film, produced in 1965, follows a bayman's family to St. John's, showing what such a change means to father, daughter and grandfather.
  • Bronwen & Yaffa (Moving Towards Tolerance)
    Bronwen & Yaffa (Moving Towards Tolerance)
    Peter d'Entremont 1996 27 min
    This documentary presents two young women from Halifax who are organizing rock concerts to raise money for the group Eastcoast Against Racism. Bronwen and Yaffa believe that the universal language of music will help unite the community. At the same time, they struggle to renew their friendship with Scott, a former Ku Klux Klan member. This moving film is set against a vibrant soundtrack of punk and rap music.
  • Citizen Harold
    Citizen Harold
    Hugh Foulds 1971 8 min
    This animated short is the tale of a man roused from the torpor of his TV viewing by the sound of chainsaws whining their way through neighbourhood trees! Harold has to do something, and how he does it is the subject of this film. It's a story that any citizen might well ponder. After all, Harold is the familiar non-hero that everyone knows.
  • Comfort and Indifference
    Comfort and Indifference
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Denys Arcand 1991 1 h 48 min
    English sub-titled version of a film showing facts and opinions that lead to the Québec referendum on independence in 1980, with the participation of a historical character: Machiavelli.
  • Cure for Love
    Cure for Love
    Francine Pelletier  &  Christina Willings 2008 59 min
    Cure for Love is a full-length documentary about a controversial evangelical movement that purports to convert gay people into heterosexuals. The film brings us inside this unusual Christian subculture and follows the lives of several young people whose homosexuality is at odds with their religious beliefs.
  • Cotton Mill, Treadmill
    Cotton Mill, Treadmill
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Denys Arcand 1992 2 h 39 min
    English subtitled version of a film showing factories' shutdown. Quebec textile workers organize themselves for better, healthier working conditions while the multinationals strenghten their empire.
  • Careers and Cradles
    Careers and Cradles
    Jack Olsen 1947 11 min
    This short documentary is a snapshot of the revolutionary change in status enjoyed by women between the turn of the 20th century and 1947. The film notes the significance of this evolution, highlighting women who today command respect as leaders in government, industry, science and the arts. Women's organizations and leaders, among them Senator Cairine Wilson, symphony orchestra conductor Ethel Stark and Madame Thérèse Casgrain, discuss the challenges of their times.
  • The Challenge of Change
    The Challenge of Change
    James Carney 1969 16 min
    "Today the rate of change and the areas of life molded by it are increasing astronomically ..." states the introduction to this film. Impressions of all that constitutes the environment of modern man are conveyed in the film in a kaleidoscope of movement and sound--a montage of pictures from the urban and industrial scene, reflecting the creativity and inventiveness of which people are capable but which in turn demand adaptation and adjustment if we are to survive.
  • The Children of Refus Global
    The Children of Refus Global
    Manon Barbeau 1998 1 h 14 min
    In 1948, Paul-Émile Borduas' Refus global manifesto proclaimed the end of the "reign of fear" embodied by the Duplessis regime. Fifty years later, all the history books mention this document which laid the foundations of modern Quebec. Daughter of one of the signatories, filmmaker Manon Barbeau takes a fresh look at this period. She went to meet the sons and daughters of Barbeau, Borduas, Mousseau and Riopelle, "children of Refus global" who, like her, suffered the consequences of their parents' revolutionary gesture. None of them emerged unscathed from a childhood made up of worries and abandonment, but also of a richness that only art can bring. Especially when it appears to us, as it does here, in the light of emotion.
  • Deciding to Organize
    Deciding to Organize
    Bonnie Sherr Klein  &  Peter Pearson 1968 34 min
    From the Organizing for Power: The Alinsky Approach series, this short documentary shows a group of concerned citizens from Dayton, Ohio, meeting and consulting Saul Alinsky on the means of creating an effective organization.
  • Discordia
    Discordia
    Samir Mallal  &  Ben Addelman 2004 1 h 8 min
    On September 9, 2002, a scheduled appearance by former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sparked heated debate at Montreal's Concordia University. By the end of the day, the "Concordia riot" had made international news, from CNN to Al-Jazeera. This film documents the fallout from that eventful day, following three young campus activists as they negotiate the most formative year of their lives. Filmmakers Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal jump into the fray with street-smart bravado and a handheld camera. Buoyed by the songs of hip-hop artist Buck 65, this film offers a tonic reflection on the current state of Canadian student activism and the enduring value of tolerance.
  • Encounter with Saul Alinsky - Part 1: CYC Toronto
    Encounter with Saul Alinsky - Part 1: CYC Toronto
    Peter Pearson 1967 28 min
    This documentary short captures a lively confrontation between the American community organizer and writer Saul Alinsky, and members of the Company of Young Canadians (CYC). Among other topics, the parties argue and disagree about the means and costs of securing social change.
  • Encounter with Saul Alinsky - Part 2: Rama Indian Reserve
    Encounter with Saul Alinsky - Part 2: Rama Indian Reserve
    Peter Pearson 1967 32 min
    Indigenous youth, led by Duke Redbird, argue their ideas against the blunt pragmatism of American activist and writer Saul Alinksy. Author of the book “Rules for Radicals”, Alinsky is widely considered the father of community organizing who spent his life advocating for improved living conditions in poor communities across the United States. In this impassioned debate, the young activists question the corrupting influence of power, and ask why Indigenous people cannot live traditionally and peacefully on the land. Alinsky responds, “You have got to be part of the world in order to change it. You are not going to make any changes by staying in your corner.” In Alinsky’s view, equality only happens when the disenfranchised have the strength to show the ruling powers that it will be more costly for them to withhold it. Encounter with Saul Alinksy offers fascinating insights into a conversation about power and activism that has lasting resonance today.
  • Earth Keepers
    Earth Keepers
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Sylvie Van Brabant 2009 1 h 22 min
    This feature documentary by Sylvie Van Brabant introduces us to Mikael Rioux, a young Québécois activist who founded Échofête, Quebec’s first environmental festival. Spurred by his passionate concern for the world his son will inherit, Rioux goes on a global quest to meet 7 visionaries with concrete solutions to ecological problems. Together, they offer a survival guide for our planet and a journey back to hope.
  • First Stories - ati-wîcahsin (It's Getting Easier)
    First Stories - ati-wîcahsin (It's Getting Easier)
    Tessa Desnomie 2007 6 min
    In this short film, filmmaker Tessa Desnomie celebrates the life and times of her grandmother, Jane Merasty. Born and raised on the trapline, this Woodlands Cree woman has witnessed significant changes throughout her vigorous 80 years. First Stories is an emerging filmmaker program for Indigenous youth which produced 3 separate collections of short films from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. Produced in association with CBC, APTN, SCN, SaskFilm and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND.
  • The Founding of the Co-operatives
    The Founding of the Co-operatives
    Colin Low 1967 21 min
    A record of the founding meeting of the Fogo Island Ship Building and Producer Co-operative.
  • Freedom Outraged
    Freedom Outraged
    2009 1 h 13 min
    Four people who were struggling for a separate Quebec in the early '70s offer us an insight into their social and political engagement. Discussions, archival footage and the songs of Plume Latraverse provide a deeper understanding of Pierre Vallières, Charles Gagnon, Francis Simard and Robert Comeau. In French with English subtitles.
  • First Stories - Two Spirited
    First Stories - Two Spirited
    Sharon A. Desjarlais 2007 6 min
    This short documentary presents the empowering story of Rodney "Geeyo" Poucette's struggle against prejudice in the Indigenous community as a two-spirited person (gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender). First Stories is an emerging filmmaker program for Indigenous youth which produced 3 separate collections of short films from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. Produced in association with CBC, APTN, SCN, SaskFilm and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND.
  • Film and You
    Film and You
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Jean Palardy  &  Donald Peters 1948 21 min
    How film councils are organized, and what they can do for the community are shown. Different people like different films--for instance, Grandpa, who goes to sleep during a sequence on kitchen planning, wakes joyfully at the sound of a square dance. But all groups agree that they want films on their programs, if they can get them, and that is where the film council comes in. Animation shows how a council is set up, and how a number of organizations in an area can collaborate in buying a projector. We see projectionist training, and the public library becoming a distribution centre for films as well as books. Finally we see film in action, as a variety of successful community projects are carried out, each directly the result of film showings.
  • The Films of Fogo Island
    The Films of Fogo Island
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Derek Norman  &  Jeff Webb 2019 43 min
    In 1967, NFB and MUN made a series of 27 films on Fogo Island that pioneered using film as a tool in community economic development.
  • The Hasty Man Drinks His Tea with a Fork
    The Hasty Man Drinks His Tea with a Fork
    Sylvie Groulx 2003 1 h 23 min
    A blend of drama and documentary, this film follows several people caught up in the turmoil of the modern world. The drama centres on a woman who has burned out and who holds up her own despair – and her attempts to rebuild her life – as a mirror to the rest of us. With a blend of gravity and humour, Sylvie Groulx's film shows the absurdity of a society dedicated to the cult of speed at all costs.
  • Hannah's Story
    Hannah's Story
    Juanita Peters 2007 29 min
    At the age of 5, Hannah Taylor spotted her first homeless person in the back alleys of Winnipeg. This experience not only troubled her, but it drove her to do nothing less than change the world. The Ladybug Foundation, the charity Hannah helped establish, has raised over a million dollars to date. With her huge heart and can-do attitude, she preaches a simple message of "Share a little of what you have and always care about others." As this short documentary proves, we all have a lot to learn from Hannah's story.
  • Holding Our Ground
    Holding Our Ground
    Anne Henderson 1988 50 min
    Filmed in a squatter community of Labangon in Cebu, Philippines, Holding Our Ground is the inspiring story of a group of women who have organized collectively to pressure their government for land reform, to establish their own money-lending system and to create shelters for street kids. A story of grassroots organizing that can be a model in both hemispheres.
  • Handmade Mountain
    Handmade Mountain
    Michèle Pearson Clarke 2019 6 min
    In Handmade Mountain, Michèle Pearson Clarke explores the emotional fallout of being both early to gay marriage and early to gay divorce. Fifteen years after same-sex marriage became legal, she and friends reflect on its personal and political meaning in this experimental film.
  • Henry Ford's America
    Henry Ford's America
    Donald Brittain 1977 56 min
    This feature documentary studies the automobile and its pervasive effect on the history of North America. Focusing on the Ford dynasty, from the original Henry car through to Henry II, the film demonstrates how society has adapted to fit the needs of the automobile.
  • The Hook Up
    The Hook Up
    Michael V. Smith 2019 6 min
    The Hook Up is an experimental doc featuring four gay men from two different generations: two nearing age 70 and two 20-somethings. Striking close-up visuals create a powerful sense of intimacy and connection as the men discuss how hooking up has (and has not) evolved for gay men.
  • Si le temps le permet (version inuktitut)
    Si le temps le permet (version inuktitut)
    2003 0 s
    Documentaire personnel de l'artiste Élisapie Isaac. En pleine immensité boréale, au bord de la mer Arctique, un village : Kangirsujuaq, au Nunavik. Ici, traditions et modernité se croisent quotidiennement. Les rires des enfants habitent joyeusement les rues, les jeunes carburent à la culture « du Sud », alors que les vieux tentent encore de se faire à leur étrange sédentarité. Dans cette toundra à couper le souffle, la jeune cinéaste originaire de Salluit, maintenant installée à Montréal, décide de plonger au coeur de ses origines.
  • Inuuvunga, I am Inuk, I am Alive (Inuktitut version)
    Inuuvunga, I am Inuk, I am Alive (Inuktitut version)
    2004 57 min
    In this feature-length documentary, 8 Inuit teens with cameras offer a vibrant and contemporary view of life in Canada’s North. They also use their newly acquired film skills to confront a broad range of issues, from the widening communication gap between youth and their elders to the loss of their peers to suicide.
  • If the Weather Permits
    If the Weather Permits
    Elisapie Isaac 2003 27 min
    This short documentary studies life in the village of Kangirsujuaq, Nunavik. In this community on the edge of the Arctic Ocean, children’s laughter fills the streets while the old people ponder the passage of time. They are nomads of the wide-open spaces who are trying to get used to the strange feeling of staying put. While the teenagers lap up Southern culture and play golf on the tundra to kill time, the Elders are slowly dying, as their entire culture seems to fade away.

    Elisapie Isaac, a filmmaker born in Nunavik, decides to return to her roots on this breathtaking land. To bridge the growing gap between the young and the old, she speaks to her grandfather, now deceased, and confides in him her hopes and fears. Grappling with isolation, family relationships, resource extraction, land-based knowledges, the influence of Southern culture and the ongoing impacts of colonialism on Inuit ways of life, Elisapie Isaac offers a nuanced portrait of the North.
  • Inuuvunga - I Am Inuk, I Am Alive
    Inuuvunga - I Am Inuk, I Am Alive
    Bobby Echalook Sarah Idlout , … 2004 57 min
    In this feature-length documentary, 8 Inuit teens with cameras offer a vibrant and contemporary view of life in Canada's North. They also use their newly acquired film skills to confront a broad range of issues, from the widening communication gap between youth and their elders to the loss of their peers to suicide. In Inuktitut with English subtitles.
  • Journey to Justice
    Journey to Justice
    Roger McTair 2000 47 min
    This documentary pays tribute to a group of Canadians who took racism to court. They are Canada's unsung heroes in the fight for Black civil rights. Focusing on the 1930s to the 1950s, this film documents the struggle of 6 people who refused to accept inequality. Featured here, among others, are Viola Desmond, a woman who insisted on keeping her seat at the Roseland movie theatre in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia in 1946 rather than moving to the section normally reserved for the city's Black population, and Fred Christie, who took his case to the Supreme Court after being denied service at a Montreal tavern in 1936. These brave pioneers helped secure justice for all Canadians. Their stories deserve to be told.
  • Moses Coady
    Moses Coady
    Kent Martin 1976 57 min
    The film is about Moses Coady, who was called many things in his lifetime, but who proved to be the most effective social reformer Canada has known. He went into the villages, organized the people into study groups, helped them set up credit unions and co-operatives, and freed them from the semi-feudal conditions they lived in. Today, people from all over the world come to study his methods at the Coady International Institute in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.
  • Nishnawbe-Aski: The People and the Land
    Nishnawbe-Aski: The People and the Land
    Phyllis Wilson 1977 27 min
    This short documentary addresses the issue of change, and how it is affecting the Cree and Ojibwa of the Nishnawbe-Aski region. Four of their communities have been selected to illustrate the different ways in which the inhabitants are reacting to change. An enlightening film for anyone interested in northern development or the evolution of Indigenous societies.
  • Protest
    Protest
    The Sanchez Brothers 2017 42 s
    MOST OF US DON’T BELIEVE IN ANYTHING THIS MUCH. POV into an ultimate act of protest: self-immolation. What compels someone to go this far?
  • Our Northern Citizen
    Our Northern Citizen
    John Howe 1956 30 min
    This short documentary illustrates the impact of new developments on the Inuit of Baffin Island, as well as the local reaction to the decision to move the settlement of Aklavik across the Mackenzie River.

    Please note that this is an archival film that makes use of the word “Eskimo,” an outdated and offensive term. While the origin of the word is a matter of some contention, it is no longer used in Canada. The term was formally rejected by the Inuit Circumpolar Council in 1980 and has subsequently not been in use at the NFB for decades. This film is therefore a time-capsule of a bygone era, presented in its original version. The NFB apologizes for the offence caused.
  • Occupation
    Occupation
    Bill Reid 1970 46 min
    In this documentary, striking political science students concerned with the democratization of their university occupy the offices of the Political Science Department at McGill University. The issue: greater student control over the hiring of faculty. The film crew lives with the students and follows their action through confusion, argument, dissent, and negotiations with faculty. The result is an intimate view of a student political action.
  • Patricia's Moving Picture
    Patricia's Moving Picture
    Bonnie Sherr Klein 1978 25 min
    This short documentary tells the true story of Patricia Garner, a woman reluctantly approaching middle age sandwiched between changing social values and the loss of her family role. Illustrating her struggles and successes, this film about newly found courage will inspire everyone.
  • Prologue
    Prologue
    Robin Spry 1969 1 h 27 min
    Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Robin Spry, Prologue was the first Canadian film to screen at the Venice Film Festival. Set and filmed during the sixties, this fiction feature tells the story of a young Montrealer who edits an underground newspaper with help from his female friend and a draft dodger from the United States. Two rival philosophies of dissenting youth become evident in the choices they make: militant protest vs. communal retreat. The film includes some seminal archival footage of a speech by legendary anti-war activist Abbie Hoffman and bloody rioting during the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago.
  • Sisters in the Struggle
    Sisters in the Struggle
    Dionne Brand  &  Ginny Stikeman 1991 49 min
    This documentary features Black women active in politics as well as community, labour and feminist organizing. They share their insights and personal testimonies on the double legacy of racism and sexism, linking their personal struggles with the ongoing battle to end systemic discrimination and violence against women and people of colour.
  • Saul Alinsky Went to War
    Saul Alinsky Went to War
    Peter Pearson  &  Donald Brittain 1968 57 min
    In this feature documentary, American community organizer and writer Saul Alinsky goes to war against the conditions that keep the poor in poverty. The film shows how he helped Black ghettos in the United States find an effective, non-violent method of fighting for their rights.
  • Seven Shades of Pale
    Seven Shades of Pale
    Les Rose 1975 28 min
    From a quiet, neglected corner of Nova Scotia, a meeting with the Black community that shows both the traditional attitudes of the older generation and the more alert, resolved stance of the young. The old still pin their hopes on the church and the preacher, while the young look more towards the Black United Front and its roving director. For both generations change is a challenge. The common hope is for a fuller life.
  • The Summer of '67
    The Summer of '67
    Albert Kish  &  Donald Winkler 1994 57 min
    This feature documentary follows up on 2 important NFB documentaries that captured the turbulent year of 1967, a time when social and cultural revolution, as well as generational change, were on everyone’s mind. The first, Christopher’s Movie Matinée, followed the travels of 14 Toronto teenagers over the course of the summer, while the second, Flowers on a One-way Street, documented the conflict between the hippies of the day and Toronto City Council, over the future of the Yorkville neighbourhood, then Canada's counter-culture capital. More than 2 decades later, the filmmakers have sought out some of the films' participants, not as an exercise in nostalgia but to discover what traces remain in the lives of those who most deeply felt the impact of the '60s
  • A Score for Women's Voices
    A Score for Women's Voices
    Sophie Bissonnette 2002 1 h 26 min
    Between March and October 2000, millions of people around the world took to the streets to denounce poverty and violence against women. The historic World March of Women was a bold initiative of the Québec Federation of Women and represented a turning point in global solidarity.

    Director Sophie Bissonnette invited five filmmakers from around the world to cover the march. She also asked each one to film an innovative project. In Senegal a community battles female genital mutilation through education. In Australia a women's circus teaches survivors of sexual assault to become skilled performers. In India a group of low-caste women mediate domestic disputes in informal women's courts. Native women in Ecuador offer leadership training programs to create women leaders. In the United States, Linda Carney describes why she founded Survival Inc. for poor women in Boston: this wealthy city refused her and her son welfare benefits unless she quit her minimum-wage job.

    Set against the backdrop of a song, A Score for Women's Voices ends at the UN, where women deliver 5 million cards signed during the marches. Their goal? To change the world!

    Some subtitles.
  • Speak It! From the Heart of Black Nova Scotia
    Speak It! From the Heart of Black Nova Scotia
    Sylvia Hamilton 1992 28 min
    In their predominantly white high school in Halifax, a group of black students face daily reminders of racism, ranging from abuse (racist graffiti on washroom walls), to exclusion (the omission of black history from textbooks). They work to establish a Cultural Awareness Youth Group, a vehicle for building pride and self-esteem through educational and cultural programs. With help from mentors, they discover the richness of their heritage and learn some of the ways they can begin to effect change.
  • Some American Feminists
    Some American Feminists
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Luce Guilbeault Nicole Brossard , … 1977 55 min
    This documentary is composed of a series of interviews, combined with newsreel footage, that place the American feminist moment in historical perspective. Six of the movement's founding women, including Betty Friedan and Kate Millett, discuss the issues that most concern them. A film that remains relevant, even today.
  • Stationery
    Stationery
    Monica Rho 2005 5 min
    "A woman must find paper clips for a report due in the morning." With this apparently simple description, director Monica Rho begins to explore the complexities and paradoxes of modern life; the isolation within today's crowded cities; and inner, emotional insecurities. Genie Award-winning Canadian actor Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy) voices the woman in quest of paper clips with a nuanced blend of assuredness and vulnerability. The film is stylish and crisp, with a bold graphic style and lively, witty animation.
  • Through Conflict to Negotiation
    Through Conflict to Negotiation
    Bonnie Sherr Klein  &  Peter Pearson 1968 45 min
    This documentary follows a community action group led by American community organizer and writer Saul Alinsky in Rochester, New York. Together, they confront the community's largest employer on the issue of corporate responsibility and the employment of minority groups.
  • They Called Us "Les Filles du Roy"
    They Called Us "Les Filles du Roy"
    Anne Claire Poirier 1974 56 min
    Structured as a love letter, this feature film is an impressionistic history of the women of Québec down through the ages: the Indigenous woman, the fille du Roy, the nun, the settler's wife, the soldier's wife, and, finally, today's woman.
  • Ted Baryluk's Grocery
    Ted Baryluk's Grocery
    John Paskievich  &  Michael Mirus 1982 10 min
    This short documentary profiles Ukrainian-Canadian Ted Baryluk, whose grocery store has been a fixture in Winnipeg's North End for over 20 years. In this photo study, Ted talks about his store, the customers who have come and gone and the social changes his multicultural neighbourhood has seen. But most of all he wonders what will become of his store after he retires. He hopes his daughter will take over, but she wants to move away. The film is a wistful rendering of a shopkeeper's relationship with his daughter and a fascinating portrait of a neighbourhood and its inhabitants.
  • United States of Africa
    United States of Africa
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Yanick Létourneau 2011 47 min
    African hip hop pioneer Didier Awadi is on a quest to craft an album that pays tribute to the great black revolutionary leaders and their struggle to realize a dream: a united, independent Africa. In this epic musical and political journey, Awadi visits some 40 countries to collaborate with hip hop activist artists, including Smockey (Burkina Faso), M-1 of Dead Prez (United States) and ZuluBoy (South Africa).

    Featuring a score by Ghislain Poirier, as well as Awadi’s own songs, United States of Africa draws the viewer into one artist’s profound meditation on the power of music and the impact of political engagement—both individual and collective. A hopeful and compelling portrait of a continent whose politically aware youth is refusing to accept the role of victim, the film is a call for Africans to rise up, take a stand and take control of their continent and their destiny.
  • United States of Africa
    United States of Africa
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Yanick Létourneau 2011 1 h 15 min
    African hip hop pioneer Didier Awadi is on a quest to craft an album that pays tribute to the great black revolutionary leaders and their struggle to realize a dream: a united, independent Africa. In this epic musical and political journey, Awadi visits some 40 countries to collaborate with hip hop activist artists, including Smockey (Burkina Faso), M-1 of Dead Prez (United States) and ZuluBoy (South Africa).

    Featuring a score by Ghislain Poirier, as well as Awadi’s own songs, United States of Africa draws the viewer into one artist’s profound meditation on the power of music and the impact of political engagement—both individual and collective. A hopeful and compelling portrait of a continent whose politically aware youth is refusing to accept the role of victim, the film is a call for Africans to rise up, take a stand and take control of their continent and their destiny.
  • Up the Yangtze
    Up the Yangtze
    Yung Chang 2007 1 h 33 min
    This award-winning documentary follows the Shiu family as their home is destroyed by the rising waters of China’s Yangtze River - a consequence of the Three Gorges Project, the largest hydroelectric dam in history.
  • V.T.R. Rosedale
    V.T.R. Rosedale
    1974 31 min
    Using video recording technology, the citizens of Rosedale, once referred to as "the rear end of Alberta" by a frustrated citizen, pulled themselves together as a community. They formed a citizens' action committee, cleaned up the town, built a park, and negotiated with the government to install gas, water and sewage systems. And all this happened within five months.
  • View from the Summit
    View from the Summit
    Magnus Isacsson 2002 1 h 15 min
    This feature documentary takes us back to April 20, 2001, as Quebec City prepares to host the 3-day Summit of the Americas. A 4-kilometre fence has been erected, cutting off the Upper Town from the rest of the city. Thirty-four heads of state from the Americas will meet behind closed doors to discuss agreements for a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). Those opposed to the FTAA are mobilizing and gathering in Quebec City, too. Several thousand delegates have come to participate in the People's Summit, and tens of thousands will march in protest. Six thousand police officers fill the streets and it looks as if the historic Quebec capital is under siege. The local population fears the worst. Will the Quebec capital become a battleground?

    Shot in cinéma vérité style by 7 of Quebec's best documentary filmmakers, View from the Summit vividly portrays what happens when passionate and creative protesters clash with the ideologies of those in power.
  • VTR St-Jacques
    VTR St-Jacques
    Bonnie Sherr Klein 1969 26 min
    This short film was an experiment in using video recordings and closed circuit television to stimulate social action in a poor Montreal neighbourhood. A citizen's committee filmed people's concerns and then played back the tapes for the community. Upon recognizing their common problems, people began to talk about joint solutions. It proved an important and effective method of promoting social change.
  • Wet Earth and Warm People
    Wet Earth and Warm People
    Michael Rubbo 1971 58 min
    This documentary by Michael Rubbooffers candid glimpses of Indonesia and its people. Filming in and around the capital of Jakarta, the cameras follow where chance leads, capturing the flavour of life in this fertile crescent of tropical islands. Throughout the film, the focus is on a society caught between the past and the conflicting options for the future - to change or not to change from long-established patterns of life to ones more influenced by western technology.
  • Worth Every Minute
    Worth Every Minute
    We're sorry, this content is not available in your location.
    Catherine Macleod  &  Lorraine Segato 1987 28 min
    A tribute to the late Pat Schulz, a feisty working-class heroine. Known since the '50s for her battles for human rights and her fight for workers' rights in the labour movement, Schulz became one of Toronto's most respected feminists. She led the struggle for day care, equal pay, and other issues central to the women's movement. By focusing on her life, this documentary gives a historical view of the women's movement: its roots, the early issues, current concerns, and emerging directions.
  • Women and Men Unglued
    Women and Men Unglued
    Katherine Gilday 2003 1 h 26 min
    At the start of the new millennium, relations between men and women are in turmoil. Traditional marriage is challenged on all fronts. Long-held notions about gender, commitment and courtship have been cast aside. And 'marriageable' people are staying single in record numbers.

    Is this an historical blip or a fundamental change in society? Do men and women even need each other anymore? Women and Men Unglued dares to ask these questions.

    This provocative documentary takes an uncensored look at single, urban Gen-Xers living on the edge of this social change. Operating in a free-for-all zone where old mating rules don't apply and new ones don't exist, these young urbanites struggle to find intimacy amid chaos.

    Against this backdrop, leading experts like Barbara Dafoe Whitehead and Bert Archer take a fresh look at how relations between the sexes are evolving.