On Friday, February 16, Luc Bourdon’s feature documentary The Devil’s Share (La part du diable) begins its theatrical run at four different venues: Cinéma Beaubien and Cinéma du Parc (with English subtitles at the latter) in Montreal, Cinéma Cartier in Quebec City, and La maison du cinéma in Sherbrooke. Produced at the NFB by Colette Loumède, the doc offers a fresh look at a pivotal period in recent Quebec history—1967 to 1980—using excerpts from NFB films made by some of Quebec’s greatest directors. The Devil’s Share is an intense and exhilarating experience, a moving blend of sound and images that inspires viewers to reflect. The documentary had its world premiere at the Festival du nouveau cinéma (FNC) in Montreal, receiving a standing ovation from a packed theatre. It was named Best Feature- or- Medium-Length Documentary at the Festival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie (FICFA) in Moncton.
Seven National Film Board of Canada films have been selected to screen at the Available Light Film Festival, taking place in Whitehorse from February 3–11. The festival will feature the Whitehorse premieres of two works from the NFB’s BC and Yukon Studio: Christopher Auchter’s animated short The Mountain of SGaana and Marie Clements’ feature documentary The Road Forward, as well as screenings of Alanis Obomsawin’s Incident at Restigouche, Charles Officer’s Unarmed Verses, Attiya Khan and Lawrence Jackman’s A Better Man (Intervention Productions/NFB), Matthew Rankin’s THE TESLA WORLD LIGHT, and Amanda Strong’s satirical PSA Naked Island: Hipster Headdress.
Director Jean-François Caissy returns to the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival for the third time with the feature documentary First Stripes (Premières armes), which will be having its world premiere in the festival’s Forum section. First Stripes follows his documentaries Journey’s End (2009) and Guidelines (2014), both of which screened at the Berlinale, while the latter film was also produced by the NFB. The earlier films dealt with old age and adolescence respectively, and his latest work provides a rare look at the beginning of adulthood—that period when individuals must begin to build their future and make important choices, including deciding on a career. The 68th edition of the Berlin International Film Festival runs from February 15 to 25, 2018.
On Friday, February 2, Céline Baril’s feature documentary 24 Davids begins its theatrical run at the Cinémathèque québécoise in Montreal. Produced at the NFB by Colette Loumède, the film takes us across three continents on a quest driven by a simple yet original idea: to shine a spotlight on the inimitable Davids of this world. The 24 Davids in the film are of varying ages and professions, ranging from cosmologist to recycler; together, they construct a playful “ecosystem” of ideas that touches on every sphere of knowledge. A refreshingly freewheeling cinematic experience, 24 Davids had its world premiere last November as the opening night film at the Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM), where it was warmly received by the audience. Some of the upcoming Cinémathèque screenings will be held with the director present.
Dominic Desjardins, Executive Producer at the NFB’s Canadian Francophonie Studio – Acadie in Moncton, today announced the appointment of Christine Aubé as the studio’s Interim Producer. She replaces Jac Gautreau, who has been serving as Executive Producer of the Ocean School interactive project (NFB/Dalhousie University) since December 1. Gautreau will be reprising his role as Producer in October 2018. Ms. Aubé will start in her new position on January 4, 2018.
Legendary First Nations filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin and BC animator Hart Snider will be in attendance at the 2018 Victoria Film Festival (February 2–11, 2018), along with a selection of eight animated and documentary works from the National Film Board of Canada.
L’Office national du film du Canada (ONF) pleure la légende canadienne du cinéma et de l’animation Grant Munro, O.C., décédé à Montréal le 9 décembre à l’âge de 94 ans.
Grant Munro naît le 25 avril 1923. Il fait ses études à la Musgrove School of Art, à la Winnipeg School of Art, ainsi qu’à l’Ontario College of Art, où son professeur, le peintre Franklin Carmichael — membre du célèbre Groupe des sept — arrange des entrevues entre Norman McLaren, qui cherche à pourvoir un poste au Studio d’animation de l’Office national du film, et les étudiants de sa classe. Munro est embauché et se joint à un groupe dont font aussi partie ses condisciples pionniers de l’animation George Dunning et René Jodoin.
Dominic Desjardins, Executive Producer at the NFB’s Canadian Francophonie Studio – Acadie in Moncton, today announced the appointment of Christine Aubé as the studio’s Interim Producer. She replaces Jac Gautreau, who has been serving as Executive Producer of the Ocean School interactive project (NFB/Dalhousie University) since December 1. Gautreau will be reprising his role as Producer in October 2018. Ms. Aubé will start in her new position on January 4, 2018.
It’s a new playlist called The NFB Presents, featuring 20 acclaimed documentary and animated films—stories that will move, inspire, surprise and engage—now streaming free of charge at NFB.ca.
Among the titles being showcased are Sarah Polley’s hit feature Stories We Tell, Kathy Shultz’s acclaimed animated short A Sea Turtle Story, and Paul Cowan’s Paris 1919 (13 Production/NFB), inspired by Margaret MacMillan’s landmark book—all produced in Toronto by the NFB’s Ontario Studio. There’s also Jennifer Baichwal’s Payback, based on Margaret Atwood’s bestseller, and Mina Shum’s feature Ninth Floor as well as portraits of remarkable Canadians like Phil Comeau’s Secretariat’s Jockey, Ron Turcotte and Toronto director Lawrence Jackman’s short documentary How Does It Feel, about Kazumi, a performer with cerebral palsy.
On December 19 at 6:30 p.m., the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema is hosting the Toronto premiere of writer/director and cinematographer John Hopkins’ National Film Board of Canada documentary Bluefin as part of Hot Docs’ Films Changing the World series, which brings together must-see docs, revealing staggering new perspectives and stories. Hopkins, who received the 2017 Wildlife Award at San Francisco’s International Ocean Film Festival and the Best Atlantic Filmmaker Award at the Lunenburg Doc Fest for Bluefin, will be in Toronto for a Q&A after the screening.
Four National Film Board of Canada films have been selected to the 17th annual Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival, a yearly compilation of the nation’s finest short and feature-length films, as announced by TIFF today.
After a well-received world premiere at the 36th Festival du cinéma international en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (FCIAT), the feature documentary Labrecque, une caméra pour la mémoire, directed by Michel La Veaux, opens in theatres in Montreal and Quebec City on Friday, January 12. The film will screen at the Cinémathèque québécoise in Montreal and the Cinéma Cartier in Quebec City. Labrecque, une caméra pour la mémoire offers a rare opportunity to witness a genuine encounter between renowned filmmaker and cinematographer Jean-Claude Labrecque (À hauteur d’homme), one of the pioneers of Quebec cinema, and the acclaimed Quebec cinematographer (Le démantèlement) and film director (Hôtel La Louisiane) Michel La Veaux. The film is produced by Nicole Hubert with executive producer Bernadette Payeur for the Association coopérative de productions audiovisuelles (ACPAV), and co-produced by the NFB, with Nathalie Cloutier as producer and Colette Loumède as executive producer. The documentary captures Labrecque’s passionate, humanistic perspective on the films, culture, and history of Quebec. Either Michel La Veaux or Jean-Claude Labrecque will be in attendance at some of the screenings.
In any given year, approximately 79 percent of Canadians participate in some form of gambling, and more than 35 percent of casino profits come from players who have a gambling problem. The hidden side of gambling is the focus of the NFB’s new 20-minute interactive documentary, Thank You for Playing, which explores compulsive gambling using a playful format that recreates the very same psychological mechanisms underlying the addiction, introducing viewers to a range of perspectives on the subject in the process. Created by Andréa Cohen-Boulakia (director), Priam Givord (design and interactivity) and Dominic Desjardins (producer), this interactive doc from the NFB’s Canadian Francophonie Studio in Toronto will be available online at nfb.ca/thankyouforplaying as of Tuesday, December 12.
The National Film Board of Canada is back at the Sundance Film Festival—the premier showcase for U.S. and international independent films, taking place January 18–28, 2018—with three films chosen for the festival’s shorts program: Diane Obomsawin’s I Like Girls, Chintis Lundgren’s Manivald (Chintis Lundgreni Animatsioonistuudio/Adriatic Animation/NFB) and Eva Cvijanović’s Hedgehog’s Home (NFB/Bonobostudio).
The National Film Board of Canada is back at the Sundance Film Festival—the premier showcase for U.S. and international independent films, taking place January 18–28, 2018—with three films chosen for the festival’s shorts program: Diane Obomsawin’s I Like Girls, Chintis Lundgren’s Manivald (Chintis Lundgreni Animatsioonistuudio/Adriatic Animation/NFB) and Eva Cvijanović’s Hedgehog’s Home (NFB/Bonobostudio).