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Six National Film Board of Canada works featured on Atlantic International Film Festival’s “FIN Stream”. World premiere of Ann Marie Fleming’s new short, Old Dog, along with acclaimed documentary and animation.

PRESS RELEASE
14/09/2020

September 14, 2020 – Halifax – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

Audiences across Atlantic Canada will be able to experience powerful feature documentaries and deeply personal animated works by National Film Board of Canada (NFB) creators on FIN AIFF Stream (September 17–24), as the 2020 Atlantic International Film Festival goes online.

Three award-winning NFB feature docs are being presented:

In animation, the world premiere of Old Dog by award-winning BC filmmaker Ann Marie Fleming (Window Horses) joins 4 North A, the first collaboration between Newfoundland native Jordan Canning and Saskatoon-born filmmaker Howie Shia, as well as The Great Malaise by Quebec animator and illustrator Catherine Lepage.

Feature length-documentaries:

Wintopia by Mira Burt-Wintonick

  • Wintopia is part Utopian odyssey, part mourning ritual, as a young filmmaker traces the enigmatic footsteps of her late father, renowned documentarian Peter Wintonick.
  • Wintopia received the Colin Low Award for Canadian Documentary at DOXA 2020.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/wintopia

Stateless by Michèle Stephenson

  • Through the grassroots campaign of electoral hopeful Rosa Iris, director Michèle Stephenson’s new documentary reveals the depths of racial hatred and institutionalized oppression that divide Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
  • Winner of the Special Jury Prize for Canadian Feature Documentary at Hot Docs 2020 and the Best Feature Documentary Award at the 2020 BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/stateless

The Forbidden Reel by Ariel Nasr

  • The story of Afghanistan’s fearless and visionary moviemakers—who gave birth to an extraordinary national cinema amidst war and chaos—and the films we almost never got to see.
  • Winner of a Rogers Audience Award at Hot Docs 2020.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/the-forbidden-reel

Animated shorts:

WORLD PREMIERE: Old Dog by Ann Marie Fleming

  • After losing his best friend, an elderly pug named Henry must depend on his owner for help in Ann Marie Fleming’s tender ode to aging, inspired by the experience of caregivers everywhere.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/old-dog

4 North A by Jordan Canning and Howie Shia

  • A woman sits in a hospital room, alone with her dying father. As the constant din of antiseptic hospital noises pushes her to confront her inevitable loss, she escapes into a series of lush childhood memories.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/4-north-a

The Great Malaise by Catherine Lepage

  • A young woman describes herself and her life in glowing terms, but the visual narrative tells a different story: with heart-rending power it illustrates the heavy burden of anxiety carried by this worried overachiever.
  • Winner of the People’s Choice Award and Jury’s Special Mention/Canadian Competition at the Sommets du cinéma d’animation in Montreal.

Synopsis, biographies, images: mediaspace.nfb.ca/malaise

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Associated Links

FIN AIFF Stream
EyeSteelFilm
Loaded Pictures

Media Relations

Jordan Parker
Parker PR
Publicist for the NFB
C. : 902-240-7384
jordanparker339@gmail.com

Lily Robert
Director, Communications and Public Affairs, NFB
C.: 514-296-8261
l.robert@nfb.ca

French version here | Version française ici.

  • About the NFB

    For more than 80 years, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) has produced, distributed and preserved those stories, which now form a vast audiovisual collection—an important part of our cultural heritage that represents all Canadians.

    To tell these stories, the NFB works with filmmakers of all ages and backgrounds, from across the country. It harnesses their creativity to produce relevant and groundbreaking content for curious, engaged and diverse audiences. The NFB also collaborates with industry experts to foster innovation in every aspect of storytelling, from formats to distribution models.

    Every year, another 50 or so powerful new animated and documentary films are added to the NFB’s extensive collection of more than 14,000 titles, half of which are available to watch for free on nfb.ca.

    Through its mandate, its stature and its productions, the NFB contributes to Canada’s cultural identity and is helping to build the Canada of tomorrow.