“The design of nature is music. If you listen to the trees, you will hear a song.” – Conservationist and author Diana Beresford-Kroeger
In his new feature documentary Borealis, acclaimed director Kevin McMahon (Waterlife) travels deep into the heart of the boreal forest to explore the chorus of life in Canada’s iconic wilderness.
Borealis offers an immersive portrait of the forest from the perspective of the plants and animals that live there. Humans are only beginning to understand the complex networks that nurture and sustain this unique ecosystem, as well as the things that destroy it. Natural threats such as insects, drought, and fire have joined with extractive industries like oil development and logging to tip the delicate balance. In a rapidly warming climate, many of the survival strategies adopted by different organisms no longer work, and massive change is underway. As herbalist Isabelle Desrochers-Stein explains, “What happens to the forest is going to be a reflection of what happens to us.”
An artful balance of science and spirit, Borealis calls on the voices of scientists, Indigenous people, and environmentalists to make clear the urgent need for greater understanding and alliances with the natural world. But ultimately it is the voice of the forest that endures.
The National Film Board of Canada, TVO & Primitive Entertainment present
A
PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT
and
NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA
Co-Production
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
ZDF/ARTE and NHK
BOREALIS
FEATURED VOICES
DIANA BERESFORD-KROEGER – BOTANIST
STAN BOUTIN – POPULATION ECOLOGIST
ROGER BRETT – FOREST HEALTH TECHNICIAN
ISABELLE DESROCHERS-STEIN – HERBALIST
NADIR ERBILGIN – FOREST ENTOMOLOGIST
MIKE FLANNIGAN – PROFESSOR OF WILDLAND FIRE
ERIN FLEMING – FIRE SMART SUPERVISOR
CHRISTINE GODWIN – BIOLOGIST
TED HOGG – RESEARCH SCIENTIST
SAM HUNTER – CLIMATE CHANGE MONITOR
KAJAR KÖSTER – FOREST RESEARCHER
EDMUND METATAWABIN – INNINO AUTHOR
BEN MIRON – TRAPPER
ROBERT PARTRIDGE – FORESTER
TUUKKA PETÄJÄ – ATMOSPHERIC SCIENTIST
JESSICA PIERCEY – ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENTIST
DAVID PRICE – RESEARCH SCIENTIST
GERRY RACEY – ECOLOGIST
DAVID SCHINDLER – AQUATIC ECOLOGIST
THOMAS SCOTT – FORT ALBANY COMMUNITY MEMBER
SANDY SMITH – PROFESSOR OF FOREST HEALTH
CHRISTIAN WIRTH – BIOLOGIST
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
FELICITY JUSTRABO
ORIGINAL MUSIC
JUSTIN SMALL & OHAD BENCHETRIT
SOUND DESIGN
GRANT EDMONDS
EDITOR
NATHAN SHIELDS
VISUAL EFFECTS
MARK ALBERTS
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
JOHN MINH TRAN
WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
JOSHUA SEE
HUGO KITCHING
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS
MICHAEL MCMAHON (PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT)
ANITA LEE (NFB)
JANE JANKOVIC (TVO)
PRODUCERS
KRISTINA MCLAUGHLIN (PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT)
KEVIN MCMAHON (PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT)
MICHAEL MCMAHON (PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT)
JUSTINE PIMLOTT (NFB)
DIRECTOR
KEVIN MCMAHON
Story Producer
JAMES BROADLEY
Researcher
NIKITA TAKKAR
Visual Researcher
ANITA TURCOTTE
Featured Voices
DIANA BERESFORD-KROEGER
Author, Arboretum Borealis: A Lifeline of the Planet
STAN BOUTIN
Canadian Mountain Network Co-Research Director
University of Alberta
ROGER BRETT
Forest Health Supervising Technician, Northern Forestry Centre
Natural Resources Canada
ISABELLE DESROCHERS-STEIN
Herbalist
NADIR ERBILGIN
Professor, Forest Entomology & Chemical Ecology
University of Alberta
MIKE FLANNIGAN
Director, Western Partnership for Wildland Fire Science
University of Alberta
ERIN FLEMING
FireSmart Supervisor, Regional Emergency Services
Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo
CHRISTINE GODWIN
Manager, Ecology Group
Owl Moon Environmental Inc
TED HOGG
Research Scientist, Canadian Forest Service
Natural Resources Canada
SAM HUNTER
Climate Change Monitor
Weenusk First Nation
KAJAR KÖSTER
Academy Research Fellow, Department of Forest Science
University of Helsinki
EDMUND METATAWABIN
Co-Author Up Ghost River
Fort Albany First Nation
BEN MIRON
Trapper
ROBERT PARTRIDGE
Forester
TUUKKA PETÄJÄ
Professor, Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research
University of Helsinki
JESSICA PIERCEY
Environmental Scientist
Syncrude Canada
DAVID PRICE
Research Scientist, Integrated Modelling of Climate Change Impacts
Natural Resources Canada
GERRY RACEY
Resource Management Specialist (Retired)
Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources
DAVID SCHINDLER
Professor Emeritus, Biological Sciences
University of Alberta
THOMAS SCOTT
Fort Albany First Nation
SANDY SMITH
Director of Forestry Programs
University of Toronto
CHRISTIAN WIRTH
Head, Department of Systematic Botany and Functional Biodiversity
German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research
Production Coordinator
MAEVE KERN
Production Support
CAROLIN NEUBAUER
Aerial Photography
CHRIS GOLL
JOSHUA SEE
Additional Photography
CHRISTIAN SCHIDLOWSKI
Camera Assistants
CHRIS GOLL
ALEX MACPHAIL
JORN MEYER
Helicopter Pilot
RJ PRICE
Firebox Footage
DAN JIMINEZ
US Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station
Missoula Fire Science Laboratory
Parks Canada Fire Management Supervisors
STEPHANIE KOROSCIL
BEAU MICHAUD
Location Sound
MIKE FILIPPOV
SANJAY MEHTA
CHRIS GOLL
Translators
STEFAN RANDSTROM
STEPHANIE WEIMAR
Transcribers
AVA HARNESS
GINGER HOWARD
CAMRYN KERN
ROSANA KHABBAZ DIAZ
GABRIELA SALON
Post-Production Coordinator
JORDAN SCHINKEL
Dialogue Editors
MIMI SCOWEN
PATIENCE BRADFORD
Sound Effects Editor
MARC CHIASSON
ANDY FRECH
JEREMY KESSLER
Re-Recording Mixer
GRANT EDMONDS
Post-Production Picture
JAXX
Finishing Editor
DIPESH MISTRY
Digital Colourist
DAVID ST. LOUIS
Data By
THE MATRX
“Oh Evergreen”
Music: TRADITIONAL
Words by KEVIN McMAHON
Arranged by DAVEED GOLDMAN
Performed by CHOIR! CHOIR! CHOIR!
Choir Co-directors: NOBU ADILMAN, DAVEED GOLDMAN
Singers:
STEPHANIE BRAITHWAITE
RENÉE GOMES
LAURA HAYWARD
SHAMA JOSHI
PIPER MacFADYEN
LYNNE PROVENCHER
SUSAN K. ROBERTSON
MIRA SHENKER
SHOSHANA WASER
MASON WRIGHT
Boreal Songbird Field Recordings
ALBERTA BIODIVERSITY MONITORING INSTITUTE
ABDI Coordinator
ALEX McPHAIL
Archival Footage
52 MEDIA INC
GETTY IMAGES
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Legal Counsel
DUNCAN MORIN LLP
Insurance
FRONT ROW INSURANCE BROKERS INC.
For the National Film Board of Canada
Studio Operations Manager
MARK WILSON
Studio Administrators
PATRICIA BOURGEOIS
STEFANIE BRANTNER
Production Supervisor
MARCUS MATYAS
Production Coordinator
ANDREW MARTIN-SMITH
Technical Coordinator
KEVIN RILEY
Marketing Manager
KELLY FOX
Publicist
JENNIFER MAIR
Filmed with permission on the territories of:
FORT ALBANY FIRST NATION
WEENUSK FIRST NATION
Filmed with permission of the Parks Canada Agency at:
BANFF NATIONAL PARK
JASPER NATIONAL PARK
WOOD BUFFALO NATIONAL PARK
Filmed with permission of Ontario Ministry of Environment Conservation and Parks in:
ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK
QUETICO PROVINCIAL PARK
WABAKIMI PROVINCIAL PARK
WOODLAND CARIBOU PROVINCIAL PARK
PRODUCED IN ASSOCIATION WITH TVO
Independent Production Officer, TVO
LINDA FONG
VP Of Current Affairs And Documentaries, TVO
JOHN FERRI
PRODUCED IN ASSOCIATION WITH ZDF/ARTE, NHK, AND THE KNOWLEDGE NETWORK
Commissioning Editor, ARTE
MARITA HÜBINGER
Senior Producer, NHK
TAKAHIRO HAMANO
PRODUCED WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF THE CANADA MEDIA FUND
PRODUCED WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF ROGERS DOCUMENTARY FUND
PRODUCED WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE ONTARIO CREATES FILM FUND
and THE ONTARIO CREATES FILM AND TAX CREDIT
A PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT AND NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA COPRODUCTION.
www.nfb.ca
©2020
PRIMITIVE ENTERTAINMENT INC., 2627543 ONTARIO INC., AND THE NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA.
