A National Film Board of Canada Production

Amplifying voices, informing thinking, enriching debate.

ON FILME is an NFB documentary production program specifically designed for YouTube audiences. Its goal is to spark meaningful dialogue around sociopolitical issues that are relevant today.

This first edition enabled three directors to create four pieces of content in different but complementary formats based on a contemporary theme of their choice. This helps build a space for sharing and experimentation in which everyone can contribute their creativity and unique viewpoint to current public discourse.

This year, ON FILME invited three influential personalities from Quebec’s digital landscape—Mounir Kaddouri, Anne-Lovely Etienne and Simon Coutu—to find a new perspective on a contemporary issue close to their hearts. 

Each issue is explored by the filmmaker through four formats that together make up a YouTube work:

Coup d’œil films are concise and faithful summaries of the filmmaker’s intention. (approx 2 min)

Moyen métrage  documentary films expressing a variety of viewpoints on the topic while observing the situation first-hand. (approx 35 min)

Au foyer video podcasts that engage in meaningful discussions about various facets of the topic. (approx 45 min)

Gros plan films feature insightful commentary from someone directly impacted by the topic. (approx 7 min)

Mounir Kaddouri: Après moi le déluge
Television, youth, and crisis 

Anne-Lovely Etienne (Coming Soon)

Simon Coutu (Coming Soon

1) What makes YouTube the ideal platform for ON FILME, and how does using this platform fit with the NFB’s mandate?

Digital platforms are now an integral part of our cultural and media ecosystem, and YouTube is a key space for building and sharing public discourse, especially among young adults. It allows the NFB to meet its audiences where they are, using formats, pacing and a language they’re familiar with.

Creating for YouTube falls entirely within the NFB’s mandate as a public institution: documenting reality, bearing witness to the events of our era and making these stories as widely available as possible. Given the direct and vibrant relationship this platform offers, documentary becomes the starting point for conversations, rather than a static object. This is one of the central aspects of ON FILME: the projects don’t seek to settle debates but instead to add new perspectives to ongoing discussions. The initiative also provides an opportunity to experiment with creating, producing and distributing documentaries, and then to share these lessons with the industry to fuel collective dialogue. By coming to YouTube with a strong and exacting editorial vision, the NFB is affirming that documentaries can and must exist there too, without renouncing any of their rigour or depth.

2) How does presenting issues in four distinct formats enhance the audience experience?

Above all, it provides multiple audience gateways: some people are more drawn to short formats, while others want something with the depth of a film, or to extend their engagement with a video podcast. The idea is to let every viewer approach the topic from the angle that resonates best with them.

Each format plays a specific role: the medium format offers a more in-depth perspective; shorter formats offer quick points of reference; the “” format opens up a space for a freer, more nuanced, unedited conversation. Together, they complement each other and heighten the viewer’s understanding without being repetitive, while offering a broader experience in which you can move between content based on your interests and the amount of time you have. It’s very much in keeping with the spirit of ON FILME: make documentaries a space for exploration and ongoing dialogue.

3) What characteristics set ON FILME apart from other NFB documentary initiatives and other video content in Quebec’s digital landscape?

We’re voluntarily entering a middle ground that remains largely unexplored in Quebec—it’s not the fast pace of a newsroom setting or the years-long production environment of a feature-length documentary. The work takes about six months to complete, which enables us to be rooted in current events but allows us enough time to reflect, investigate and build solid and thorough approaches.

ON FILME also stands out for the prominence it gives to creators, who don’t simply make a film; they adopt a specific approach, ask questions on screen and take part in the conversations raised by the projects. Contrary to knee-jerk reactions or hot takes, the project provides a rare opportunity to take a step back, put issues in context and take a nuanced approach. This extends the discussion rather than confining it to a single broadcast moment.

4) What are the initiative’s short- and long-term goals?

In the short term, we see ON FILME as a kind of lab—a space to experiment, observe and learn. We want to explore documentary forms more suited to how YouTube and the web work in terms of format, pacing, production and audience relationship. It’s an opportunity to observe how these works are shared and how they spark reactions and become part of the discussion around the topics covered.

The longer-term ambition is more about capacity building. We hope that ON FILME will equip the NFB to have a stronger presence in the digital ecosystem, to develop lasting and replicable expertise and reflect on the role of the documentary film in contemporary discussion forums. The project will also create favourable conditions for renewed collaborations, by building dialogue with creators from diverse backgrounds and by reaching new audiences, helping the NFB to remain relevant, accessible and fully anchored in the present.

5) How does ON FILME innovate from a narrative standpoint?

ON FILME is different in that the approach emphasizes exploration over providing definitive answers. The projects are not based on a set thesis but rather on an investigative process in which filmmakers’ perspectives evolve as they meet people or move outside their comfort zones. In this way, they can acknowledge doubt, nuances and contradictions while avoiding oversimplification.

Having creators on screen is key: their role is to be neither expert nor referee but rather to think aloud and understand that they will be changed by what they learn, creating a more direct and real relationship with the audience.

Lastly, the narrative unfolds over time through complementary formats. The story transcends the film itself and expands through a constellation of content that interacts with itself and with the audience, allowing ON FILME to contribute to public discourse by offering a variety of perspectives.

6) What were the main challenges in bringing ON FILME to life?

We had to find the right balance: create for a digital environment with its own conventions and dynamics while preserving the NFB’s documentary parameters. Embracing the YouTube platform without compromising on substance, nuance and rigour required a great deal of reflection about format, tone and pacing, but also on how the content would be discovered and shared.

Producing for digital platforms means we need to integrate algorithmic logic into the project and accept that this will influence its form and distribution. At the same time, ON FILME has forced us to rethink production methods to make them faster, more agile and more collaborative, while accepting the experimentation and risk factors. We also had to work with creators coming from a web-first culture to build an editorial approach that fully respected their voices and yet still adhered to a solid documentary framework. Ultimately, it was exactly these challenges that shaped the project and that today defines what ON FILME has become.