Discover Movies

Young Emily didn’t see anything wrong with her drawing of two girls holding hands, but her mother saw otherwise and tore both the paper and her child’s heart in two. Little did they know, the drawings had come alive and are determined to reunite with one another across the vast bedroom of pages, no matter what risk comes their way. An adventurous and heartwarming tale, “Drawn to You” shows audiences both the struggles and joy that comes with being true to your heart, and not letting others tell you who to be.

New York, early '60s. Gloria, a young painter, lives in the underground artistic microcosm of the Big Apple. One night, she is attacked and raped by a mysterious character with white eyes. This aggression provokes an inner cataclysm that inexorably pushes her towards self-destruction. In order to put an end to the chaos her attacker has unleashed in her, Gloria decides to search for this man in the streets of New York.

Searching for their lost kite among the grey buildings of the inner city, two street urchins stumble onto a hidden world where the four elements of nature coexist in perfect balance. They are terrified by a curious creature that is half vegetable, half animal, but soon realize that this mysterious character is not only good-hearted but also understands the mysteries of the wind. Over the course of this initiatory journey, the little street urchins gain an understanding of nature, and learn to master their fears. A dazzling work of puppet animation, full of delightful twists and brimming with humanity.

A metaphorical story about the constant struggle of the artist to reach those five minutes of limelight. A tale about an upswing and downfall, with the climax appearing concurrently and unexpectedly. The hermetical life of artists, who are enclosed into their own world of ideas, striving to create the epochal masterpiece. Even if they succeed, the image they create is the reflection of themselves. And with the same fervor, they repeat the process in endless cycles.

The film was made specifically for a group show in Vienna (curated by Clint Enns and Madi Piller) titled From A to Z, that reflects on Micheal Snow’s 1956 animated film of the same name, and his multiplicity of approaches which fluidly transition between media and form. The piece is an endless barrage of hyperlinked cable television commercials. With equal doses of satire and nostalgia, the promised pleasures of late consumer capitalism are deconstructed through a contemporary form of détournement.

I often have the same dream where I am catapulted into the forest. I feel a kind of intoxication from the depths that attracts and terrifies me. I then think of this kind phrase from Rilke: “Our demons may be princesses waiting for us to be strong and courageous.”

A building lost in the middle of urban smog, a squatter girl, a curious eye on its floor... This is the beginning of an unusual encounter between Arianne and her mysterious neighbour in this dystopic world hanging by a string.

A marvellous example of extreme animation. Jacob Bauming shows us a whirling dervish of sensory overload, with a tenuous connection to snazzy “aquatics,” using them as a trigger for his wild and manic imagination. This film was made as part of the first edition of the NFB's Hothouse apprenticeship.

Made entirely in the front seat of a car with simple art tools direct to film, this handmade short celebrates the joy of Montréal road maps, travel and jazz music.

In a cold, grey, dystopian world, a widowed father rabbit challenges absolute authority by trying to infuse an ounce of wonder, and a little bit of hope, magic, and possibility into his daughter’s life after the mysterious disappearance of her mother. A story of resilience, love and hope in the face of darkness.

A "cat and dog fight" film that also reminds us to keep emergency numbers close to our telephones.

Depression feels like drowning from the inside. Welcome to the aftermath of a mental breakdown.

A dreamlike parable about immigration, Permit Garden follows a nameless child as they toil to gain exit from the Garden. But as time goes on, they wonder if escape is even possible.

Sing along to “Here Comes The Fire Truck”, an original Super Simple Song for kids who love fire trucks!

The confrontation with death and finitude....Death animates the sense of the intimacy of life whose measureless flow is a danger to the stability of things. (RBE)

A tale of a man who has everything he needs in his one little room, and the disasters that befall him when he succumbs to the temptation of the world outside his door. An Italian opera, with subtitles and some cows and fish.

After a near-death experience, retired machinist Lorne Collie started making whimsical stringed instruments. His DIY inventiveness transformed lawn rakes, stop signs, and bent pitchforks into fully playable banjos, fiddles and violins.

Mysterious happenings unfold in a young woman's basement.

The misrepresentation of images through the story of an old man who lives in the street. One day he sees photographs of himself in an art gallery. He sees himself portrayed as an old homeless man. He has no history, no childhood, no mystery.

Short animation from Nicolas Brault

A stop-motion film exploring the mechanisms and materiality of consumerism and recycling culture.

A humorous account of the pioneering journey of Lady Frances Simpson, along with her piano, from England to Manitoba.

Uncovering this forgotten piece of Toronto queer music history, artists Hortie and Reynolds recreate Jackie's story using original shadow puppets, overhead animation and stop motion techniques. Follow Jackie through the 1960s Toronto Yonge Street music scene, the tabloid rumours and scandals, to the mysterious disappearance.

The autobiopic "My Life in 5 Minutes" tells a life story with a bittersweet song, animation and family snaps. Some photos hold painful or awkward members for the artist; through computer animation, she enlarges her own eyes to blink the pain away.

It is the story of a creature living on another planet and dreaming that he flies across space like a bird and arrives on Earth. Typical scenes are set in Paris and New York. Others show natural scenes such as ocean, trees, and birds.

In this animated short from the Canada Vignette series, the camera explores, in exquisite detail, the daily hunt, fishing scenes and children at play as etched in black on an ivory Inuit pipe.

This funny short animation was written and created by Tali and is inspired by the filmmaker's misadventures as a school bus driver in the Eastern Townships. Our protagonist dreams of becoming a bus driver in order to cruise down quiet country lanes and connect with nature, her young charges and their parents. But her idyllic view of her new job is sorely tested after she meets her surly boss, named Killer, and discovers that winding roads can prove treacherous in winter, especially with a faulty clutch. Through her cheeky humour and oblique look at the reality of people living in the Quebec countryside, Tali delivers a film that is unique, witty and touching.

A touching story of the friendship between a grandfather and his grandson, this is a film about aging and death. Award-winning animator Co Hoedeman combines 3-D and cut-out animation techniques to create a very dramatic and moving film. The story follows Charles and François through the different stages of their lives. With time, they become closer, common experiences having diminished the difference in age. By the end of the film, time appears to stand still; both are over one hundred years old and they are almost indistinguishable.

Zoe and her little brother Theo are left to fend for themselves on a scorching summer day. They will have to burst the abscess of their relationship so as not to lose each other.

Like many youngsters, Cindy believed there was something ominous lurking within her closet. Unfortunately she was right.

Sik Fan is an animated short that surrounds Ying, a grumpy old father and his son Lee, an eager, kind hearted young man, who are grieving over their wife/mother, Mina

Uncle Bob is getting up in years, but manages quite well, thank you. Then an unexpected illness changes everything. Suddenly he's scooped out of his safe and familiar surroundings and deposited inside the foreign and chaotic world of the hospital. Here the once self-reliant Uncle Bob becomes vulnerable and dependent.

A tale of intolerance and where it all ends, told in an animated cartoon about a king and his kingdom, and bigotry that had its day. The illustrations and dialogue are light and amusing, but that does not mask the moral of the story: that unless we tolerate individual differences--even the king's nervous twitch--peace may only come when all are behind bars.

This short animation is a dizzying celebration of sound, colour and movement. Here, multitudes of CMYK symbols, pulled off flaps of cereal boxes and other common printed materials, have been isolated and assembled. Freed from their workaday origins, these objects become moving artwork. Colored dots pulsate, crosshairs roll and primary shapes dance. The result: an unrestrained riot of color and energy.

Where would we be without these microscopic particles?

In 2003 this animated video of four adorable singing tough-skinned terrestrial mollusks went viral. If you listen closely you’ll probably be able to recognize the audio by a pretty famous quartet from a rather iconic movie.This is one where you should open up all the windows, “crank up” the volume, and let yourself FEEL the strength of these voices while you enjoy the visual eye candy.

Animated music video based on Stephen Coates' song under the same title from the album "When Psyche meets Cupid".

Electricity must be saved in wartime to keep power plants in full production for more urgent needs.

Transformation, technology, higher powers, breath. These ideas and elements roil around inside Toronto artist and filmmaker Zane Kozak's CG-animated short, taking us on a somewhat troubling but eerily mystical journey from the human form to... something entirely different. This film was made as part of the 6th edition of the NFB's Hothouse apprenticeship.

Fester brings Blottie to meet his parents and spend Christmas at their house. They don't like her, and things get weird.

Louise enjoys a private moment to open her treasure box in the room she shares with her little sister. She does not know that she has been hiding under her bed to spy on her. The film deals with sensuality through a both charming and erotic experience of an involuntary interaction between two sisters.

An hand drawn animation merged from two originally separate films. (The films were originally drawn in 1940)

This short animation stars the world's most-wanted good guy: Santa Claus. In this spoof of the Wild West, good triumphs over evil, but not before the evil robbers and their innocent victims have romped through some odd situations.

A woman tries to get dressed up when the power of Aqua Venus teleports her to a new realm of femininity.

A special commission for the POP Montreal 2012 Auroratone Project.

A kinetic typography animation set to a reading of the poem "The Wings" by Sebastian Fox.

Seasick is a meditative exploration of ones love of the sea to the soundtrack of traditional Croatian music.

In a world ravaged by an incurable illness, a devoted husband is forced to make an impossible choice as his wife's life hangs in the balance.

An ethereal painted motion poem to the sights, sounds and senses of the ocean’s edge.

In this remarkably tactile animation, Alisi Telengut reimagines the formation of a sacred lake in Siberia and draws connections between an endangered Indigenous language and matters of history, ecology, and humanity.

In this short film by animator Evelyn Lambart, a handsome frog courts and wins a mouse for his bride. The colourful animation does full justice to the events that take place during and after the wedding breakfast. Sung by Derek Lamb to lute accompaniment.

One of the most sensational get-rich-quick schemes that took place in France over 200 years ago with economist John Law at the helm.

In this animated film our hero, Wally the Safety Dog, continues to suffer a host of injuries as he instructs his master in the rules of playground safety. This is the second film in which Wally provides a proper example to young adults, parents, and caregivers in the area of child safety.

One-minute of found footage of Mutt and Jeff from 1926 is literally reconstructed via paper prints from photocopies and pen and ink drawings.

The dawn, a young woman and the end of the day in a three parts, unstable biography.

This rickety-sticky digital animation features a lusty naked lady who is hell bent on getting off. Frustrated by her limited cable offering, she searches every room of her home for an old beau: her life-size vibrator. A game of seduction ensues that appears to climax with our heroine riding her rocket date into space, but actually culminates when she discovers that her electronic lover has left an attachment behind…

Inuit oral history is filled with strange beings and supernatural creatures. One of these feared land spirits is the Ogress of the Gravelbank. This cruel being was known to lure children into her lair and trap them there. All that perish in that cave remain there as spirits and animated corpses. This short vignette introduces viewers to this malevolent spirit who is unknown to all but the people of the far north.

A tiny baroque ode to fleeting darkness and pretty make-believes.

In Montréal, after a car crash, Martine finds herself in a world in-between life and death.