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A tribute to the late Pat Schulz, an influential Canadian feminist.

A BAFTA award nominated drama about a young boy's memories of his first communion, set in Dublin in 1950.

Three soldiers of fortune get together for one last job. However, one of them falls for a drug-addicted hooker, and when her crazed pimp gets involved, complications ensue.

This third part of the series focuses on Canada's participation in NORAD and the events leading up to Canada's becoming a "nuclear no-man's land." In the late 1980s we are confronted with important choices about our role on the international scene, and host Gwynne Dyer offers intriguing predictions and possibilities about how our decisions could have global impact.

Eleven-year-old Guillaume suffers from a serious and potentially fatal heart condition. Gradually, the young boy's family fractures under the weight of his illness.

The film takes the form of an extremely intimate Letter in 16mm from Anna, normally a documentary filmmaker, to her unidentified lover. From the first 'exquisite ache' of romantic passion to her final drunken and solitary dance with success, Anna struggles with an all-too-prevalent problem in this achievement-oriented age: Is it possible to balance a passion for excellence with a passion for intimacy?Are obsessions mutually exclusive?

Early computed animation in which two characters meet and fall in love.

The macho Italian vampire Baisez appears on the set of a low-budget film about vampirism and billiards and seduces the cast and crew.

In Part II of the series "Glenn Gould Plays Bach", Gould concentrates on the fugal form in Bach's works, showing us how Bach uses keys like stops on an organ, and how they give him ideas and colours. He performs various fugues from the Well-Tempered Clavier and reveals why he feels the "Art of Fugue" is the work that summed up Bach's life.

Devil at Your Heels, traces the trials of stuntman Ken Carter who attempts a death-defying aerial jump in a car. Not content with a normal jump, Ken Carter attempts a jump from Canada to the USA. This feature-length documentary shines a light on the intense preparation that led to Carter’s first attempt to jump a car across a mile-wide stretch of the St. Lawrence River – a 5-year period during which the dare-devil raised a million dollars, erected a 10-storey take-off ramp and built a rocket-powered car. Winner of the Canadian Screen Award for Best Feature Length Documentary at the 4th Genie Awards in 1983.

A young woman leaves the comfort of her small rural community to pursue opportunities in a big Canadian city. She encounters obstacles that almost force her to return home, but she eventually picks up the skills to adjust to the city.

An animated film compiled by David Ehrlich consisting of 27 animators from different countries all explaining themselves through their animation.

A shy old man works up the gumption to meet a woman on whom he has a crush.

While jogging on the Jacques-Cartier Bridge, Michel sees a young woman trying to commit suicide. He takes her into his home and a love affair begins that both saves and destroys each of them.

The folks who populate the rundown hotel in this story have all come there from someplace which offered a modicum of hope. Gloria, who runs the place, earns most of her money as a stripper. She lives there with her two daughters and a son with an untreated brain tumor. Charlie, who is forever in and out of jail, is Gloria's sometime lover. A recent check-in is there hoping she can work up the courage to commit suicide, since her rich doctor husband ran off and left her. Another resident is Tim, who keeps company with his dog and his booze in equal measure. A schoolteacher comes by from time to time, hoping to do these people some good, but in choosing this lot to work with, she proves to be just as much of a loser as the rest of them.

Reflections on writing, life and death with French Canadian poet Marie Uguay, who would die of bone cancer shortly after the making of this film.

Students in their final year at the National Ballet School of Canada are seen learning the flamenco from Susana and Antonio Robledo, who come to the school every winter to conduct classes which are held after the day's regular schedule has ended.

In this short film by Norman McLaren, dancers enact the Greek tragedy of Narcissus, the beautiful youth whose excessive self-love condemned him to a trapped existence. Skilfully merging film, dance and music, the film is a compendium of the techniques McLaren acquired over a lifetime of experimentation.

In a well received addition to the Disney original, Johnny Cash and Tim Dunigan play Davy Crockett. Crockett and Andrew Jackson, now old men, share their memories (and differences) about an Indian uprising they put down 25 years prior.

The history of nuns mirrors the history of all women -- in what we are taught about the past, women are almost invisible. Although today's one million nuns outnumber priests two to one, they must struggle to be heard by the all-male Roman Catholic hierarchy from which they are excluded. Behind the Veil: Nuns is the first film ever to record from a global perspective the turbulent history and remarkable achievements of women in religion, from pre-Christian Celtic communities to the radical sisters of the 1980s. Contemporary nuns of strength, dignity and commitment speak of their lives and of their predecessors.

Three couples meet at one of them for a slide show evening. But nobody takes pleasure in this evening, where triumphs the banality of the exchanges: it is a socialization forced by the bonds of the neighborhood, devoid of empathy or sincerity.

A narcotics officer returns to Niagara Falls to check smuggling of "black tar" heroin.

Captain's daughter Josephine and common sailor Ralph Rackstraw are in love. However, their relationship is complicated by her arranged marriage to the high-ranking Sir Joseph Porter. A secret about the characters' true identities revealed by Little Buttercup, which leads to a farcical resolution. Filmed live from the 1980 Stratford Festival in Ontario.

A magnet moves on a floor. A moth beats against a window. A doll child watches the magnet; threads of metal filings gather around the magnet.

The memory of a nearly perfect evening.

Don't Mess with Bill is a 1980 Canadian short documentary film about Canadian martial arts pioneer Bill Underwood. At eighty-four, Underwood is a specialist in his own brand of self defense, which he still teaches to police, students, and senior citizens. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.

Identical twin brothers on vacation are faced with an unexpected battle when their getaway spot is invaded by mercenaries. Using their martial arts expertise, the twins wage war against the invaders in order to free their kidnapped girlfriends.

Monique and Lussier, two good friends from the street, let themselves go to the rhythm of their little, somewhat gray world. Like a dream that grows in the “slush”, they manage to sail above our heads.

In the 1950s, a teenage boy struggles as his happy family is broken apart when the father he idolizes develops cancer.

A man steals the dreams of innocent villagers and tries to sell them back to the townsfolk.

A bright-eyed and idealistic young writer named Johnny Daze comes to town prowling for something to write about. What he finds is a sinister back alley forbidden zone peopled by gays, artists, prostitutes, transvestites and virtually every kind of conceivable bad influence.

Hundreds of excerpts from 60 French films produced by the NFB over the course of 50 years are assembled to offer a look at the evolution of how women have been portrayed on film.

The Wizard of Oz legend continues with The Marvelous Land of Oz, based on the second book in the series by L. Frank Baum. This adventure features a brave young boy named Tip, the lovable Jack Pumpkinhead, the gruff wodden Sawhorse, and the evil witch Mombi, who is Tip's guardian. Tip and his amazing friends escape Mombi and head toward the Emerald City, now ruled by the Scarecrow. Joined by Dorothy, who has returned to Oz, they meet General Ginger and her all-female army who are planning to invade and take over their beloved Emerald City. Meanwhile, Glinda, the good Witch, has learned that the original King of Oz had an heir. While battling with the forces of General Ginger, Tip, Dorothy and their friends discover that the rightful ruler of Oz has been amazingly transformed.

K.C. and Jo are two hardened female ex-cons who decide to build a marina on a lake in backwoods Texas to start a life for themselves, only to be hassled by the redneck locals who do not like outsiders, and that the lakeshore is their own regular hangout. But K.C. and Jo's worst troubles come from Junior, a slow-witted psycho redneck who gets the O.K. from his equally demented mother to kill the two.

A young woman discovers she is a long lost princess and heir to a throne in her home country.

Reggae documentary of the One Love Peace Concert held in Kingston, Jamaica in 1978. In addition to the music, this film features the return to Jamaica of Bob Marley after a 16-month hiatus following an attempt on his life.

An animation.

Set during summer in the Îles-de-la-Madeleine of Quebec, Mario and Simon are two brothers living in a fishing village with their mother, who runs a grocery story, and their father, who runs a fishing business. Mario is ten years old, mute and autistic. He is withdrawn from reality and living in a surreal world that only his older brother Simon and his stuffed coyote share. Mario is very close with and deeply admires his 18 year old brother, whom he depends upon for love and attention. Simon reads Arabian Knights stories to Mario, dresses him in sheik's clothing and they play out imaginary wars in an Arabian style fortress that they built. Everything changes when Helene, a beautiful young tourist comes between the two brothers. Simon falls in love and begins to neglect his brother to spend time with her. Mario feels rejected and discovers what hate and jealously are. He sets about a chain of events that lead to tragedy.

A Nova Scotia singing group has a reunion concert 20 years after their successful start.

Animated look at transportation.

Jeannot has Down’s Syndrome. Living in a claustrophobic suburban setting, he is treated like a child by his parents and denied any responsibilities of his own. Things change when a young woman named Pauline is hired to take care of Jeannot, and his world opens up beyond the restrictive one imposed upon him.

This documentary explores the ecosystems of the intertidal zone in British Columbia. An "intertidal zone" is an area that is covered by the highest tides and exposed during the lowest.

A couple of happy-go-lucky Venetian gondoliers discover that one of them is heir to the throne of a distant kingdom.

In coming to grips with previously well-concealed information about the death of her uncle in World War I, and the emotional upheaval it continues to cause her family, a young girl begins to question the benevolence of God and the order in God's world. Based on the short story by Margaret Laurence.

So is this what the kids of today are into? Well, as long as it’s safe.

In a small Japanese town, Ko-Ko is appointed to the unenviable position of executioner. Knowing he must successfully perform before the appearance of the Mikado in a month's time, Ko-Ko finds a suitable victim in Nanki-Poo, who is distraught over his unrequited love for the maiden Yum-Yum. Nanki-Poo agrees to sacrifice his life if he is allowed to spend his remaining days with Yum-Yum, who is betrothed to Ko-Ko. Filmed live from the 1982 Stratford Festival in Ontario.

The Opening of SkyDome: A Celebration - Andrea Martin and Alan Thicke co-hosted the 90-minute event on June 3, 1989, complete with songs written specifically for the celebration with over 5,000 performers which was broadcast nationwide on the CBC,

An adaptation of “The Courier for Hell” (“Meido no Hikyaku”) by Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653-1725).

A documentary about the folk country musician Oscar Thiffault, the famous songwriter of Le Rapide blanc.

Best known for his work in video, Richard Fung has made the politics of gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation his central focus. Orientations (1984) deald explicitly with gay issues, sn ambitious study considering racism and cultural self-assertion through art, coupled with stories of individual experiences,

The adventures of Elvira, a 12-year-old girl obsessed with the sea who develops the ability to breathe underwater. Elvira and her dolphin friend Elvar meet a friendly whale, among other creatures, while back on land all is not as it should be.

“The Last Days of Contrition (35 minutes black and white 1988) is an exploration of the Canadian and American landscapes, and the relationship between the two. The narrative deals with a journey through timeless, vacant American landscapes (baseball stadiums, Venice Beach, Mojave Desert, and a US Missile Base). The photographic strategy is influenced by a consciousness of light, a quintessential characteristic of American photography. I documented the American landscape in the tradition of the early formalist photographers (Walker Evans, Paul Strand, etc.) allowing there to be content in form. The Last Days of Contrition straddles two cultural forces while developing an understanding about our Canadian origins and muses. (RK)

Silas Rand and Charles Leland first wrote down the legends of the great spirit Glooscap before the turn of the century. Since then, Summer Legend has been retold many times, but never more beautifully than in this colourful animated interpretation. It tells of the Mi’kmaq people in the cold white dawning of their world, and of how Glooscap battled with the giant Winter in order to bring Summer to the North.

In Canada, six men talk about their homosexual experiences, revealing feelings, attitudes, social prejudice and family pressures. They are men from different social classes and age groups: from a well-off young man who has just revealed his sexual orientation to his family, to an experienced 40-year-old businessman who, after having lived a double life for several years, decides to assume his homosexuality .

This documentary is about the conservation ethic in Canada that led to the national parks systems around the world. Includes interviews with the then-Minister of Natural Resources, Jean Chretien.

It's Christmas Eve and all of Santa's helpers are busy packing the sleigh... all except one unnamed elf who is too young and too clumsy to help. But in a dream come true he is riding with Santa helping deliver the toys and making a sacrifice which earns him his name "Bluetoes."

Elizabeth is a historian who believes that she is on to the find of her career, but has difficulty getting access to the document that will prove her theory. In desperation, she and a friend decide to break into the owner's house. She successfully gets in but is unexpectedly caught by the owner. She and the friend have to make up a story to get them out of trouble which eventually leads to string of events that lands Elizabeth in even more hot water.

An episodic road movie, “Undivided Attention” offers experiences in cinematic metaphor and structure that contradict, tickle and soothe our desire to understand and make sense of what we see or think we see. A young couple driving in an open car take the viewer through more than twenty intriguing sequences that stimulate the visual sensibility as the film explores the relationship between intellectual and sensual knowledge. It also comments on some conventions of narrative and documentary and has some fun with film theory. “Undivided Attention” works on various levels, the most accessible being entertainment value and on a more astute level, the cinematic exploration of denotation/connotation in an oblique narrative. It is a rich and challenging film that is also a pleasure to watch. - 42nd Edinburgh International Film Festival