Grade: Grade 8

  • Own Voice

I Am Gay

Director Ajahnis Charley
Year 2020
Run Time 10min
Genre Documentary

Having returned home as a result of the pandemic, a young Black comedian decides it’s time to come out to his family.

Director

Ajahnis Charley

Writer

Ajahnis Charley

Cast

Ajahnis Charley

Genre

Documentary

Interests

BIPOC Stories, LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English

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Green Grass

Director Michael Greco
Year 2020
Run Time 8min
Genre Drama

A father and daughter seek refuge in a far away land, but what they find there may not be what they were expecting.

Director

Michael Greco

Writer

Michael Greco

Producer

Mariana Ospina-Arteaga

Genre

Drama

Interests

Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories

Original Language

English

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Don’t Tell Santa You’re Jewish!

Director Jody Kramer
Year 2010
Run Time 4min
Genre Animation
A young Jewish girl is worried that Santa will treat her differently from the other kids.

Director

Jody Kramer

Writer

Jody Kramer

Producer

Jody Kramer

Genre

Animation

Interests

Arts and Culture, Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

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InukShop

Director Jobie Weetaluktuk (Inuk)
Year 2009
Run Time 2min
Genre Documentary
What is the state of Inuit culture on screen? Inuk filmmaker Weetaluktuk mixes archival reels with new footage to make this commentary on cultural appropriation.

Director

Jobie Weetaluktuk (Inuk)

Writer

Jobie Weetaluktuk (Inuk)

Producers

Kat Baulu, Joe MacDonald, Vanessa Loewen

Genre

Documentary

Interests

Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, History, Indigenous Filmmaker, Social Justice & Politics

Original Language

No Dialogue

Canadian Distributor

National Film Board (NFB)

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Astronaut

Director Ian Keteku
Year 2022
Run Time 4min
Genre Animation
A whimsical animated poem about a twelve-year-old’s fantasy of what his life would be like as an astronaut, experiencing the world from above.

Director

Ian Keteku

Genre

Animation

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Black Filmmaker

Original Language

English

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Arctic Song

Directors Germaine Arnattaujuq, Louise Flaherty (Inuk), Neil Christopher
Year 2021
Run Time 6min
Genre Animation
A traditional song sharing the Inuit creation stories for the land, waters, and sky, set to breathtaking animation.

Directors

Germaine Arnattaujuq, Louise Flaherty (Inuk), Neil Christopher

Genre

Animation

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker

Original Language

Inuktitut

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Aqijuq: Playing on a Frozen Land

Director Adrijan Assoufi
Year 2019
Run Time 8min
Genre Documentary
Inuit youth from across Nunavut come together for an indoor soccer (or “futsal”) tournament that proves as inspiring as it is competitive.

Director

Adrijan Assoufi

Genre

Documentary

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Indigenous Filmmaker

Original Language

English

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Breakaway (Short Film)

Director Jenny Lee-Gilmore
Year 2019
Run Time 9min
Genre Drama
In 1970's Vancouver, 11-year-old Sammy, an ice hockey-obsessed Chinese Canadian girl, dreams of hockey stardom but her responsibilities at home and bullying older brother get in the way.

Director

Jenny Lee-Gilmore

Writer

Jenny Lee-Gilmore

Cast

Kingston Chan, Kailee Lowe

Producer

Dide Su Bilgin

Genre

Drama

Interest

BIPOC Stories

Original Language

English

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Fit to be Tied

Directors James Cooper, Jess Hayes
Year 2018
Run Time 13min
Genre Documentary
This quirky and fun short doc follows a team of professional balloon twisters as they represent Canada and compete for international glory at the World Balloon Convention in San Diego.

Directors

James Cooper, Jess Hayes

Writer

James Cooper

Genre

Documentary

Interest

Arts and Culture

Original Language

English

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Cross-Country Snowboarding

Directors Adam Brodie, Dave Derewlany
Year 2007
Run Time 3min
Genre Comedy
Joel and Tate are the world's most dedicated cross-country snowboarders, striving for excellence and trying to avoid the dangers of "scooch leg."

Directors

Adam Brodie, Dave Derewlany

Genre

Comedy

Interest

Sports

Original Language

English

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How To Be Alone

Director Andrea Dorfman
Year 2010
Run Time 6min
Genre Animation, Experimental

Narrated by Tanya Davis to beautiful hand-drawn illustrations by Dorfman, Davis’s eloquent poem is full of powerful truths. With over 9.5 million views on YouTube, the film is an online sensation.

Director

Andrea Dorfman

Writer

Tanya Davis

Producers

Walter Forsyth, Andrea Dorfman

Genres

Animation, Experimental

Interest

Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Language Version

EN CC

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And That’s Remarkable

Director Linnea Ritland
Year 2013
Run Time 1min
Genre Animation, Drama
“It’s remarkable how easily a human spirit can be broken,” this punchy short about bullying laments. But, as the animation assures us, it’s just as remarkable how it can be fixed.

Director

Linnea Ritland

Genres

Animation, Drama

Interests

Bullying, Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Language Version

EN CC

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Handsome and Majestic

Directors Nathan Drillot, Jeff Petry
Year 2015
Run Time 12min
Genre Documentary
Milan's a regular teen: he likes sports, lasagna and hanging with friends. But unlike other boys his age, he faces the struggles that come with a transgender identity. With his family supporting him, his inspirational story helps educate and inspire those around him.

Directors

Nathan Drillot, Jeff Petry

Writers

Nathan Drillot, Jeff Petry

Producers

Nathan Drillot, Jeff Petry

Genre

Documentary

Interest

LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English

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2019
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Bus No. 9

Director Michael Downing
Year 1999
Run Time 3min
Genre Drama, Experimental
A chance encounter at a bus stop becomes an excuse for a sultry tango pas de deux.

Director

Michael Downing

Cast

Chinny Hoan, Marc Roumy

Producers

Jonathan Orson, Joel Awerbuck

Genres

Drama, Experimental

Interest

Arts and Culture

Original Language

English

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Baba (Dance)

Director Jonathan Lawley
Year 2006
Run Time 3min
Genre Experimental
Different people, cultures and styles of dance come together in one expression of love and life. Choreographed by Tré Armstrong.

Director

Jonathan Lawley

Writer

Jonathan Lawley

Cast

Stacey Armstrong, Cassidy DeFreitas, Alana Elmer

Producer

Wayne Lawley

Genre

Experimental

Interests

Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories

Original Language

Other Language

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Boxed In

Director Shane Belcourt (Métis)
Year 2009
Run Time 4min
Genre Comedy, Drama
In this short film, a young woman of mixed ancestry struggles with an Equal Opportunity Form that requires her to respond to the dilemma: Ethnicity - Choose One.

Director

Shane Belcourt (Métis)

Writers

Shane Belcourt (Métis), Duane Murray

Cast

Jennifer McEwan, Arnold Pinnock

Producer

Lea Marin

Genres

Comedy, Drama

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, Indigenous Filmmaker, Social Justice & Politics

Original Language

English

Language Version

FR Subtitles

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Blind Vaysha

Director Theodore Ushev
Year 2016
Run Time 8min
Genre Animation, Drama
This Oscar-nominated NFB animated short tells the story of Vaysha, a young girl born with one green eye and one brown eye. But colour isn’t the only thing that’s different about Vaysha’s gaze. While her left eye sees only the past; her right sees only the future. Like a terrible curse, Vaysha’s split vision prevents her from inhabiting the present. Blinded by what was and tormented by what will be, she remains trapped between two irreconcilable temporalities. “Blind Vaysha,” they called her. 

In this metaphoric tale of timeless wisdom and beauty based on the eponymous short story by Georgi Gospodinov, filmmaker Theodore Ushev reminds us of the importance of keeping our sights on the present moment.

Director

Theodore Ushev

Writers

Georgi Gospodinov, Theodore Ushev

Cast

Caroline Dhavernas

Producers

Marc Bertrand, Julie Roy

Genres

Animation, Drama

Interests

Arts and Culture, Global Experiences, Literary Adaptation

Original Languages

English, French

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If I Was God

Director Cordell Barker
Year 2014
Run Time 8min
Genre Animation
In this darkly whimsical animation from two-time Oscar-nominee Cordell Barker, a student dissecting a frog in his biology class daydreams about omnipotent powers.

Director

Cordell Barker

Writer

Cordell Barker

Producers

Michael Fukushima, David Christensen

Genre

Animation

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

National Film Board (NFB)

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Instant French

Director André Leduc
Year 1979
Run Time 1min
Genre Comedy
This hilarious commercial for a make-believe electronic translation device is a wry commentary on the anxiety of our nation’s Anglophones.

Director

André Leduc

Cast

Rod Charlebois

Producer

David Verrall

Genre

Comedy

Interest

Arts and Culture

Original Languages

English, French

Canadian Distributor

National Film Board (NFB)

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Home Cooked Music

Director Mike Maryniuk
Year 2014
Run Time 9min
Genre Documentary
Is there anything more Canadian than a moose-antler electric guitar? After having a near-death experience, a retired machinist finds meaning by making whimsical stringed instruments from strange objects.

Director

Mike Maryniuk

Writer

Mike Maryniuk

Producer

Brendon Sawatzky

Genre

Documentary

Interest

Arts and Culture

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

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