|
ACROSS ARCTIC UNGAVA - 1986 This documentary follows four scientists and their Native guides into the unmapped wilderness of the Ungava Peninsula, in northern Quebec. Crossing this territory in large canoes, they collect samples of Arctic flora and rocks, take readings of soil temperature and record the correct bearings for rivers and lakes en route. The keen excitement of opening a new chapter in Canadian exploration is evident throughout the film.
http://nfb.ca/film/Across_Arctic_Ungava/
|
 |
IN SEARCH of the BOWHEAD WHALE - 1974 This adventure film features Scott McVay, an authority on whales, and filmmaker Bill Mason. The objective was to film the bowhead, a magnificent inhabitant of the cold Arctic seas brought to the edge of extinction by overfishing. With helicopter and Inuit guide, aqualungs and underwater cameras, the expedition searches out and meets the bowhead and beluga.
http://nfb.ca/film/In_Search_of_the_Bowhead_Whale/
|
 |
THE FACE of the HIGH ARCTIC - 1958 This short documentary studies the geological evolution that has gone on for millions of years in the High Arctic. Following the evidence of glaciers that have advanced and receded, the film also traces life forms that have changed with the climate.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/face_of_the_high_arctic/
|
 |
ESKIMO ARTIST: KENOJUAK - 1963 This documentary shows how an Inuit artist's drawings are transferred to stone, printed and sold. Kenojuak Ashevak became the first woman involved with the printmaking co-operative in Cape Dorset. This film was nominated for an Academy Award in the documentary shorts category.
http://nfb.ca/film/eskimo-artist-kenojuak/?ac=g+eskimoartist
|
 |
THE LIVING STONE - 1958 This documentary shows the inspiration behind Inuit sculpture. The Inuit approach to the work is to release the image the artist sees imprisoned in the rough stone. The film centres on an old legend about the carving of the image of a sea spirit to bring food to a hungry camp.
http://nfb.ca/film/living-stone/
|
 |
HIGH ARCTIC: LIFE on the LAND - 1958 An ecological study of plant and animal life on the Queen Elizabeth Islands in the Canadian Arctic. The film includes profiles of animals such as musk-oxen, lemmings, arctic hares and various forms of plant life.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/High_Arctic_Life_on_the_Land/
|
 |
LAND of the LONG DAY - 1952 This short documentary journeys to Baffin Island. For four months in the summer, the Arctic has continuous daylight. During this time, provisions must be made for the long dark winter ahead. Idlouk, an Inuit hunter, recounts his experiences living in this northern land, where he hunts seal, walrus, whales and polar bears, among other animals. His wife, children and elderly parents each have their own work to do in their unending struggle to survive in this harsh land.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/land_of_the_long_day/
|
 |
HOW to BUILD an IGLOO - 1949 This short documentary shows how to build an igloo using nothing but snow, a knife and skill. With no corners and no wasted space, the igloo provides ideal shelter in the Far North.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/How_to_Build_an_Igloo/
|
 |
THROUGH THESE EYES - 2004 An American elementary school program from the 1970s, Man: A Course of Study (MACOS), looked to the Inuit of the Canadian Arctic to help students see their own society in a new way. At its core was The Netsilik Film Series, an acclaimed benchmark of visual anthropology from the National Film Board that captured a year in the life of an Inuit family, reconstructing an ancient culture on the cusp of contact with the outside world. But the graphic images of the Netsilik people created a clash of values that tore rifts in communities across the U.S. and revealed a fragile relationship between politics and education. A fiery national debate ensued between academic and conservative forces.
Through These Eyes looks back at the high stakes of this controversial curriculum. Decades later, as American influence continues to affect cultures worldwide, the story of MACOS resonates strongly.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/through_these_eyes/
|
 |
THE SNIFFING BEAR - 1992 This animated film uses the Arctic landscape and the traditional Inuit characters of the Bear, the Seal and the Owl to raise young people's awareness about the harmful effects of substance abuse. A polar bear experiences hallucinations after inhaling fumes from an abandoned gas can. A nearby owl and seal help to show the bear the error of his ways, thus preventing him from falling further into addiction. This film was an initiative of the Natives of the Institution La Macaza to warn children of the dangers of inhaling toxic chemicals.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/sniffing_bear/
|
 |
ARCTIC IV - 1975 This feature-length documentary offers a glimpse at the unknown world that lies beneath the Arctic ice. Arctic IV follows Dr. Joseph MacInnis, a specialist in underwater medicine, as he probes and explores the polar depths. Filmed at Resolute Bay, Dr. MacInnis and his team must chip through over 2 metres of ice and dive into the frigid, watery depths at the North Pole - all in the name of science.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/arctic_IV/
|
 |
BEING CARIBOU - 2004 In this feature-length documentary, husband and wife team Karsten Heuer (wildlife biologist) and Leanne Allison (environmentalist) follow a herd of 120,000 caribou on foot across 1500 km of Arctic tundra. In following the herd's migration, the couple hopes to raise awareness of the threats to the caribou's survival. Along the way they brave Arctic weather, icy rivers, hordes of mosquitoes and a very hungry grizzly bear. Dramatic footage and video diaries combine to provide an intimate perspective of an epic expedition.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/being_caribou/
|
 |
|
 |
LIFE on the ICE - 1986 This documentary film focuses on the animal life that survives in this harsh arctic climates at the edge of the ice - from the simple algae to narwhals, polar bears, sea birds, seals, whales and walruses.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/Life_on_Ice/
|
 |
ATONEMENT - 1970 This documentary shows efforts by Canadian wildlife specialists to preserve and nurture the creatures that remain in our wilderness areas, species such as the whooping crane, prairie falcons, bighorn sheep, bison, polar bears and grizzlies.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/Atonement/
|
 |
PASSAGE (trailer) Filmmaker John Walker uses an innovative approach to tell the story of John Rae, the Scottish doctor who revealed, in 1851, what happened to British explorer Sir John Franklin and his crew of 128 men: that they perished in the Arctic after a failed attempt to discover the Northwest Passage and had descended into madness and cannibalism. Rae was reviled in Victorian society, and Lady Franklin and Charles Dickens did their best to discredit his version of history. As we move closer to the film's climax, we witness a stunning face-to-face meeting between Charles Dickens's great-great grandson and Tagak Curley, an Inuit statesman who challenges the fraudulent history. In one moment, Walker vaults the story from the past into the present and we are witness to history in the making.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/passage-trailer/
|
 |
CRY of the WILD - 1972 This feature-length documentary from Bill Mason imparts his affection for the big northern timber wolves and the pure-white Arctic wolves. Filmed over three years in the Northwest Territories, British Columbia, the High Arctic and his home near the Gatineau Hills in Quebec, Mason sets out to dispel the myth of the bloodthirsty wolf. Going beyond the wolf's natural habitat, Mason relocated three young wolves to his own property and was able to film tribal customs, mating and birth. As a result, Cry of the Wild offers viewers access to moments in wildlife never before seen on film.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/cry_of_the_wild/
|
 |
NAHANNI - 1962 This short film focuses on the legend of a lost gold mine and a river in the Northwest Territories that lured men to their doom. Albert Faille, an aging prospector, set out time and again to find hidden gold. His route took him through the wild and awesome land which was particularly suited to the mood of this Canadian odyssey.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/Nahanni/
|
 |
DEATH of a LEGEND - 1971 This documentary film by Bill Mason is about wolves and the negative myths surrounding the animal. Exceptional footage portrays the wolf's life cycle and the social organization of the pack, as well as other film of caribou, moose, deer and buffalo. Mason later made a feature documentary on wolves (Cry of the Wild, 1973) that played theatrically throughout North America and earned $5 million at the box office.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/Death_of_a_Legend/
|
 |
KLUANE - 1981 Kluane National Park is situated in the Yukon area of northern Canada and is a research paradise for glaciologists, geologists and other scientists. Mountaineers come to scale the impressive heights. Animals are free to roam, protected by stringent legislation. This film reveals many facets of this beautiful park, which has been declared a protected zone by UNESCO.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/kluane/
|
 |
Aboriginal Perspectives The NFB Aboriginal Perspectives module contains 33 documentaries, a short fiction film, and 5 film clips. These productions do not represent the entirety of the films on Canada’s native peoples in the NFB collection, which comprises more than 700 such works. We did want it, however, to be a representative sample of the whole. The user will find films on many important aspects of Aboriginal culture and heritage, its diverse communities, and some of the major issues and significant moments in its history.
http://www3.nfb.ca/enclasse/doclens/visau/index.php?mode=about&language=english
|
 |
THE BARRENS QUEST - 1997 This short documentary examines the destruction of the tundra barrens of northern Canada for mineral mining, including that of Canadian diamonds. Many species have been threatened by this development, including the caribou and the Eskimo Curlew, a bird that flew the sky in thousands which is now nearly extinct. This film makes a compelling case for planned conservation in one of the last unspoiled wilderness regions left in the world.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/the_barrens_quest/
|
 |
BLACKFLY - 1991 This animated film about the pesky blackfly is based on the song of the same title, written and sung by Canadian folk singer Wade Hemsworth, with back-up vocals by the McGarrigle sisters. It recounts Hemsworth's battles with this quintessential "critter" during a summer of surveying in Northern Ontario.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/blackfly/
|
