This Week on NFB.ca: Spring out of Winter with 4 Films that Celebrate the Season

Is it safe? This week on NFB.ca, we dared to look at films that celebrate the coming of spring. You all felt it, right? Beneath the sub-zero temperatures and snow and rain and ice? Winter is on its way out and spring will be here any minute now. I promise. I think. I hope.

King of the Hill

March 28 is just around the corner and nothing says spring like opening day. This year marks the earliest opening day in history, and I’m praying Mother Nature gets the hint and follows suit.

In this classic doc, we follow one Canadian baseball player through the 1972-1973 season – Ferguson Jenkins. Jenkins was one of the greatest players this country has produced and it’s a treat to get behind the game and catch a glimpse behind scenes… and on the mound.

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Winds of Spring

Newly released to the general public online, this animated short from 2017 is about one young girl who dreams of leaving the family nest in search of self-fulfillment.

In her first animated short, artist Keyu Chen uses fine lines and fluid transitions to tell her story. The result is a beautiful and delicate film that’s sure to touch all audiences.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2WdHq93

Return of the Swift Fox

The return of spring also marks the beginning of springtime rituals for wildlife. This short documentary focuses on the swift fox, one of many animals suffering from the cultivation of the prairie grasslands.

The film introduces a program that was put in place to reintroduce the swift fox into its original habitat in Alberta and Saskatchewan. It also has a thing or two to say about the delicate balance between human and wildlife use of the environment.

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Song of the Paddle

You knew this was coming, right? Because we can’t welcome spring without including a film from Bill Mason.

This classic joins the entire Mason family as they camp and canoe through the Ontario wilderness. As only Mason can, he transmits the pure joy and elation that the outdoors offer. It’s amazing and inspiring how he finds beauty in the simplest of things.

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The post This Week on NFB.ca: Spring out of Winter with 4 Films that Celebrate the Season appeared first on NFB Blog.

This Week on NFB.ca: Spring out of Winter with 4 Films that Celebrate the Season posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

NFB Pause: Meet the Creators of Clit Me

Kind of Soccer: A Mobile Game

Kind of Soccer is a mobile game where the goal is to hit the referee.

Aim At The Ref

Whether you call it football, soccer, or something else, Kind of Soccer is an innovative mobile version of the Beautiful Game. Rather than declaring a winner after calculating the amount of times that a particular team has put the ball in the back of the opposing team’s net, Kind of Soccer has a different method of score-keeping. You don’t need to score goals at all. All you need to do is kick the ball as hard as you can at the referee. That’s right. Soccer has a reputation for treating its referees with as much respect as possible (and you have to respect how much they run around, no matter how many calls they get wrong). Kind of Soccer, on the other hand, lets users release all their pent-up rage by launching balls at the referee.

Not Soccer. Just Kinda.

Scoring points in Kind of Soccer is more difficult than it sounds. Although the game begins easily enough, it quickly advances to a tough point. The game continuously adds in obstacles, such as opposing players, in order to make it harder to hit the referee without losing the ball. If you do miss the referee or lose the ball to an opponent, the other team receives a point. If you hit the referee, you receive a point. The games progress to a certain score, and then the levels advance. It’s a fun, moving-puzzle-type game that’s worth trying out, whether you call it football or soccer, play the game or don’t. It’s not soccer, after all—just kinda.

Kind of Soccer: A Mobile Game posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

HappyCow: Find Vegan Restaurants Nearby

eHappyCow is a simple yet effective search engine for vegan and vegetarian restaurants.

Like Yelp, But Meat-Free

Vegans, vegetarians, and those who worry about catering to the diets of their friends and families need stress no longer. HappyCow takes out all the fuss involved with searching for restaurants with vegan and vegetarian options on disparate platforms such as Yelp or Google. The site was built with the specific intention of helping people locate vegan and vegetarian restaurants near them, and it accomplishes this feat with surprising ease. As on other food and restaurant ranking sites, there’s comprehensive information about each location within HappyCow. You can leave or post reviews and photos, and explore the basic information about each restaurant. The site has apparently been around since 1999, but it currently has a modern look and it’s still waiting to be discovered by new audiences of new vegans or potential vegans.

Learn About Veganism Without Rolling Your Eyes

Because HappyCow caters to a specific market, it has a vibrant community of contributors. It’s a place where vegans and vegetarians can go without having to worry about being bogged down with suggestions for meat dishes to eat. HappyCow goes above and beyond its simple search function with additional features, such as articles explaining how to eat vegan on airplanes, lists of famous vegans, and even riddles and comics about the vegan lifestyle. Whether you’re vegan or not, perusing HappyCow feels welcoming rather than preachy or standoffish. It makes being vegan seem fun, and demonstrates the amount of restaurant options (or lackthereof, depending on where you’re searching). Vegans, vegetarians, and their hesitant, reluctant friends and family should all visit HappyCow next time they’re debating where to eat.

HappyCow: Find Vegan Restaurants Nearby posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

This Week on NFB.ca: Watch 5 Cool Science Films

This week on NFB.ca we looked at science films. From a feature-length documentary to a series of one-minute shorts, we’ve got something for every appetite in our collection, and we’re happy to bring it to you!

My 13-year-old son will be the first to tell you that science is in now. He is a geek of the first order, and unlike when I was growing up, he wears it like a badge. Being smart is cool. Luckily, we’ve got the tools to help kids on their way. In fact, these films are even great for adults who are hoping to improve their knowledge. Dig in and enjoy!

Cosmic Zoom

This 1968 classic demonstrates exactly why science is cool. Forget the boring old science films. This short will take you from the tiniest atom to the outer reaches of the universe and back again, all thanks to animation.

Triggered by the most mundane of events, you’ll get to travel from one tiny insect to the furthest point in space, beyond your imagination. It’s an exhilarating ride.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2MlbI8x

Northern Lights

Seeing the northern lights is on my bucket list, and on that of many people that I know. Though countless theories have been posited to explain the phenomenon, it’s still shrouded in mystery.

This feature-length doc takes a close look at the gorgeous aurora borealis. Scientists and members of Indigenous communities offer their takes on the northern lights. Again, really cool when it comes to science films.

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Mirrors of Time

Ever get curious about the origins of time? The nature of its very existence? How about why we settled on our current calendar, or divide our years into months and days?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, this animated short attempts to answer them. It shows how science can be fun, and relevant to everyday life in a concrete, tangible way.

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The Magic Molecule

Hint: It’s plastics.

In under ten minutes, this short film shows how thousands of products are made – from thread to furniture. It’s pretty neat.

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Science Please, Part 1

If you like your science films in really short bursts, this series is perfect for you. Clocking in at just one minute each, these animated shorts explain one scientific concept per film.

You’ll learn about gravity, soap, friction, wind… and so on and so on. This compilation of 14 shorts makes for a great introduction to science for kids. But truth be told, I learned a few things, too.

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The post This Week on NFB.ca: Watch 5 Cool Science Films appeared first on NFB Blog.

This Week on NFB.ca: Watch 5 Cool Science Films posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

RaiseMe: Earn College Scholarships

RaiseMe helps high school students find and earn college scholarships, earlier.

Start Working Towards Scholarships Now

It’s no question that there are some deep and fundamental flaws in the American university system. The richest celebrities can purchase admissions for their children, while the poorest parents struggle to provide higher education for their children. RaiseMe is a potentially groundbreaking and transformative initiative in order to bridge that gap. The site allows students to earn “micro-scholarships” from schools that they would like to attend, beginning as early as the 9th grade. Colleges set different achievements for students to work towards, awarding money based on their progress with various goals. This could be an invaluable resource for motivated individuals that might not be able to afford attending college on their own.

Motivate Yourself To Achieve

The concept of RaiseMe itself could also help motivate unmotivated students. It’s a win-win situation for colleges and students alike, as the platform allows colleges to market themselves with financial incentives. Students may discover a program that appeals to them via the platform, and work towards applying to the college throughout their time in high school. Many students have already earned several thousand dollars using the site. It’s a different approach to finding, discovering, and awarding scholarships, but it could prove to be highly beneficial for all those involved.  If you’re in high school or searching for ways to finance your higher education, consider taking a look at RaiseMe.

RaiseMe: Earn College Scholarships posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

Dripkit: Coffee Made Easy

Dripkit delivers coffee and coffee products.

A Keurig Alternative

Despite the seeming ubiquitous nature of Keurigs, Nespressos, and other quick and easy coffee machines, plenty of java consumers still prefer a quality cup. Dripkit intends to cater to those customers: individuals willing to shell out a little more money for a premium brew. The company’s site has a clean design. Their packaging espouses an impeccable aesthetic. Like Blue Bottle or Intelligensia, the small focuses on design and storytelling make it seem as if Dripkit drinks are worth spending money on. The story that the company tells is this: their “head of coffee,” Gabe Boscana, travels the world in order to secure beans from family-run farms and co-ops. Dripkit brings the coffee back to Brooklyn, where they roast the beans and then ship them wherever they need to go.

Almost-Instant Coffee

Like Keurigs and other simple coffee machines, Dripkit also sells gear to make the coffee brewing process both simpler and more elegant. Gear comes in the form of a kettle and mugs that fit the cardboard filters that accompany each batch of coffee. Using this gear, you can create your own single cup pourover that tastes much better than whatever happens when you stick a Keurig pod in a machine and shut the lid. Although Dripkit does offer subscription services so that you can keep the coffee flowing, they also offer coffee in the form of 5, 10, or 20 packs of pourover bags. Think of it as a step up from other forms of instant coffee, with a beautiful design, aesthetic, and company mission to back it up.

Dripkit: Coffee Made Easy posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com