This week on NFB.ca: A Close Look at Mental Illness

This week on NFB.ca we explored the topic of mental health in honour of Mental Illness Awareness Week, which takes place annually at the beginning of October. Approximately 1 in 5 Canadians are affected by mental health issues, and virtually everyone knows someone who’s life has been touched by it.

Mental illness doesn’t discriminate. Regardless of age, income, education, or sex, anyone can be at risk. Both genetics and environment play into it. According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, by age 40, 50% of the population will have, or will have had, a mental illness. Think about that. That’s half the population.

Yet, there’s still a huge stigma attached to mental health. Despite the prevalence of the disease, there are still large numbers of people who never seek medical attention. People spend their lives living with anxiety or depression, never knowing there could be an easier way. I know. I was one of them. It took me close to 15 years to seek help. Some people never do.

The truth is, once diagnosed, many mental illnesses can be treated, and quality of life can improve drastically. Think of the difference that could make when 6.7 million Canadians are suffering. Right now, education is our best tool for breaking down the barriers that prevent people from getting help. Education is what we do best.

Without further ado, I present four films about mental health.

Here at Home: The Wound Inside

Here at Home was a documentary project about a radical Canadian experiment concerning mental health and homelessness. The idea was to provide housing and see how that made a difference in the lives of the participants.

In this film, we see a caseworker delivering meds, gifts, and good cheer to participants while also providing us with a look at the addiction that plagues Winnipeg’s Indigenous homeless population.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2NFf431

OCD: The War Inside

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a mental illness that affects roughly 2% of the population. It’s more common than bipolar depression, affecting roughly 1 in 50 people. This feature doc gives us a close look at the disease through the daily lives of those suffering from it. Plagued by intrusive thoughts, nagging fears and the compulsion to practice ritualistic behavior, these are people who seem perfectly normal on the outside. It’s not the case on the inside, though.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2A8jfAI

I Am Here

This animated short from Eoin Duffy takes a thoughtful and open-ended look at the nature of existence. It’s deep, it’s a little dark, and it packs a powerful punch. It also features a great score by Menalon and the voice of Nicholas Campbell as world-weary traveler.

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

NCR: Not Criminally Responsible

I will confess. I have a bit of a morbid fascination with John Kastner’s films. Life with Murder shook me to the core, but this one really opened my eyes and made me see things in a different way.

Kastner knows how to tell stories about mental illness. NCR is about a troubled young man who stabbed a woman 12 years ago, and is now out living in the community, under supervision. The woman miraculously survived, and this is as much her story as it is his. But because of the incredible access Kastner had to these people, he was able to create a compelling film about the complex ethical issues at stake.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2A7OPhU

The post This week on NFB.ca: A Close Look at Mental Illness appeared first on NFB Blog.

This week on NFB.ca: A Close Look at Mental Illness posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

Immigrants in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Explore Their Journey

There is a wave of nationalism and anti-immigration sentiment moving through North America. There’s no doubt about it. Extreme politics have become the new normal and we are living in a world where everything seems upside down.

Immigrants are an integral part of our country. Fair immigration policies are essential. Not only are we helping those in search of a new life, but the value they add to our neighbourhoods, cities, and provinces is immeasurable.

During times like this, it helps to understand the “other” a little better. It’s easy to ignore the issues, or go along with the status quo, when we don’t know enough. But by stepping into an immigrant’s shoes, we form a better picture of their experience. We can understand their hardships and their victories. We can understand how coming to this country has changed their lives.

Here are 5 films from our collection about immigration and immigrants. Some are happy stories, some are not. But all of them will help you form a better picture of their experience.

This is a Photograph

This trippy little experimental short from 1971 comes courtesy of filmmaker Albert Kish. It’s a series of photographs, some of which have been enhanced, set to a very discordant soundtrack. What it does is tell the story of one immigrant’s first five years in Canada.

Coming from Europe, our protagonist is completely unprepared for his new land’s culture and customs… and varying degrees of cold. Everything is foreign to him at first, from the architecture to the food, but slowly, he comes around. As strange as it is, it is now home.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2ytYa1K

Earth to Mouth

This beautiful documentary looks at the lives of a mother (74) and son who immigrated from China and run a farm in Ontario. The farm grows Chinese vegetables, destined for Asian markets and restaurants. The film came about because the director, Yung Chang (Up the Yangtze), was curious to know where the produce at his local Scarborough markets was coming from. Upon inquiry, he learned of the Wing Fong Farm and couldn’t help but dig deeper.

Not only is this a film about the incredible contribution of an immigrant family. It’s also a film about how two completely different cultures can work together in harmony. The farm employs Mexican workers to cultivate the land. They come annually to earn money to support their families. With the shared goal of making the farm a success, these two communities make one helluva team.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2OeBE7y

19 Days

Leaving one’s home to come to a foreign land isn’t easy, especially when it’s done under duress. This short documentary from 2016 shows us just how difficult it can be. Shot at the Margaret Chisholm Resettlement Centre in Calgary, the film gives us a glimpse into the lives of several refugee families during their first 19 days in Canada.

This is a scary, disorienting, and difficult time. Adjusting to a new climate, leaving loved ones behind, possibly not speaking the language or understanding the cultural norms of your new home – all after fleeing horrible circumstances. Here we meet the workers in place to help refugees through the transition, and exactly what measures are put in place to help them integrate.

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

Doctors Without Residency

Pro tip: Don’t watch this film with any sharp objects nearby. It may only be 10-minutes long, but it’s incredibly rage-inducing. Some immigrants come over and build successful businesses, like the Wing Fong Farm family, but others aren’t so lucky. Some are barred from working in Canada, regardless of their skills being valued and in demand.

Filmed in 2010 as part of the Work for All series, this film shines a very bright spotlight on the plight of foreign doctors trying to find work in Canada. As a nation, we’re short roughly 5200 doctors. And that was the 2010 figure. What are we doing to rectify this problem? Not hiring foreign-trained doctors. Watching representatives from the medical community try to rationalize this practice, or non-practice, the systemic racism is glaringly obvious.

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

Things Arab Men Say

I love this film. It does everything it’s supposed to do without being pedantic or preachy. It’s a straightforward look at the lives of a group of men who are immigrants from the Middle East, and how the move to Canada has affected their lives.

Gone is the media depiction of Arab-as-terrorist. This film replaces it with the image of men who are adjusting to a new country, making sense of their new land while trying to preserve their identity and culture. We see them at their most vulnerable – waiting in turn for a cut and a shave at the local barbershop. They discuss politics, life, love, family, and religion. It’s funny and sad and it gives us a refreshing look at a much-maligned group of people.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2HaG7AW

 

The post Immigrants in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Explore Their Journey appeared first on NFB Blog.

Immigrants in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Explore Their Journey posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

This Week on NFB.ca: Oceans, Education, and Creating Good Global Citizens

This week, we launched Ocean School, our new interactive educational platform. Ocean School provides students with the opportunity to venture beyond the classroom into the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through immersive video and augmented reality.

Guided by their own curiosity, these students will develop an understanding of ocean science. They’ll also acquire the tools to become good global citizens.

Our environment, and the preservation of our oceans, has always been a big theme for NFB filmmakers. This week, in honour of Ocean School’s launch, we featured three films about the ocean.

Deep Threat

While this isn’t exactly the type of material you’ll find in Ocean School, it will provide you with an amusing yet educational 10 minutes. This animated short shows how human evolved from the sea, and all the havoc that wreaked on our ecosystems. It’s a long trip in a very short amount of time.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2zUjxv5

Debris

Meet Pete Clarkson, a BC artist with an entirely different view of the ocean. Rather than studying the life that exists within it, he makes art from the debris it expels. Here, Clarkson turns his attention and creativity to the objects that washed ashore after the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami.

oehttps://www.nfb.ca/film/debris/

Arctic IV

Watch as Dr. MacInnis and his team chip through over 2 metres of ice to dive into the icy depths of the waters at Resolute Bay. Specialists in underwater medicine, they probe the depths in the name of science. It’s an incredible glimpse at an unfamiliar world.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2BWU85j

World Teacher Day

We also celebrated World Teacher Day on October 5, with the following two films.

Flamenco at 5:15

Susana and Antonio Robledo were two world-renowned dance teachers from Spain, and this Oscar®-winning short demonstrates why. Enjoy this brief glimpse of their artistry as they give a class to students at the National Ballet School of Canada.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2zW0IaW

Film Club

This short doc shows how one great teacher can affect many lives. It’s the story of how a Grade 8 educator formed a film club to pass along his love of cinema to his students. He ended up providing them with something far more special.

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

The post This Week on NFB.ca: Oceans, Education, and Creating Good Global Citizens appeared first on NFB Blog.

This Week on NFB.ca: Oceans, Education, and Creating Good Global Citizens posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

A Delicate Balance: Leaping Into The World of Ballet

Ocean School : An Underwater Classroom

Election Season in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Demystify the Process

It’s election season in Canada. Across the country, citizens will be going to the polls over the next months. Mind you, between by-elections, municipal elections, provincial elections and of course, federal elections, it feels like it’s always the season. Campaign posters have become a permanent part of our landscape.

It’s easy to get jaded when elections come around so fast. The signs remain the same, only the faces seem to change. It’s important to remember what a privilege it is to vote. And how fortunate we are to be living in a democracy.

This week, we’ve put together five films that look at the working parts of an election. From the candidate who runs for office to the media who cover the race, you’ll see it all.

Eastern Graphic

This short doc (under 20 minutes!) examines the 1974 PEI provincial election through the lens of the Island’s weekly newspaper. At a very micro level, we get a good look at grassroots politics and the paper’s role in covering it.

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

The Right Candidate for Rosedale

Meet Anne Cools’, a woman who ran for the Liberal Party nomination in 1978 Toronto. In addition to providing us with a great profile of a fascinating candidate, it also gives us a primer in a basic aspect of the electoral process – the nomination contest.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2P0dQRd

History on the Run: The Media and the ’79 Election

Filmmaker Peter Raymont is no stranger to documenting Canadian politics, and in this feature doc, he covers the 1979 federal election. This was a fascinating time in Canadian politics, as Trudeau ran against Joe Clark for leadership of the country. The film, shot over 3 weeks, gives us a great look at journalists in action, and the role they play come election time. Especially relevant these days.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2FFnh2W

Why Women Run

Here’s a great opportunity to follow filmmaker Meredith Ralston as she joins the campaign trial with two female candidates, Mary Clancy (L) and Alexa McDonough (NDP) during the 1997 federal election. It was one of the most contested races in the country, and it highlights the strains, accomplishments, and issues that go along with being a female political figure.

oehttps://https://ift.tt/2P2Mz0C

Campaign: The Making of a Candidate

This is another doc that profiles a candidate, but this time we’re further west in Toronto and it’s a mayoral race during the 2003 municipal election. David Miller emerges on the trail as an underdog, but his commitment and drive take him far, despite all the obstacles thrown in his way. It’s nice. A political film that’s heartwarming and inspiring.

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

The post Election Season in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Demystify the Process appeared first on NFB Blog.

Election Season in Canada: Watch 5 Films That Demystify the Process posted first on http://film-streamingsweb.blogspot.com

This Week on NFB.ca : Are you talking to me? An exploration of communication.