Genres: documentary

  • Sololady

    “Sololady” is about a fifteen-year-old Javanese girl from Solo who comes to Jakarta to sell her herbal medicines. Her herbal recipes, from ancient Chinese, Indian, and Indonesian remedies, are passed on through family lore. The healing power of pharmacopia is enhanced by her cultural image as healer for her patients, showing an Eastern or alternative approach to healing.

  • Somebody’s Kids

    “Somebody’s Kids” is a social documentary that shows three contrasting adolescents, each with a learning disability, their feelings toward the disability and their perceptions of their behaviour. It makes reference to three essential criteria which help to determine the success or failure of the child: the importance of recognizing the disability in the young child; appreciating the fact that each child learns individually; and the significance of family supports. “Somebody’s Kids” is not a technical diagnostic tool. Its aim is to stimulate discussion and to help parents, teachers, and adolescents understand how adolescents with learning disabilities feel.

  • Sons and Daughters

    Filmed in seven countries, “Sons and Daughters” is a sensitive exploration of childhood in the fullness of its imagination, fierceness and wonder. This unconventional documentary consists of a series of precise observations in Canada, Mexico, England, France, Spain, Cyprus, and Isreal. With fluid slow motion cinematography and an evocative soundtrack, the film creates a lyrical and emotional impression of the joys and frustrations of childhood. An impromptu soccer game on a narrow Mexican street, Cypriot children reacting excitedly during a game of tag, and a native girl dancing wearily at a Canadian festival: these are just a few of the…

  • Sons of Captain Poetry

    This “fantasy documentary” tries to blend Canadian poet bp Nichol’s everyday world with the images of characters in his poetry. Sequences include a section on Plunkett, Saskatchewan, where the poet grew up, and scenes of him discussing “concrete poetry.” In the film bp Nichol performs several sound poems. There are also scenes showing his involvement with Coach House Press and Therafields.

  • Speakbody

    Using techniques from documentary, the avant-garde, and narrative films, a great deal of information about abortion is compressed into a short time. The film combines the interwoven multi-layered voices of women recounting their experiences with minimal images from one woman’s memory. Short but powerful.

  • Special of the Day

    In an event designed specifically for the film, two of the most renowned young chefs working in Canada, Jamie Kennedy and Michael Stadtlander, come together to collaborate on a special meal for a surprise guest. As contemporaries who also happen to be old friends, the chefs complement each other’s distinct visions as they work side-by-side in the highly charged atmoshphere of a restaurant kitchen. In a subtle cherography of action and sensitivity, their work unfolds in the film like a performance, conjuring up a delightful visual treat. The chefs pepper the action with their own insights, shedding light on the…

  • Spend It All

    A rich portrayal of the lives and music of the French-speaking Cajuns of Louisiana, featuring the Balfa Brothers, Marc Savoy and Nathan Abshire.

  • Sprout Wings and Fly

    This touching tribute to Appalachian culture profiles legendary, old-time fiddler Tommy Jarrell. His unpretentious folk wisdom is interlaced with family scenes and reminiscences, plus plenty of old-time music.

  • Standing Apart

    For over seventy-five years, the Venice Biennale has been regarded as the most important international art exhibition. Countries all over the world send their best artists to the Biennale in the hope that they will receive international acclaim and recognition. In 1971, the two artists chosen to represent Canada were Gershon Iskowitz, a painter, and Walter Redinger, a sculptor. This is a lyrical and philosophical film showing their response to the aging city of Venice and to having their works exhibited at the Biennale.

  • Storytelling

    This award-winning film features performances by master storytellers telling tales which together outline the trajectory of a lifespan, from creation, birth, heroic adulthood, to death and regeneration. The stories are inter-cut to effect an almost Proppian analysis of narrative and to suggest an alternative position for women as producers and heroes of culture.