Documentary

Synopsis: During the short Arctic summer on Baffin Island, the native Inuit enjoys four months of continuous daylight. But it is no time for relaxation, for provision must be made for the long, cold winter night ahead. In this film Idlouk, an Inuit hunter, tells of his life in this northern land.… Read more

Synopsis: On June 11 and 20, 1981, the Québec Provincial Police (QPP) raided Restigouche Reserve, Québec. This film provides a historical perspective on the issue, and documents, with newsclips, photographs and interviews, the two police raids.… Read more

Synopsis: At age thirty-five, Gil Cardinal searches for his natural family and an understanding of the circumstances that led to his coming into foster care as an infant. Foster Child is a documentary--unstaged and unrehearsed--about the process of that discovery, beginning with his fruitless attempt to see his own file.… Read more

Synopsis: A provocative film in which articulate young Indians test their inherent, tolerant philosophy against the more pragmatic ideas of Saul Alinsky. The Indians argue for a revision of the hundred-year-old Indian Act by peaceful persuasion. Alinsky advocates a more direct development of power to bring about the changes they seek.

Synopsis: During the winter since times predating agriculture, the Cree of Mistassini have gone to the bush of the James and Ungava Bay area to hunt. Three hunting families agreed to meet an NFB crew, who filmed the building of the winter camp, the hunting, the relationship to the land, and the rhythms of Cree family life.… Read more

Synopsis: At the 1956 gathering of the Blood Indians of Alberta, the exciting spectacle of the Sun Dance was captured on film for the first time.… Read more

Synopsis: Building a canoe solely from the materials that the forest provides may become a lost art, even among the Indians whose traditional craft it is. In this film, César Newashish, a sixty-seven-year-old Attikamek Indian of the Manowan Reserve north of Montreal, builds a canoe in the old way, using only birch bark, cedar splints, spruce roots and gum.

Synopsis: Sur la terre de Baffin, pendant le court été arctique, les Inuit profitent des quatre mois d'ensoleillement continuel pour faire leurs provisions en vue du long hiver à venir. Dans la région de Pont Inlet dans l'île d'Alukseevee, les Inuit Tununermiut chassent le phoque ainsi que le narval et le béluga. Nous rencontrons la famille d'un chasseur nommé Idlouk au camp.… Read more

Synopsis: The Hudson's Bay Company's 300th anniversary celebration was no occasion for joy among the people whose lives were tied to the trading stores. This film, narrated by George Manuel, president of the National Indian brotherhood, presents the view of spokesmen for Canadian Indian and Métis groups.… Read more

Synopsis:Informational video about the RIDS-Nepal project and the "Family of Four": clean water, pit latrines, smokeless stove, and indoor lighting.

Filmmaker:RIDS-Nepal

Contact:Alex Zahnd - azahnd@rids-nepal.org

Producer:RIDS-Nepal

Year of Production:2010

Distributor Information:

Country:Nepal

Synopsis: Civic Stadium, beloved by the people of Eugene, Oregon, USA, may not survive much longer. This critically important gathering place integrates the community and connects it to generations of the past and, hopefully, the future.

Filmmaker: Teal Greyhavens

Contact: Rick Pettigrew

Producer: ALI

Year of Production: 2009

Dedicated to the Late Chief Ken Harris of Gawa Gyani

Synopsis: A Vingette original created looking at works of Karen Jamieson Dance Company with Indigenous Performer Donald Morin.

Filmmaker: Gunargie O'Sullivan and Donald Morin

Contact: cheryledwilliams[at]gmail.com

donaldmorin[at]gmail.com

Producer: Gunargie O'Sullivan and Donald Morin

Overview of Tipi Raising (Video 1)

Students at Focus High School in Montreal, Canada explore material from IsumaTV with help from teacher Matthew Shapiro.

Isuma.tv at Focus High School

À les regarder voler dans les airs, planer si gracieusement, défier sans cesse les lois de la physique, à applaudir leur fluidité sur terre et dans les airs, on ne peut que difficilement imaginer la somme de travail physique et de prouesses techniques qu’il a fallu pour en arriver là.… Read more

Overview of Tipi Raising (Video 1)