Alanis Obomsawin
Also Known As: not available
Biography: Alanis Obomsawin, OC (born August 31, 1932) is a Canadian filmmaker of Abenaki descent. Born in New Hampshire, and raised primarily in Quebec, she has produced and directed many National Film Board of Canada documentaries on First Nations culture and history. Description above from the Wikipedia article Alanis Obomsawin, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Department: Directing
Place of Birth: Lebanon, New Hampshire, USA
Birthday: August 31, 1932
Adult: No
Gender: Female
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Trick or Treaty?
Overview: Legendary Canadian documentarian Alanis Obomsawin digs into the tangled history of Treaty 9 — the infamous 1905 agreement wherein First Nations communities relinquished sovereignty over their traditional territories — to reveal the deceptions and distortions which the document has been subjected to by successive governments seeking to deprive Canada’s First Peoples of their lands.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2014-09-04
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Documenting John Grierson
Overview: The life and work of the documentary pioneer.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2014-02-28
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Bones of Crows
Overview: Cree matriarch Aline Spears survives a childhood in Canada’s residential school system to continue her family’s generational fight in the face of systemic starvation, racism, and sexual abuse. She uses her uncanny ability to understand and translate codes into working for a special division of the Canadian Air Force as a Cree code talker in World War II. The story unfolds over 100 years with a cumulative force that propels us into the future.
Genres: Drama History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2023-06-02
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Amisk
Overview: A performing arts film by Alanis Obomsawin, it documents efforts to raise funds for the James Bay Cree and was made at a time when Cree territory was threatened by hydro-electric projects. Amisk represents early work by Obomsawin, a trailblazer in Canadian Aboriginal film.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1977-01-01
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Kanehsatake, 270 Years of Resistance
Overview: In July 1990, a dispute over a proposed golf course to be built on Kanien’kéhaka (Mohawk) lands in Oka, Quebec, sets the stage for a historic confrontation that would grab international headlines and sear itself into the Canadian consciousness.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1993-07-12
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Bill Reid Remembers
Overview: Renowned Haida artist Bill Reid shares his thoughts on artistry, activism and his deep affection for his homeland in this heartwarming tribute from Alanis Obomsawin to her friend's life, legacy and roots.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2022-04-30
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Incident at Restigouche
Overview: Incident at Restigouche is a 1984 documentary film by Alanis Obomsawin, chronicling a series of two raids on the Listuguj Mi'gmaq First Nation (Restigouche) by the Sûreté du Québec in 1981, as part of the efforts of the Quebec government to impose new restrictions on Native salmon fishermen. Incident at Restigouche delves into the history behind the Quebec Provincial Police (QPP) raids on the Restigouche Reserve on June 11 and 20, 1981. The Quebec government had decided to restrict fishing, resulting in anger among the Micmac Indians as salmon was traditionally an important source of food and income. Using a combination of documents, news clips, photographs and interviews, this powerful film provides an in-depth investigation into the history-making raids that put justice on trial.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1984-01-01
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Dans un cinéma près de chez vous
Overview: Karine Vanasse goes behind the scenes of our cinema and showcases the talent of our artists and artisans. The objective? Make as many people as possible want to see local films all year round!
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 2024-01-14
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Waseteg
Overview: The story of a young Micmac girl whose name means "the light from the dawn."
Genres: Animation
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2010-01-01
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Sounds From Our People: Gabriel Goes to the City
Overview: Obomsawin narrates as children learn of the traditions and life of Gabriel, a Cree boy from Fort George, James Bay. The Northern Cree "Walking Out Ceremony" is one such tradition. This is followed by scenes of Gabriel touring Old Montreal.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1979-01-01
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Our Dear Sisters
Overview: Alanis Obomsawin, a North American Indian who earns her living by singing and making films, is the mother of an adopted child. She talks about her life, her people, and her responsibilities as a single parent. Her observations shake some of our cultural assumptions.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1975-01-01
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Walking Is Medicine
Overview: The Nishiyuu walkers made the trek from Whapmagoostui in Quebec to Ottawa, a 1,600-kilometre journey whose roots date back millennia. At the heart of legendary director Alanis Obomsawin’s latest short documentary, her 51st film in 50 years of filmmaking, is the idea of walking as activism, as well as a symbol of decolonization and an embrace of the traditional.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2017-11-28
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Capturing Reality
Overview: From cinema-verite; pioneers Albert Maysles and Joan Churchill to maverick movie makers like Errol Morris, Werner Herzog and Nick Broomfield, the world's best documentarians reflect upon the unique power of their genre. Capturing Reality explores the complex creative process that goes into making non-fiction films. Deftly charting the documentarian's journey, it poses the question: can film capture reality?
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2008-11-01
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Merata: How Mum Decolonised the Screen
Overview: This film is an intimate portrayal of pioneering filmmaker Merata Mita told through the eyes of her children. Using hours of archive footage, some never before seen, her youngest child and director Hepi Mita discovers the filmmaker he never knew and shares the mother he lost, with the world.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2019-01-28
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Mother of Many Children
Overview: This film is an album of Native womanhood, portraying a proud matriarchal society that for centuries has been pressured to adopt different standards and customs. All of the women featured share a belief in the importance of tradition as a source of strength in the face of change.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1977-09-18
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Is the Crown at war with us?
Overview: In the summer of 2000, federal fishery officers appeared to wage war on the Mi'gmaq fishermen of Burnt Church, New Brunswick. Why would officials of the Canadian government attack citizens for exercising rights that had been affirmed by the highest court in the land? Alanis Obomsawin casts her nets into history to provide a context for the events on Miramichi Bay.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2003-09-13
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Rocks at Whiskey Trench
Overview: The fourth film in Alanis Obomsawin's landmark series on the Oka crisis uses a single, shameful incident as a lens through which to examine the region's long history of prejudice and injustice against the Mohawk population.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2000-06-21
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Making Movie History: Alanis Obomsawin
Overview: Alanis Obomsawin talks about how she got her start at the NFB and the overarching importance of sound/story in her work.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2014-01-01
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Dream Magic
Overview: Portrait of NFB filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2008-01-01
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Heritage Minutes: Queenston Heights
Overview: Mohawk Chief John Norton and 80 Grand River warriors hold off American soldiers until reinforcements arrive and the Battle of Queenston Heights is won (1812).
Genres: No genres available
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2013-01-01
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Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger
Overview: The story of a young boy forced to spend all five years of his short life in hospital while the federal and provincial governments argued over which was responsible for his care, as well as the long struggle of Indigenous activists to force the Canadian government to enforce “Jordan’s Principle” — the promise that no First Nations children would experience inequitable access to government-funded services again.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2019-09-10
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Christmas at Moose Factory
Overview: A study of life at Christmastime in Moose Factory, an old settlement mainly composed of Cree families on the shore of James Bay, composed entirely of children's crayon drawings and narrated by children.
Genres: Documentary Family
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1971-01-01
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Canada Vignettes: June in Povungnituk - Quebec Arctic
Overview: On a beautiful summer’s day in Nunavik, a family enjoys the pleasures of berry picking and fishing as the sound of two Elders throat-singing fills the environment.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1980-01-01
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The Devil's Share
Overview: Quebec, on the cusp of the 1960s. The province is on the brink of momentous change. Deftly selecting clips from nearly 200 films from the National Film Board of Canada archives, director Luc Bourdon reinterprets the historical record, offering us a new and distinctive perspective on the Quiet Revolution.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 2018-02-16
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Le grand solstice
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Genres: Music
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 2021-06-20
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Eliza's Horoscope
Overview: A young woman arrives to Montreal to find love. A fortune teller tells her that a wealthy man meant for her is right around the corner so she goes looking even among her odd rag tag group roommates.
Genres: No genres available
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1975-01-01
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Mary Two-Axe Earley: I Am Indian Again
Overview: After marrying a settler, Mary Two-Axe Earley lost her legal status as a First Nations woman. Dedicating her life to activism, she campaigned to have First Nations women's rights restored and coordinated a movement that continues to this day. Kahnawake filmmaker Courtney Montour honours this inspiring leader while drawing attention to contemporary injustices that remain in this era of truth and reconciliation.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2021-05-06
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