Videoteca

event1992 star_border 7 top_panel_open

From coast to coast, from St. John's, Newfoundland to Vancouver, British Columbia, Jacques Godbout films a documentary chronicle of the political turnaround that was to follow the Meech Lake Accord. Following the Meech referendum, Quebec and Canada found themselves at an impasse after a long and ultimately fruitless negotiation, various social and political actors spoke out. Their comments, linked to film clips on the lives of important Canadian politicians (Sir Georges-Étienne Cartier, John A. Macdonald, Louis-Joseph Papineau...), draw parallels between the speeches of yesterday and those of the post-Meech era.

Montreal Stories

Act like Denys Arcand

event1991 star_border 5 top_panel_open

Six stories about Montreal. 1: A young housewife from Toronto samples the nightlife using basic French. 2: The tale of a painting of Montreal's first mayor, Jacques Viger. 3: During a hockey game, Madeleine tries to tell Roger she wants a divorce after forty years of marriage. 4: A visitor to a conference on pictographs arrives at the airport, where the female customs officer steals a momento from each person. 5: As she is being driven to the hospital in an ambulance after an auto accident, Sarah recalls her life. 6: At a diplomatic reception, an older woman reminisces about her grand love in Montreal.

Normande

Act like Jean-Paul

event1975 star_border 6.1 top_panel_open

Normande St-Onge works as a clerk in a pharmacy and takes dance classes with the dream of being a cabaret dancer. Her mother, Berthe, has been confined to a mental institution by Normande's uncle, the wealthy lawyer Jean-Paul. But Normande, who does not believe her mother is insane, kidnaps her from the institution and brings her home. Also living with them is Normande's sister Pierette, who has asthma and a drug addiction, Normande's boyfriend Bouliane, who is unemployed and in no hurry to find a job, and a strange young magician named Carol she took in after he was kicked out of his home. All of these people depend on Normande in various ways and exploit her; Normande, desperate to be loved, is driven mad by the demands of her parasite family. When she receives an eviction notice stating that the building will be demolished and rebuilt into a restaurant, it all becomes too much for Normande and her mind retreats into fantasy to protect her from the harsh realities.

Shooting Star

Act like Propriétaire du bar

event2005 star_border 6.2 top_panel_open

Four young women are participating on Idole Instantanée, a reality show produced by Omni Global, in which a complete stranger turns into a music star in just 24 hours.

Live Before the Letter

event2006 top_panel_open

Thanks to the development of techniques and the adventurous spirit of pioneering filmmakers, among whom Michel Brault occupies a central place, a new way of making cinema was born at the turn of the 1950s and 1960s. This film relevantly retraces the history of a collective movement which revolutionized production and filming methods in Quebec and the world.

Barney's Version

Act like Maitre'D at Ritz

event2010 star_border 7 top_panel_open

The picaresque and touching story of the politically incorrect, fully lived life of the impulsive, irascible and fearlessly blunt Barney Panofsky.

Night Zoo

Act like Man at peep-show

event1987 star_border 7 top_panel_open

Marcel, recently released from prison, attempt to rebuild his relationship with his girlfriend Julie (now a prostitute) and especially his father Albert (who thinks he's been away on a long trip abroad), while being pursued by two corrupt cops (one of whom bears a longstanding grudge against him) for drug money he's alleged to possess.

Les héritiers du mouton noir

event2003

The Barbarian Invasions

Act like Unionist (uncredited)

event2003 star_border 7.1 top_panel_open

In this belated sequel to 'The Decline of the American Empire', middle-aged Montreal college professor, Remy, learns that he is dying of liver cancer. His ex-wife, Louise, asks their estranged son, Sebastian, a successful businessman living in London, to come home. Sebastian makes the impossible happen, using his contacts and disrupting the Canadian healthcare system in every way possible to help his father fight his terminal illness to the bitter end, while reuniting some of Remy's old friends, including Pierre, Alain, Dominique, Diane, and Claude, who return to see their friend before he passes on.

Stealing Alice

event2016 top_panel_open

Artist and writer Marc Séguin offers his first film which is about a woman named Alice who steals paintings in order to reattribute them to people who can truly appreciate their beauty.

Dirty Money

Act like Detective

event1972 star_border 6.2 top_panel_open

A robbery at the secluded country home of a wealthy old man goes horribly awry.

Achieving the Unachievable

event2007 star_border 5 top_panel_open

M.C. Escher is among the most intriguing of artists. In 1956 he challenged the laws of perspective with his graphic Print Gallery and his uncompleted master-piece quickly became the most puzzling enigma of modern art. Fifty years later, can mathematician Hendrik Lenstra complete it? Should he?

Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche

event2004 star_border 5 top_panel_open

This compelling documentary explores Canadian film culture and tries to discover what defines Canadian film through interviews with notable filmmakers.

Le cri du rhinocéros

event2018 star_border 5 top_panel_open

Marc Labrèche, the Director of this documentary, himself an author, actor and host, meets other creators to ask them these questions that inhabit him. Do artists have an expiry date? Do we create our best works in our youth or, on the contrary, does experience allow us to develop a greater mastery of our medium? In this respect, are there important differences between the different forms of art such as music, cinema and literature?

Kiss Me With All Your Love

Act like Édouard Montpetit

event2016 star_border 4.3 top_panel_open

Montreal, 1940. The Second World War is raging in Europe. Pierre Sauvageau, 22, would like to enlist, but he has to take care of his twin sister, crippled from birth. This proximity awakens the sensuality of Berthe who tries to seduce her brother. Pierre rejects her advances, but when he falls in love with Marguerite, his best friend's girlfriend, he is haunted by the fantasy of his sister.

C'est pas la faute à Jacques Cartier

Act like (uncredited)

event1968 top_panel_open

Three American tourists explore Quebec guided by an imaginative leader, in an atmosphere of health and good humor. Baroque incidents, romance, and satire on society unfold, aiming to evoke monumental laughter from Quebecers.

Mon oeil

event1971 top_panel_open

One evening a man watches eight movies simultaneously on television.

Réjeanne Padovani

Act like Sam Tannebaum's Bodyguard (uncredited)

event1973 star_border 6.2 top_panel_open

The unexpected return of his ex-wife and the assembly of a group of protesters both threaten to wreck a corrupt contractor's inauguration party for his new superhighway.

Forgotten Flowers

Act like Captain

event2019 star_border 6.5 top_panel_open

Brother Marie-Victorin, founder of Montreal’s Botanical Garden, is bored with heaven and decides to return earth to help former agronomist turned beekeeper Albert save Quebec’s flora from a multinational that is poisoning the Earth with chemicals.

Pigs Are Seldom Clean

Act like Rocket

event1973 top_panel_open

The true identity of an undercover RCMP narcotics agent is discovered by the criminals he is investigating and his family pays the price.

The Magical Eye

event1989 top_panel_open

Features clips from 21 documentary and animation film classics, interviews with NFB filmmakers past and present, and incisive commentary from film critics and historians on the role and influence of the NFB during its first half century of existence.

Léolo

Act like Director

event1992 star_border 7.1 top_panel_open

The story of an imaginative boy who pretends he is the child of a sperm-laden Sicilian tomato upon which his mother accidentally fell.

Jesus of Montreal

Act like Juge

event1989 star_border 6.9 top_panel_open

A group of actors putting on an interpretive Passion Play in Montreal begin to experience a meshing of their characters and their private lives as the production takes form against the growing opposition of the Catholic church.

Sodankylä Forever

event2010 top_panel_open

The Midnight Sun Film Festival is held every June in the Finnish village of Sodankylä beyond the arctic circle — where the sun never sets. Founded by Aki and Mika Kaurismäki along with Anssi Mänttäri and Peter von Bagh in 1985, the festival has played host to an international who’s who of directors and each day begins with a two-hour discussion. To mark the festival’s silver anniversary, festival director Peter von Bagh edited together highlights from these dialogues to create an epic four-part choral history of cinema drawn from the anecdotes, insights, and wisdom of his all-star cast: Coppola, Fuller, Forman, Chabrol, Corman, Demy, Kieslowski, Kiarostami, Varda, Oliveira, Erice, Rouch, Gilliam, Jancso — and 64 more. Ranging across innumerable topics (war, censorship, movie stars, formative influences, America, neorealism) these voices, many now passed away, engage in a personal dialogue across the years that’s by turns charming, profound, hilarious and moving.

Nominingue... depuis qu'il existe

event1967 top_panel_open

A Docufiction about the twin realities of the Nominingue village in rural quebec, a poverty town turned vacation spot. where the older generation remembers the harsh conditions and poverty that afflicted them, while younger generations and tourist deal with ennui.

Good Men

event2024 top_panel_open

After the birth of his grandson, Bobby Roth undertakes a cinematic investigation as to what constitutes being a "good man" in today's world. This voyage of discovery leads him to interview more than fifty of his friends, both men and women who he considers to be "good people," about their views on everything from how they were parented to their thoughts on feminism, change, and regrets they might have. Their answers both surprises and enlighten both the viewers and Bobby, himself.

Le prix du paradis

Act like Narrator

event2017 star_border 8

At the End of Nothing at All

event2024 top_panel_open

Every morning, Marcel confides in his tape recorder. It is from his reflections on life that this film takes us into the wake of his story.

Le documentaire selon Denys Arcand

top_panel_open

Interview with director Denys Arcand about his documentary work. Conducted on the premises of the canadian National Film Board (NFB).

Québec: Duplessis and After ...

Act like Narrator

event1972 star_border 10 top_panel_open

This film establishes a parallel between the 1970 electoral campaign in Québec and the 1936 campaign dominated by Maurice Duplessis. It shows the hope but also the uncertainty that existed in 1970. Had the Quiet Revolution really changed things in Québec? Was it possible that a new leader would emerge on the political scene? (NFB.ca)

Nulle part ailleurs

Act like Self (1 ep.)

event1987 star_border 5.6

Les pêcheurs

Act like Denys Arcand (1 ep.)

event2013 star_border 7.4

En audition avec Simon

Act like Denys Arcand (1 ep.)

event2010

Tout le monde en parle

Act like Self (1 ep.)

event2004 star_border 4.2 top_panel_open

Host Guy A. Lepage brings together six to eight personalities from different milieus—sports, politics, stage productions and more—that are the subject of everyone’s conversations and/or are important figures in recent events. Participants are invited to speak freely, voicing their opinions on headline news or on a subject that is near and dear to them.

Spécial cinéma

Act like Self (1 ep.)

event1974

La plus belle province

Act like Narrator (voice) (4 ep.)

event2022 star_border 7

Les bobos

Act like Denys Arcand (1 ep.)

event2012 star_border 9 top_panel_open

Two bourgeois-bohemians struggle to stay on the cutting edge of trends and fashion while never sacrificing a single ounce of comfort, style or social conscience.

Viens voir les comédiens

Act like Self (2 ep.)

event2002 top_panel_open

Viens voir les comédiens is a television show on the Canadian French-language arts and culture television network ARTV.

Ti-Mé Show

Act like Self - Guest Star (1 ep.)

event2015 top_panel_open

Each week, in front of a fired-up audience, personalities from all areas come on Ti-Mé’s show for an hour of comedy and quirks. A variety show where interviews, sketches, musical performances and surprising presentations are intertwined. Ti-Mé is interested in everyone but is not impressed by anyone.

Days of Darkness

event2007 star_border 6.4 top_panel_open

Jean-Marc is a man without qualities living in times that are out of joint. His wife and children ignore him; he's a mid-level government functionary in Montreal doing his job without care. He has an active imagination of sexual conquest, but his only real feelings come when he visits his aged mother, whose health is failing. When his wife leaves abruptly to work in Toronto, Jean-Marc sets out to reorder things with his daughters, his social life, and at work. In a world that at best is a farce, does he stand a chance?

Love & Human Remains

event1994 star_border 5.8 top_panel_open

In a Canadian metropolis, failed actor David shares a place with the bookish Candy, whom he dated before coming out as gay. While David, who now waits tables, pursues an aimless romance with a younger coworker, Candy dabbles in both same-sex and heterosexual affairs. As David and Candy's odd assortment of friends — including a telepathic sex worker and an ill-tempered yuppie — pass in and out of their beds, a serial murder stalks the city's women.

Stardom

event2000 star_border 5.6 top_panel_open

A young girl is plucked from small-town obscurity and thrust into the spotlight of the glamorous world of super-models.

The Decline of the American Empire

event1986 star_border 6.8 top_panel_open

Four very different Montreal university teachers gather at a rambling country house to prepare a dinner. Remy (married), Claude (a homosexual), Pierre (involved with a girlfriend) and Alain (a bachelor) discuss sex, the female body and their affairs with them. Meanwhile, their four female guests, Louise (Remy's wife of 15 years), Dominique (a spinster), Diane (a divorcée) and Danielle (Pierre's girlfriend) are spending the time at a downtown health gym. They also discuss sex, the female body and, naturally, men. Later in the evening, they finally meet at the country house and have dinner. A ninth guest, named Mario, who used to know Diane, drops in on the group for some talk and has a surprise of his own.

Gina

event1975 star_border 6.1 top_panel_open

Gina is a stripper at a popular local club. Everybody loves her and wants her. One night, a feared gang enters her motel room and gang-rape her violently. Soon afterward, she asks the services of criminals to help her exact revenge on those who attacked her.

Comfort and Indifference

event1982 star_border 7.1 top_panel_open

Made shortly after the referendum on Quebec's independence was held, this documentary illustrates what the politicians' promises were and how the population did not really care nor truly understand what was really at stake, even though just about everyone had an opinion on the subject.

The Crime of Ovide Plouffe

Scenario Writer (1 ep.)

event1984 star_border 6.3 top_panel_open

Ovide Plouffe has married Rita. She still tries to attract other men even after their marriage. Unhappy Ovide feels for Marie - a young French woman he had met. But his catholic background and surrounding can't let him love another woman or divorce from his wife. So Ovide finishes with Marie and plans a trip with Rita hoping for reconciliation. At the last instant he announces to Rita that he can't make the trip. She goes alone. The plane explodes, and Ovide is suspected and arrested for this horrible crime.

Poverty and Other Delights

event1996 star_border 7 top_panel_open

Marcel and Joseph are tireless walkers. Their itinerary is an invitation to discover improbable places and fascinating people. Everlastingly looking for Stanley, Marcel’s only friend, they meet an unlikely crowd of extravagant characters. Each has a story to tell, his hope to share.

Between Sweet and Salt Water

event1967 star_border 5.6 top_panel_open

A young singer-songwriter abandons his life in his hometown and moves to the city to make it big. He achieves fame, but it comes at a price.

Cotton Mill, Treadmill

event1970 star_border 6 top_panel_open

Director Denys Arcand made an inquiry on textile industry in Quebec, meeting employers and workers of that industry.

An Eye for Beauty

event2014 star_border 3.4 top_panel_open

An architect and his wife see their relationship challenged.

Montréal un jour d'été

event1965 star_border 5 top_panel_open

From dawn to night, Montreal is a living reality, with many faces, many occupations, and the uncertain and blurred colors of industrial cities. The film illustrates different aspects of this reality: the cosmopolitan Montreal, the anthropological Montreal and the plastic Montreal. Images: Electric wires; poles; view of houses and cars; airplane; bridge; men working on construction; mechanical crane pulley; mechanical crane in the street; men walking on constructions (scaffolding); skyscraper; park; lovers lying in the grass; canoe; children in a park; children on a boat; sailboats; bathers; factory chimney; quarry; CN locomotive; public market; traffic of cars and pedestrians; lights shining in the evening; fireworks

Alone or with Others

event1962 star_border 5.8 top_panel_open

At the end of the year 1961, three young students, Denys Arcand, Denis Héroux and Stéphane Venne, decide to direct a feature-length film centered on the perks of student life. The film mixes fiction and reality in the style of cinéma vérité. "Alone or with others" is often considered the first indepent film of Québec.

Testament

event2023 star_border 6.7 top_panel_open

In an era of political correctness, identity evolution, protests, cultural scandals, activism, media storms, and other disputes, Jean-Michel, a 70-year-old single man, has lost all his bearings in this society. He lives in a retirement home located in a heritage building, managed with care and precision by Suzanne. Their peace is shaken by the arrival of young activists who demand the destruction of a historic fresco. Overwhelmed by an era dominated by political correctness, Jean-Michel will regain faith in humanity with the birth of an unexpected love.

Atlantic Parks

event1967 star_border 5 top_panel_open

1966 PARCS ATLANTIQUES Best Short Film Award, UNESCO, Brussels, 1967 An exploration of three of Canada's national parks: Fundy, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Breton Highlands, all on the Atlantic coast, where, by filmmaker's licence, boy meets girl, marries and has a family, all while enjoying the parks' many facilities for campers. Even the girl's little white car, which leads us to the parks at the outset, seems to run on the pure air and the anticipation of fresh adventures around every turn. - NFB

Volleyball

event1966 top_panel_open

An encounter between Russian and American volleyball teams, presented more as an essay in the choreography of the players' movements than as a play-by-play report of a sports event. Various camera tricks are used to dramatize the action, notably stop-motion, that freezes the ballet-like leaps and postures of the players. The film has jazz background music. -NFB

Champlain

event1964 top_panel_open

Explorer, colonizer, founder of Québec, discoverer of Lake Champlain, governor of New France, cartographer and writer--few men in Canadian history had a more adventurous and varied career than Champlain. This film presents an exciting picture-study of the man and his time.

Ville-Marie

event1965 top_panel_open

Today it is the city of Montreal, but 3 centuries ago the tiny band of missionary founders called it Ville-Marie, the holy city of Mary. This film goes back to its beginning and those who felt called to plant an oasis of Christianity in the North American wilderness. In an imaginative, at times almost surrealistic, way the film recalls the highborn company from France, and shows what survives of Ville-Marie in the Montreal of today.

Jusqu'au cou

event1964 star_border 6 top_panel_open

The story of a young university student who deals with love in the midst of the Quebec separatist movement in the 1960s.

The Fall of the American Empire

event2018 star_border 6.6 top_panel_open

A shy and insecure delivery driver arrives on the scene of a robbery-gone-wrong and picks up two bags of cash and hides them in his truck. He is interrogated by two tough police detectives and manages to evade suspicion but he is warned that whoever owns the money will be looking for it. Only the help of a prostitute and a former biker recently released from jail might get him out of trouble.

La route de l'Ouest

event1965 top_panel_open

When was Canada populated by Native Americans from the West? This film relates the discovery of the New World from the time of the Vikings, around 880, to Jacques Cartier.

Springboard to the Sun

Samuel de Champlain: Québec 1603

event1964

event1964 top_panel_open

Footage of Québec City locations and the artwork of well-known Quebec animator Frédéric Back are used to tell the tale of Champlain’s life in New France – from his first explorations and settlement to his death in 1635.

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