Stories We Tell

Stories We Tell 2012

7.10

Canadian actress and filmmaker Sarah Polley investigates certain secrets related to her mother, interviewing a group of family members and friends whose reliability varies depending of their implication in the events, which are remembered in different ways; so a trail of questions remains to be answered, because memory is always changing and the discovery of truth often depends on who is telling the tale.

2012

Subservience

Subservience 2007

5.50

The selfishness of the bourgeoisie and the dull passivity of its servants are the theme of this puppet animation presenting the tragicomedy of a society in its death throes, taking refuge in absurd behaviour.

2007

Standing on the Line

Standing on the Line 2019

7.30

In both amateur and professional sports, being gay remains taboo. Few dare to come out of the closet for fear of being stigmatized, and for many, the pressure to perform is compounded by a further strain: whether or not to affirm their sexual identity. Standing on the Line takes a fresh and often moving look at some of our gay athletes, who share their experiences with the camera. They’ve set out to overcome prejudice in the hopes of changing things for the athletes of tomorrow.

2019

The Forbidden Room

The Forbidden Room 2015

5.70

A submarine crew, a feared pack of forest bandits, a famous surgeon, and a battalion of child soldiers all get more than they bargained for as they wend their way toward progressive ideas on life and love.

2015

Léolo

Léolo 1992

7.10

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

1992

Surviving Progress

Surviving Progress 2011

7.20

Humanity’s ascent is often measured by the speed of progress. But what if progress is actually spiraling us downwards, towards collapse? Ronald Wright, whose best-seller, “A Short History Of Progress” inspired “Surviving Progress”, shows how past civilizations were destroyed by “progress traps”—alluring technologies and belief systems that serve immediate needs, but ransom the future. As pressure on the world’s resources accelerates and financial elites bankrupt nations, can our globally-entwined civilization escape a final, catastrophic progress trap? With potent images and illuminating insights from thinkers who have probed our genes, our brains, and our social behaviour, this requiem to progress-as-usual also poses a challenge: to prove that making apes smarter isn’t an evolutionary dead-end.

2011

Animal Behaviour

Animal Behaviour 2018

6.30

Five animals meet regularly to discuss their inner angst in a group therapy session led by Dr. Clement, a canine psychotherapist. The group includes Lorraine, a leech who suffers from separation anxiety; Cheryl, a praying mantis who can’t seem to keep a man; Todd, a pig with an eating disorder; Jeffrey, a bird with guilt issues; and Linda, an obsessive-compulsive cat.

2018

The Boys of St. Vincent: 15 Years Later

The Boys of St. Vincent: 15 Years Later 1992

6.50

Fifteen years after the events of The Boys of St. Vincent took place, the various boys involved are brought in to testify against the brothers, now finally standing trial, who assaulted them when they were children.

1992

The Man Who Planted Trees

The Man Who Planted Trees 1987

8.05

The story of one shepherd's single-handed quest to re-forest a desolate valley in the foothills of the French Alps throughout the first half of the 20th century.

1987

To Kill a Tiger

To Kill a Tiger 2023

7.50

Ranjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.

2023

The Stand

The Stand 2024

1

Mixing animation with a wealth of archival footage, Chris Auchter’s film explores the 1985 dispute over clearcut logging on Haida Gwaii. On one side are Western Forest Products and Frank Belsen Logging, who plan to engage in clearcut logging on Tllga Kun Gwaayaay (Lyell Island) and are supported by the BC government. On the other side is the Haida Nation, which wishes to protect its lands against further destruction. The confrontation involves court proceedings and a blockade, and Auchter takes us from canny retrospective commentary to the thick of the action.

2024

The Last Trapper

The Last Trapper 2004

6.77

Norman is not just an admirer of nature, he's a part of it. He survives the harshness of the climate and the wildlife by coexisting with it. With his wife Nebraska, they live almost entirely off the land, making money by selling their furs.

2004

Debris

Debris 2015

1

This short film is a portrait of Tofino, BC intertidal artist Pete Clarkson as he crafts his most ambitious and personal project to date: a memorial to the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami. He, like so many of us around the world, was deeply affected by the disaster. Years later, as splintered and mangled timber and other objects started to wash ashore, the disaster hit home again for Clarkson, and the inspiration for his memorial was born. In Clarkson’s caring hands, the remnants from the Tohoku region take on a life of their own as he shapes them into a unique public sculpture. The result is an evocative memorial that is a site of remembrance and contemplation, and an emotional bridge connecting an artist, his community and a people an ocean away.

2015

Neighbours

Neighbours 1952

7.50

In this Oscar-winning short film, Norman McLaren employs the principles normally used to put drawings or puppets into motion to animate live actors. The story is a parable about two people who come to blows over the possession of a flower.

1952

A Chairy Tale

A Chairy Tale 1957

6.70

An ordinary looking chair refuses to be sat upon.

1957

Land of the Heads

Land of the Heads 2009

4.80

Emile is an unhappy little vampire, doing a job he detests, in a world plunged into perpetual gloom. He serves a despotic mistress who loathes wrinkles, in the most extreme way.

2009

Madame Tutli-Putli

Madame Tutli-Putli 2007

6.90

Madame Tutli-Putli boards the Night Train, weighed down with all her earthly possessions and the ghosts of her past. She travels alone, facing both the kindness and menace of strangers. As day descends into dark, she finds herself caught up in a desperate metaphysical adventure.

2007

Assholes: A Theory

Assholes: A Theory 2019

4.00

Some people grapple with the moral challenges of treating human beings decently. Others are just… assholes. Inspired by Aaron James’ New York Times bestseller of the same name, this documentary investigates the breeding grounds of contemporary ‘asshole culture’ — and locates signs of civility in an otherwise rude and nasty universe. Venturing into predominantly male domain, this film moves from Ivy League frat clubs to the bratty princedoms of Silicon Valley and the bear pits of international finance. Why do assholes thrive in certain environments? What explains their perverse appeal? And how do they keep getting elected?

2019

Catherine O'Hara: All of Us Shine

Catherine O'Hara: All of Us Shine 2021

10.00

From "SCTV" and "Home Alone" to "Best in Show" and "Schitt’s Creek", Catherine O’Hara collaborates with fellow performers throughout her legendary career to take comedy to new heights.

2021