Karl du Plessis

If You Love This Planet

Australian pediatrician Helen Caldicott delivers a lecture on the potential medical and societal consequences of a nuclear war, and advocates for nuclear disarmament. The film includes newsreel records of the beginnings of the arms race and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as film records showing the Japanese who were severely scarred and burned in the bombings.

Special Delivery

A hapless husband neglects to clear the icy walk, which leads to the mailman slipping and breaking his neck. A comedy of errors results from his attempts to hide the body.

The Bronswik Affair

This funny yet serious short film demonstrates the effectiveness of advertising and the marketing machine. Its comic appeal lies in the characters and the absurd situations they find themselves in, but it also shines a harsh light on our tendency towards needless consumerism prompted by a steady flow of commercials.

Deep Threat

Zlatko Grgic's short animated film depicts how humans evolved from the sea and the problems that ensued. Using humour, he shows how industry leads to waste and pollution, which in turn wreak havoc on the delicate balance of our ecosystems.

Extinction of the Dinosaurs

This film illustrates the theory that a sudden change in climate caused by a stellar explosion resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs.

The Housewife

A study, in film animation, of a day in the life of a housewife, described without words, with a minimum of detail but with a perception all the more pertinent because of the simplicity of presentation. The film makes no judgments. It simply states the case, but serves as an apt starting point for any discussion of the role of women and the value of their work.

King of the Hill

This feature documentary follows one of the greatest Canadian baseball players of all time, Ferguson Jenkins, through the 1972-1973 season. From the hope and innocence of spring training to the dog days of an August slump, the camera gets up close and personal at the home plate and records the intimate chatter on the mound, in the dugout and in the locker room. It provides a glimpse into the rewards and pressures of sports stardom and the easy camaraderie of the quintessential summer sport.

Who Are We?

Canadians in search of the national identity will not find it fully fleshed in this film. An animated cartoon, it sees Canadians as pragmatists, adaptable to whatever climate or history place in their way. It is a boisterous, bubbling analysis of the Canadian character and, although it may not answer the question of the title, it does leave the feeling that being Canadian is not so exhausting as one might expect.

Ten: The Magic Number

An amusing introduction to the metric system, presented through the person of George, a tropical fish fancier who is stymied in estimating the weight of his aquarium because he doesn't remember what a cubic inch of water weighs in ounces. How he is jolted into the metric age, and how he discovers its advantages, makes an amusing cartoon screen adventure for anyone who sees George's problem but, like him, resists the idea of change to a simpler way of figuring the size and weight of things.

The Story of Christmas

This short animation tells the familiar story of Christmas in an innovative and colourful way. Filmmaker Evelyn Lambart uses glowing zinc cut-outs to give this traditional tale a contemporary twist. Akin to a joyful medieval manuscript, the film is embellished by the artist's own whimsy—heraldic trumpet sounds, luminescent light, and wildflowers in every scene tell the message of rebirth. A film without dialogue.

Tickets s.v.p

An incident from the early days of Québec's quiet revolution, tailor-made for the cartoonist. It is the story of a Montréal commuter train, a unilingual ticket collector and a bilingual passenger. The passenger appears on screen himself to describe his bid to have tickets requested in French as well as in English. What ensued, and how even the railway president became involved, is illustrated with wit and humor.

Downhill

Actor Michael Kane stars in this brief winter romance filmed partly in the dazzling outdoor splendor of a Laurentian ski resort and partly in the cardiac wing of a city hospital. It is the story of a man's second youth, the time in his middle years when he overstrains his passion for life and love. A stolen weekend, and the inevitable reckoning; between these two, the hills themselves serve the drama like members of the cast.

Cold Pizza

An engaging story of young enterprise, pitfalls, and eventual success that all young viewers will enjoy. It is about two young Greek boys in Montréal who try to earn some extra money for a trip to their sunny homeland by delivering pizzas. The misadventures they encounter and how they surmount them make an amusing story, full of youthful initiative.

End of a Summer Day

A hymn to love and life, this film without commentary establishes through images a striking parallel between the serenity that times of peace bring to men and the anguish caused by the disasters and horrors of war. Archival footage, in black and white, was used to illustrate the moments of combat while an extremely agile camera captured in color the rural setting in which a young couple of lovers frolic. Hymne à l'amour et à la vie, ce film sans commentaire établit par l'image un saisissant parallèle entre la sérénité qu'apportent aux hommes les temps de paix et l'angoisse qu'engendrent les désastres et les horreurs de la guerre. Des métrages d'archives, en noir et blanc, ont été utilisés pour illustrer les moments de combat tandis qu'une caméra extrêmement agile a capté en couleurs le décor champêtre dans lequel s'ébat un jeune couple d'amoureux.

The North Wind and the Sun: A Fable by Aesop

An engaging illustration, by animation artist Rhoda Leyer, of the fable in which the warm sun proves to the cold wind that persuasion is better than force when it comes to making a man take off his coat.

The North Wind and the Sun: A Fable by Aesop

An engaging illustration, by animation artist Rhoda Leyer, of the fable in which the warm sun proves to the cold wind that persuasion is better than force when it comes to making a man take off his coat.

Atonement

Canadian wildlife specialists work to preserve and nurture the creatures that remain in our wilderness areas - species such as the whooping crane, prairie falcons, bighorn sheep, bison, polar bears, and grizzlies.

Atonement

Canadian wildlife specialists work to preserve and nurture the creatures that remain in our wilderness areas - species such as the whooping crane, prairie falcons, bighorn sheep, bison, polar bears, and grizzlies.

Ashes of Doom

A chain-smoking woman has an encounter with a vampire.

Where There's Smoke

A compilation of satirical anti-smoking clips.

The Sky Is Blue

A fanciful story, done in paper cut-outs, of a boy's journey through the skies on the tail of a kite. He soars high above the earth, encountering birds, aeroplanes, the stars, a spaceship and other heavenly bodies before floating back to his starting point. An animated film for children. Film without words.

Cosmic Zoom

This short animation transports us from the farthest conceivable point of the universe to the tiniest particle of existence, an atom of a living human cell. The art of animation and animation camera achieve this exhilarating journey with a freshness and clarity. Without words.

Flight

Take flight with this short film about the sport of gliding, and enjoy a captivating journey into near space, where all the beauty of earth and heaven meet at the wide-winged engineless craft poised between them. Filmed over the mountains of the Laurentians and the Canadian Rockies, the film offers breathtaking views and whets the appetite for adventure.

Cityscape: Impressions of a City

In this experimental animated short, Ryan Larkin (Walking) creates a series of figures who move across the screen and disappear into a hole. Eventually, the hole metamorphoses into a bridge, on top of which stands the young man from whom the others figures originated.

Toys

Window shopping children watch as toy soldiers come to life and fight a war with all its unvarnished ferocity and horror.

The Railrodder

After literally swimming across the Atlantic Ocean, an Englishman takes a country trip across Canada on a railcar.

Toronto Jazz

Toronto is regarded as the third largest jazz centre in North America. This film features a cross-section of jazz bands of that city: the Lenny Breau Trio, the Don Thompson Quintet and the Alf Jones Quartet. Their styles show creative self-expression, hard work, and improvisation.

Alexander Galt: The Stubborn Idealist

For Alexander Galt it was the middle of the road, until he saw some hope for his dream of a united Canada. What was he like, this stubborn idealist? How did he measure up to other political strongmen of his time? In this film you sense the personal clashes and the interplay of political ambitions that left their mark on history.

Festival in Puerto Rico

This short documentary features Canadian contralto Maureen Forrester as she sings at the Festival Casals, a musical event founded by the great Spanish cellist and conductor Pablo Casals and sponsored annually by the Puerto Rican government. Part concert film, part tourism film, Festival in Puerto Rico offers viewers candid glimpses of mid-20th century Puerto Rico intercut with performance footage of Forrester and her husband, violinist-conductor Eugene Kash.

Yukon Old, Yukon New

The old spirit of the Yukon returns as Dawson City prepares for its Discovery Day celebrations. Witness a round of nostalgic scenes: a main street parade, refurbished saloons, the can-can. Time recedes as the film explores the hazardous mountain passes and the golden creek of Eldorado.

Angkor - The Lost City

A look at the ruins of the ancient city of Angkor. The largest collection of sculptures the world has ever seen - an entire metropolis of palaces and temples recovered from the jungle.

The Good, Bright Days (1919-1927)

The young nation of Canada comes of age after the worst conflict in human history. In the years that follow the First World War, visits from movie star Rudolf Valentino and the future King Edward VIII grab the headlines, while former prime minister Sir Wilfried Laurier is laid to rest. Political shifts, an economic boom, female emancipation, air travel and risqué dances signal a new era.

The Cars in Your Life

A light, humorous look at the motor car and the great North American itch for a place on the road. From the comparative peace of Honest Joe's used-car lot, this film hustles you onto our public speedways, where hot rubber erases any distance between all points. Slow-motion and pop-on-pop-off photography make this a provocative, revealing study of motormania unlimited. A 1960 black and white production. (Also released under the title 1/3 Down and 24 Months to Pay.)