David Thompson: The Great Mapmaker

This short film recreates the story of David Thompson – a man who, over the course of his lifetime, mapped a-million-and-a-half square miles of uncharted territory. His achievement remains unsurpassed.

1964-01-01 | en

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.

1962-12-31 | en

Others' Gold

The arrival of the mining company Osisko creates a lot of excitement in Malartic, a small community of 3600 souls in Quebec, Canada. Faced with the implacable Mining Act, which prioritizes the right to exploit subsoil resources rather than the right to property, many families and seniors need to write off certain elements of their heritage plus a part of their lifestyle to make room for the largest open-pit gold mine in Canada. The characters in Others' Gold experience in their own way this major change that will affect their lives and urban environment.

2012-01-20 | fr

Lord Elgin: Voice of the People

This short film tells the story of Lord Elgin, a man’s whose faith in a nation’s right to self-determination was stronger than the threat of the mob or his own fear of failure. Successor to Lord Durham, he established the principles on which Canadian government stands today.

1959-01-01 | en

Kristina från Duvemåla - en konsertresa till Minnesota

Documents the highlights of a concert version of the musical written by former ABBA members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, performed in Minnesota. Based on a series of novels detailing a family's poverty-driven migration from Sweden to America in the mid-19th century, we also meet some of the descendants to the emigrants.

1996-12-25 | en

Dirty Gold War

2015-03-06 | de

We Were Children

For over 130 years till 1996, more than 100,000 of Canada's First Nations children were legally required to attend government-funded schools run by various Christian faiths. There were 80 of these 'residential schools' across the country. Most children were sent to faraway schools that separated them from their families and traditional land. These children endured brutality, physical hardship, mental degradation, and the complete erasure of their culture. The schools were part of a wider program of assimilation designed to integrate the native population into 'Canadian society.' These schools were established with the express purpose 'To kill the Indian in the child.' Told through their own voices, 'We Were Children' is the shocking true story of two such children: Glen Anaquod and Lyna Hart.

2012-03-03 | en

Aguirre, the Wrath of God

A few decades after the destruction of the Inca Empire, a Spanish expedition led by the infamous Aguirre leaves the mountains of Peru and goes down the Amazon River in search of the lost city of El Dorado. When great difficulties arise, Aguirre’s men start to wonder whether their quest will lead them to prosperity or certain death.

1972-12-29 | de

The Last Drop

Different factions in WWII-era Holland race to find a stash of Nazi gold.

2006-04-13 | en

River of Gold

Narrated by Academy Award winners Sissy Spacek and Herbie Hancock, River of Gold is the disturbing account of a clandestine journey into Peru's Amazon rainforest to uncover the savage unraveling of pristine jungle. What will be the fate of this critical region of priceless biodiversity as these extraordinarily beautiful forests are turned into a hellish wasteland?

2016-03-26 | en

Threads That Tie Us: An Oshwal Odyssey

The Halari Oshwals are a small community dispersed around the world yet held together by a history of sacrifices. But times have changed. This globalization has led to many problems within the community, and their numbers are dwindling. An Oshwal woman from Canada worries about the preservation and survival of her heritage in the hands of generations to come. She sets out on a pilgrimage to visit Oshwal communities in Kenya, where she was born; the UK, where she lived for a while; and India, where her parents originated. She discovers a shared concern for the future of the community and its traditions in the face of globalization and geographical disconnect, and explores what this means for the younger generation and their Oshwal identity.

2024-07-07 | en

Ikwe

A young Ojibwa girl from 1770 marries a Scottish fur trader and leaves home for the shores of Georgian Bay. Although the union is beneficial for her tribe, it results in hardship and isolation for Ikwe. Values and customs clash until, finally, the events of a dream Ikwe once had unfold with tragic clarity.

1986-01-01 | en

Golden Blood: The Frontiers of Greed

Two best friends, Clint and Lenny, set out to pan for gold during the California Gold Rush. They have a stroke of luck and find a significant amount of gold in their pans. As they continue to pan, Clint becomes increasingly fixated on finding more and more gold, to the point where he becomes ruthless and starts to turn on Lenny. Lenny tries to remind Clint of the importance of their friendship and the values they once held, but Clint's greed continues to consume him. Eventually, their friendship is put to the test as Clint's behavior becomes increasingly dangerous and erratic. Will the gold be the end of their friendship, or will Lenny be able to save his friend from the destructive power of greed?

2023-02-04 | en

Killing the Indian in the Child

The Indian Act, passed in Canada in 1876, made members of Aboriginal peoples second-class citizens, separated from the white population: nomadic for centuries, they were moved to reservations to control their behavior and resources; and thousands of their youngest members were separated from their families to be Christianized: a cultural genocide that still resonates in Canadian society today.

2021-02-18 | fr

Potlatch...a strict law bids us dance

Presents the history of the conflict between the Canadian government and the Kwakiutl Indians of the Northwest Pacific over the ritual of the Potlatch. Archival photographs and films, wax roll sound recordings, police reports, the original potlatch files, and correspondence of agents form the basis of the reconstruction of period events, while the film centres on a Potlatch given today by the Cranmer family of Alert Bay.

1975-01-01 | en

Bethune: The Making of a Hero

True story of Norman Bethune, a medical doctor who fought for justice in China during Mao's rise to power.

1993-09-17 | en

The Stand

On a misty morning in the fall of 1985, a small group of Haida people blockaded a muddy dirt road on Lyell Island, demanding the government work with Indigenous people to find a way to protect the land and the future. In a riveting new feature documentary drawn from more than a hundred hours of archival footage and audio, award-winning director Christopher Auchter (Now Is the Time) recreates the critical moment when the Haida Nation’s resolute act of vision and conscience changed the world.

2024-10-03 | en

California's Golden Beginning

A description and enactment of the discovery of gold by James Marshall, and the role played by John Sutter. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.

1948-01-01 | en

Ludwig / Walkenhorst - Der Weg zu Gold

Laura Ludwig's and Kira Walkenhorst's journey to the 2016 Rio Olympics. Despite setbacks in their preparation the team keeps pushing themselves to reach their ultimate goal - the Beach Volleyball Goldmedal.

2016-12-01 | de

My Song Goes Forth

Featuring Paul Robeson, this is the first documentary film to take a serious look at social conditions and race relations in South Africa.

1937-01-01 | en