Explore what's available for free on NFB.ca in August! Our selection of original works from NFB studios across the country includes the world premiere presentation of Bubble, an interactive story for mobile devices created by the 2019 cohort of Jeunes pousses, the NFB x UQAM interactive school, the feature-length documentary Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger by Alanis Obomsawin, and the animated short Balakrishna by Colin MacKenzie and Aparna Kapur. And coming later in the month is the official launch of The Curve, a collection of projects exploring life during the pandemic. These compelling and topical new offerings join the extensive catalogue of more than 4,000 titles already available at NFB.ca, not to mention our collection of some 100 interactive works, almost all of which can be viewed online at no charge.
Starting August 12
Balakrishna by Colin MacKenzie and Aparna Kapur (2019, Quebec and Atlantic Studio)
Animated short (15 min)
Press kit (synopsis, biographies, images and credits): mediaspace.nfb.ca/balakrishna
When an extraordinary new resident-Balakrishna, an Indian elephant-arrived in the town of East River, Nova Scotia, in 1967, no one was more in awe of the creature than young Winton Cook, who became inseparable from his mammoth new friend. Using painterly animation, photographs and home-movie treasures, Balakrishna transmits the wistfulness of childhood memories, while evoking themes of friendship and loss, and issues of immigration and elephant conservation.
Starting August 29 - WORLD premiEre
Bubble by Jeunes pousses 2019: NFB x UQAM interactive school (2020, Montreal Interactive Studio)
Interactive story for mobile devices (5 min)
Press kit (synopsis, biographies, images and credits): mediaspace.nfb.ca/bubble
Bubble takes us to Montreal in 2050, in a world where no action has been taken to curb climate change. The solution humans have found to survive the hostile environmental conditions: put their heads in a bubble. At a time when our actions have an impact on the future of humanity, each person is now responsible for their own fate.
Starting August 31
Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger by Alanis Obomsawin (2019, Quebec and Atlantic Studio)
Feature-length documentary (66 min)
Press kit (synopsis, biographies, images and credits): mediaspace.nfb.ca/jordan
In her latest film, celebrated Abenaki director Alanis Obomsawin tells the story of Jordan River Anderson, and how as a result of his short life, thousands of First Nations and Inuit children today receive the same standard of social, health and education services as the rest of the Canadian population.
Official launch of The Curve, August 24
In communities from west to east and far into the North, 40 Canadian creators give voice to those touched by the pandemic. The Curve will explore and share the everyday ups and downs of ordinary Canadians navigating the COVID-19 era, expressed in animation, documentary and digital storytelling formats. The diverse works making up this initiative will be made available at various times in the months to come.
Following 60 Day Cycle and Parenthèse, which are already online, a third project created in the immediate wake of the outbreak will be made available shortly, ahead of the official launch of The Curve.
- To come in August: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow by Laura Cortes, Alexandra Hook, Mel Eshaghbeigi and Jam3 (2020, Vancouver Digital Studio and Jam3)
Interactive work
- COVID has unleashed a tidal wave of online citizen expression, giving voice to fear and loneliness-but also solidarity and joy. A female-led team of web artists playfully appropriates artificial intelligence and IBM technology to measure our collective well-being, eliciting user participation in a data-visualization project that assesses our shifting emotional responses to the crisis.
