Joyce Borenstein

The Colours of My Father: A Portrait of Sam Borenstein is a 1992 short animated documentary directed by Joyce Borenstein about her father, the Canadian painter Sam Borenstein. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. In Canada, it was named best short documentary at the 12th Genie Awards.

This short film brings together animated interpretations of 4 poems by great Canadian wordsmiths: “From the Hazel Bough” by Earle Birney, “Travellers Palm” by P.K. Page, “Death by Streetcar” by Raymond Souster, and “A Said Poem” by John Robert Colombo.

This animated short tells a humourous Hebrew folk tale about a man's venture to introduce onions to a far away kingdom and a disreputable man's attempt to exploit that.

Judith, an artist, moves into a senior's residence, and she feels lonely and alienated. She discovers that she can escape into her painting. Her neighbour, Greg, notices her diving into her landscape and follows after her.

This superbly animated science film traces the evolution of North America from the Earth's geophysical beginnings, through the genesis of the first living organisms, right up to the arrival of humans. Radiant colours and smooth-flowing animation evoke sizzling lava rivers, oceans bursting with life, and freezing ice ages. The film provides an excellent view of the time frame within which these remarkable events took place and highlights the fact that, relatively speaking, we are newcomers to Planet Earth.