Cornet at Night

Cornet at Night

A memory of boyhood on a northern Saskatchewan farm.

1963 · 14 min · ★ 7.5 · Drama, Family

Based on a short story by Sinclair Ross, this short film recalls rural life on the Prairies in the 1930s. In the film a farmer's young son, sent to town to hire a man for the harvest, readily accepts when an itinerant trumpet player, down on his luck, begs a chance. He is hardly the kind of man the boy's father had in mind, but that night his trumpet speaks from the shadows and everyone pauses to listen.

Directed by Stanley Jackson · Written by Stanley Jackson

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The Peep Show

The Peep Show · 1962

A cartoon film for young children about the adventures of a little chick from the time he falls from an egg basket and breaks out of his shell. Together with a duck who happens along, he goes to explore the world and discovers there is much to learn, even about his own farmyard.

Summer Is for Kids

Summer Is for Kids · 1949

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The Back-breaking Leaf

The Back-breaking Leaf · 1959

The Back-breaking Leaf

MovieDocumentary

Here is a graphic picture of the tobacco harvest in southwestern Ontario. At the end of July, transient field workers move in for a brief bonanza when the plant is ripe. The tobacco harvesters call it "the back-breaking leaf."

The New Alchemists

The New Alchemists · 1974

The New Alchemists

MovieDocumentary

This short documentary profiles a community engaged in developing sustainable living methods, including food production and small-scale solar and wind technology, on a farm in Massachusetts in the 1970s. Well before sustainability was a mainstream concern, these prescient innovators attempted to create a vision of a greener, kinder world. "Think small," say the New Alchemists. "Look what thinking big has done."

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MovieDocumentary

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The Days of Whisky Gap

The Days of Whisky Gap · 1961

The Days of Whisky Gap

MovieDocumentaryHistory

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The Hutterites

The Hutterites · 1964

MovieDocumentary

A look at the Hutterites, an Anabaptist religious community similar to the Amish or the Mennonites in rural Alberta. The followers of religious leader Jacob Hutter live in farm communities, devoutly holding to the rules their founder laid down four centuries ago. Through the kindness of a Hutterite colony in Alberta, this film, in black and white, was made inside the community and shows all aspects of the Hutterites' daily life.

Glenn Gould: On the Record

Glenn Gould: On the Record · 1959

Glenn Gould: On the Record

MovieDocumentaryMusic

This short documentary (the second of two parts) follows Glenn Gould to New York City. There, we see the renowned Canadian concert pianist kidding the cab driver, bantering with sound engineers at Columbia Records, and then, alone with the piano, fastidiously recording Bach's Italian Concerto.

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MovieDocumentary

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Death of a Legend · 1971

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MovieDocumentary

This documentary film is about wolves and the negative myths surrounding the animal. Exceptional footage portrays the wolf's life cycle and the social organization of the pack, as well as film of caribou, moose, deer and buffalo.

Of Whales, the Moon, and Men

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MovieDocumentary

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One Little Indian · 1954

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The Quest · 1958

This short film is a re-enactment of the critical year in Dr. Frederick Banting's life when he discovered insulin for the treatment of diabetes at the University of Toronto. It depicts the odds against which he and his assistant, Charles Best, worked; the scepticism of other doctors and the final victory that gave thousands of diabetics hope for a healthier life.

Shyness

Shyness · 1953

MovieDocumentary

Abnormal shyness in children, its causes and treatment, is discussed in this film. Profiled are three shy children and the confidence-destroying demands of parents that made them that way. Together, teacher, psychiatrist and parents bring about changes.

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Tourist Go Home · 1959

Tourist Go Home

This short film is a humorous look at the tourist industry in Canada. In tongue-in-cheek fashion, it points out the importance of good public relations in the tourist industry - more specifically, what not to do to tourists. (Sourced from the National Film Board of Canada: https://www.nfb.ca/film/tourist_go_home)

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