Stories Sarah Tells

A French artist struggling to put the finishing touches on his masterpiece finds his concentration repeatedly broken by the unusual sounds emanating from his neighbor's apartment in this black comedy from Ann Marie Fleming. Immediately discharged from the hospital following her hastily executed brain surgery, Elizabeth Murray wanders the streets in a curious haze, her personality visibly affected by the botched cerebral procedure. Upon spotting the man of her dreams wandering along the beach in a similarly confused manner, Elizabeth lovingly brings the disoriented man back to her apartment in hopes of nursing him back to health. Following an allergic reaction to her environment that forces Elizabeth to wrap her entire apartment in plastic, a bloody mishap with her new beau quickly spirals into a murderous, and quite noisy, rampage of good intentions gone horribly awry.

Some of life's little obstacles that get in the way of a girl and what she really wants: to do her work.

A young Canadian poet with Chinese and Persian parents travels to Iran to perform at a poetry festival.

Long Tack Sam was an internationally renowned Chinese acrobat and magician. He overcame isolation, poverty, cultural and linguistic barriers, extreme racism and world wars to become one of the most successful vaudeville acts of his time. His showmanship was unrivalled, yet he refused to appear in movies because of the way Chinese were portrayed at the time. A celebration of the spirit of Long Tack Sam's magic and art, this richly textured first person road movie is an exhilarating testament to his legacy and a prismatic tour through the 20th Century. It all begins in a small village in China... https://www.nfb.ca/film/the_magical_life_of_long_tack_sam/

Pregnant and newly single, Julia faces a looming catastrophe when she loses her job. An unlikely lifeline arrives in the form of her new friend Alana, who says she knows people who would pay top dollar for positive pregnancy tests. Inspired by true events.

This short probes the taboos around a very particular second-hand trauma, leading us to a more universal understanding of human experience.

In the animated short My Obscure Object of Desire, the heart will go to any lengths to become the object of its love's desire. So it woos, coos and even "awoos." But in the end not even the heart can always get what it wants.

In the not-too-distant future, we have solved all the world’s problems, mitigated climate change, eradicated poverty, and achieved true trans-species equality. There’s just one catch… humans have to end life at 50, and teenage artists have to document it. It’s Kiah’s first day on the job.

In pursuit of a better future, a young girl decides to emigrate. She leaves her homeland behind along with her belongings and her loved ones. In the new country she realizes the depth of her venture and discovers that the only thing she carries with her from her homeland, is a symbol of love.

Old Dog shows how elderly dogs' lives are improved by technology - from diapers for amputees to doggie strollers - through animated vignettes. The soundtrack consists of an older man describing his dog's ailments and what he does to care for them. Clearly, he could be talking about himself.

A group of Syrian women, refugees recently resettled in Canada, are negotiating life in their new home. They have some questions.

In this joyful portrait, filmmaker Ann Marie Fleming animates the formative days and musical career of Calgary-born identical twins Tegan and Sara Quin. Their remarkable journey over the past 20 years has often intersected with notions of identity—as artists, as individuals, as sisters, as queer women, and as leading activists in the LGBTQ community. Their musical progression parallels and amplifies their commitment to bringing the marginal to the mainstream.

A young woman dreams about her ideal future.

This short semi-animated film tells the story of a woman's spectacular ocean view from her apartment in Vancouver’s West End. How far will she go when leaves start to obscure her panorama, her light and her happiness? A brilliant blend of stop-motion, projections and models, drawings and altered live-action transports us into a meditation on the tension between urban life and the natural environment. Like Don Giovanni, will our ambitious protagonist stop at nothing to get her way?