The Ungrateful Land: Roch Carrier Remembers Ste-Justine
Here is the village of Ste-Justine as one gifted man, novelist and playwright Roch Carrier, remembers it. In this small corner of Québec there is space in the landscape and in the vast spread of forest, but the fringe of rocks around every field speaks of the backbreaking hardship that was the lot of Carrier's father and of his grandfather before him. This is a nostalgic view of rural Québec.
Cynthia Scott
Director
Casts & Crew
Roch Carrier
Narrator
Also Directed by Cynthia Scott
In this Oscar Winning documentary short film, students in their final year at the National Ballet School of Canada are seen learning the flamenco from Susana and Antonio Robledo, who come to the school every winter to conduct classes which are held after the day's regular schedule has ended.
One of a series of short, open-ended dramas designed to stimulate discussion of values and ethics in relation to modern medical technology. This film considers the chronic patient's right to quality care, and the acutely ill patient's right to a hospital bed. Jean is suffering from multiple sclerosis and is almost completely paralyzed. It seems that the only ones who care about her are the nurses. With the arrival of a patient in need of an operation, it becomes apparent that chronic patients have little priority.
A busload of women become stranded in an isolated part of the Canadian countryside. As they await rescue, they reflect on their lives through a mostly ad-libbed script.
This short documentary by Oscar-winner Cynthia Scott (Flamenco at 5:15) profiles 27-year-old Scoggie Watson, a Cape Breton stalwart who clings to the things he cherishes most: the waters of Lake Bras d'Or, his hand-built sailboat, his freedom, and the friends who stayed in Cape Breton instead of leaving for the big cities. Scoggie ruminates on the hearty determination of the island people, a government scheme to develop marine farming, and a mysterious stranger who has remained Scoggie's hero since he was 14 years old. This film is a portrait of island life through the eyes of a local whose love for his home shines through in everything he does.
This short documentary zooms in on Churchill, Manitoba, on the western curve of Hudson Bay. The town boomed for a while after it became the railhead seaport for the shipment of Prairie grain. It also changed the way of life of the Native Indian and Inuit population. "Four levels of government," says one, "and the town's biggest industry is the liquor store." In this film, local inhabitants say what they think of the changes and why they decided to stay when others moved on.
