Coming Soon: National Canadian Film Day
by Staff
(April 3, 2019 – Toronto, ON) Reel Canada, the people behind Film Day, are calling it “The World’s Largest Annual Film Festival” and it is in many ways. First of all, mark the date. This year National Canadian Film Day falls on April 17. The theme this year, Celebrating of 100 Years of Canadian Cinema, was inspired by the centennial of Canada’s first genuine blockbuster, and oldest surviving feature film: Back to God’s Country, starring Nell Shipman. The film is a sassy, snowy adventure story. Reel Canada also says that it remains Canada’s most successful silent film, which is a bit of a weird claim in that there haven’t been a lot of silent films released since the introduction of talkies in the late 1920s.
Nonetheless it is worth waving the flag and this year the flag gets waved in a lot of places. There will be more than 1,000 screening events in 600 Canadian communities and 25 countries, from the northern tip of Baffin Island to St. John’s, NL, to Tofino, BC, and from Paris to Kathmandu. The executive team and staff of Reel Canada have curated a special selection of Canadian films they’re calling the “Spotlight 100.”
“There is no question that Canada produces outstanding, internationally recognized work that reflects our distinct cultural identity,” said Sharon Corder, Artistic Director, Reel Canada. “We really had a lot of fun this year — as a team, looking back over the past 100 years of Canadian cinema to develop our Spotlight 100 list of films.”
Major broadcasters and online outlets are programming a wide variety of titles supporting the celebratory theme to ensure that everyone who wants to participate in NCFD has access to a great Canadian film. Many screenings will feature discussions with special guests such as Colm Feore, Atom Egoyan, Alanis Obomsawin, Denys Arcand, Johanne Marie Tremblay, Don Shebib, Liane Balaban, Lisa Langlois, Deborah Grover and Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs. Other notable participants include: Deborah Ellis, Peter Keleghan, Mary Young Leckie, Charles Officer, Mina Shum, Veronica Tennant and Bobby Shore, among many others.
There is much more information online at the Canada Day website.
