All wars produce heroes but rarely in a global conflict do the actions of one man affect the direction and possibly even the result of the whole war. In Leonard Birchall’s case that is precisely what happened. The young Canadian Squadron Leader from St. Catherines, Ontario, on patrol in the Indian Ocean in April, 1943, spotted a Japanese fleet on its way to attack the British base at Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. Birchall, knowing he would be shot down, radioed a description of the makeup of the task force back to base. He was plucked out of the ocean by the Japanese, and endured three and a half years of captivity serving as Senior Allied Officer in four Japanese prison camps. Leonard Birchall kept a detailed record of that experience in diaries which he buried – these were dug up after the war and formed the basis for a number of successful war crime trials. Winston Churchill, even before he knew Leonard Birchall’s name, or that he had survived, called him “The Saviour of Ceylon.”
Countries: CA
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Transgender Parents
TRANSGENDER PARENTS is about love, life and kids after a gender transition. It shares the struggles and strengths of several trans women and trans men navigating different stages of parenting: from pregnancy, through raising infants, toddlers and teenagers. Some, who transitioned prior to founding their families, experience fertility clinics and hospital births; others, who transitioned in the presence of their kids work to renegotiate their identity and relationships within their families. All are openly out in the world as trans and as parents in ways that weren’t possible 20 years ago.
Syrus and Nik, both in their 30s, live in downtown Toronto. We follow their story from Syrus’s pregnancy to the 2nd birthday of young Amélie as they make their way in the world as black gay trans men with a blond blue-eyed daughter.
Aiyyana is a Haudenosaunee grandmother who was born male and has journeyed through genders and considers herself a transformed woman. An accomplished writer and award-winning theatre artist, Aiyyana is building a home on her childhood reserve along with one of her adult children.
Originally, from Alberta, Jenna is a 30-year-old trans-mother-to-be who runs an organic farm with her partner near Montreal. We earn about her path to motherhood, and witness the hours following the arrival of her baby.
Stefonknee is a trans woman of 45 who came out when her 7 children were almost all teenagers. The process of finding herself and going public has been too much for most of her family to bear. She has moved to Toronto from rural Ontario where she is a speaker and activist. We follow her on a visit to her hometown as she tries to heal broken connections.
Hershel, a Jewish trans man in his late 60s, is a psychotherapist whose son was 19 years old when he transitioned. We witness their loving and at times difficult relationship as both speak candidly about their experiences as parent and child over the last fifteen years.
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The Trouble with Dying
After being diagnosed with late stage ovarian cancer, Cindy Cowan wants the right to choose how she is going to die. Linda Jarrett has suffered from multiple sclerosis for over 15 years. She is investigating the options for ending her life, before her degenerative disease makes it impossible for her to act on her own. Currently, medically assisted dying is illegal in Canada. And while some advocates, such as Dr. Richard MacDonald believe offering terminal patients help in ending their lives is the compassionate thing to do, opponents such as Professor Margaret Sommerville believe the medical system must uphold respect for all human life. The issues surrounding the right-to-die debate are further coming to a head since Quebec introduced legislation in 2013 that would allow for medically assisted dying in some cases. Cindy and Linda examine the options available to them, confronting their own mortality in the process.
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Mummers & Masks
A one-hour documentary Christmas special that revels in all the fun and music to be found with the ancient Mumming tradition. Set primarily in Ireland, Pennsylvania, and the Canadian Maritimes, the story of Mummers is the story of masks and customs that pre-date Christianity and carol singing.
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Escape from Iran: The Canadian Caper
Starring Gordon Pinsent, R.H. Thompson & Jonathan Welsh. The dramatic and exciting movie re-creation of the take-over of the US Embassy in Teheran by Islamic students that started the 444 Day Iran hostage crisis. This exciting movie also reveals the story of how 6 Americans escaped from the embassy, were hidden by Canadian diplomats, given false Canadian passports and then flown to freedom.
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Escape from Iran: The Inside Story
Documentary featuring the six hostages who escaped from US embassy compound in Iran in 1979 at the start of the 444 day hostage crisis and were sheltered and ex-filtrated by Canadian staff such as charge d’affaires Ken Taylor and the Sheardowns. Includes interview with Flora Macdonald re the false Canadian passports issued by Canadian Govt.
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444 Days to Freedom: The Inside Story
This documentary, winner of three Canadian Gemini Awards and narrated by William Shatner, offers an in-depth portrait of the events encompassed by the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979 to 1981, when 52 Americans were held by fundamentalist Iranian students deeply disturbed by the course of American policy in their native land. Attention is given to the American reaction to the crisis, both inside and outside of the country. The focus here is on the conduct of the hostages themselves and how they managed to survive within such a volatile situation. Also included is some discussion on the implications of the crisis on American foreign policy.
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Cyberbully
When 17-year-old Taylor receives a laptop for her birthday, she immediately signs up to a social networking site used by the students at her high school – only to become the victim of vicious online harassment and bullying that sap her self-esteem and drive her to the brink of suicide.
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Cyberintimidation
Lorsque Taylor reçoit un laptop pour son anniversaire de 17 ans, elle s’inscrit immédiatement sur un site de réseautage utilisé par les étudiants de son école. Elle devient três vite victime d’harcêlement en ligne qui tue son estime de soi et la pousse à vouloir se suicider.
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Liquid Gold
Although it was the gold rush that once lured people to these regions, today it is liquid gold, the gems of fortified wines.