NFB - About the NFB

Canada’s public film producer and distributor, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) provides the country and world with a unique perspective.

For over 65 years, we’ve been breaking ground in socially engaged documentary, auteur animation, alternative drama and more.

Along the way, we’ve crafted over 12,000 productions and received more than 5000 awards, including 12 Oscars® and more than 90 Genies.

Today, we’re at the crossroads of innovation in the 21st century, bringing the NFB’s tradition of trailblazing to the multi-platform digital universe.

ALWAYS ORIGINAL, ALWAYS CHANGING

The NFB has championed originality and excellence in filmmaking for over 65 years. We’ve played a key role in virtually every major advancement in documentary filmmaking and led the way in auteur animation.

Today, NFB animation remains an Oscar® favourite, including Torill Kove’s The Danish Poet, co-produced with Norway’s Mikrofilm AS, and Chris Landreth’s Ryan, co-produced with Copper Heart Entertainment.

On the documentary side, Jennifer Baichwal’s multi-award-winning Manufactured Landscapes (NFB/Foundry Films/Mercury Films) and Gary Burns and Jim Brown’s innovative Radiant City (NFB/Burns Film) are among those productions that are breaking new ground.

We were there at the start of the cinéma vérité revolution, at the birth of giant-screen IMAX format as well as computer animation. Now, we’re working to redefine filmmaking in the cross-platform universe – while continuing to give our creators the resources and support to fully develop their visions.

EXPLORING VITAL SOCIAL ISSUES

At the NFB, we use cinema to explore vital social issues.

Our productions take stands on issues of global importance: the environment, human rights, international conflict, health care, and more. They give a voice to the underrepresented. They celebrate diversity and build bridges between cultures, while advancing the role of women in cinema.

They make a positive difference in people’s lives.

The NFB is a leader in developing and distributing timely, quality educational media. We’re an important partner in the development of minority language communities across Canada. We work with persons with disabilities to give them the skills they need to tell their own stories. And we’re a world leader in creating award-winning media for and by Aboriginal peoples.

A LABORATORY FOR NEW FILMMAKING

When documentary pioneer John Grierson founded the NFB, Canada did not yet have a cinema industry to call its own – so Grierson and his team set out to train one. Today, as Canada’s filmmakers rank among the world’s best, the NFB continues to nurture emerging directors.

We do that through a wide range of special programs for new talent, many from culturally diverse and Aboriginal communities, developing original and distinctive voices across the country. We champion auteur animation, distinct documentaries and innovative forays into hybrid forms and alternative drama.

Even a first-time film can make a big-time impact. For proof, look no further than Hubert Davis’s Hardwood, co-produced by the NFB and Hardwood Pictures – his directorial debut and an Academy Award® nominee.

Today, approximately one-half of all NFB productions and co-productions are by emerging filmmakers. That’s a track record we’re proud of and committed to continuing

EMBRACING THE DIGITAL CHALLENGE

The digital revolution is here and the NFB is taking a leadership role. We’re working to define a new language for cross-platform and interactive media. Creating new ways of telling stories – along with new programs, production and distribution models, and modes of creation.

We’ve led the way in bringing the high-definition experience to signature documentary features and series. We’re creating innovative, stereoscopic animation with SANDDE^TM, a revolutionary digital hand-drawing technology from Imax Corporation. And we’re working to bring e-cinema to Canadian communities.

All the while, we remain true to our commitment to social relevance and artistic innovation – and to making sure they have a place in the digital future

CONNECTING WITH COMMUNITIES

The NFB connects with communities at grassroots level like no other filmmaking organization.

In the 1960s and 1970s, we led the way with Challenge for Change, a pioneering community engagement program. Today, there’s a new wave of trailblazing projects including our acclaimed Filmmaker-in-Residence program.

In the heart of Canada’s two largest cities, public access centres provide Canadians with an interactive hands-on cinema experience, while across the Web, we’re creating virtual online communities and platforms for social engagement and media creation.

The NFB also brings Canada’s film excellence to the global community, through international co-productions, partnerships with major festivals and markets, and a series of groundbreaking cooperation agreements with governments and organizations worldwide.

PRESERVING OUR COLLECTIVE MEMORY

With more than 12,000 productions, the NFB collection represents a major cultural treasure for Canada – one we’re committed to preserving and sharing with all Canadians.

At the NFB’s digital vaults, we are adapting new digital technologies to preserve this priceless audiovisual legacy for generations to come.

We’re also using our expertise to make more of these classic works available to all: with DVD box sets featuring the works of NFB master filmmakers, including the landmark collection Norman McLaren – The Master’s Edition; new collections-based digital productions; a growing collection of free digitized films on the NFB Web site – and more.

We’re also harnessing the commercial potential of NFB archives as never before, through our online Stockshots library as well as alliances with top international archives.