Documentary

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Films

How Newfoundland hospitality inspired the Tony-Award winning musical “Come From Away” (Newfoundland).

Season 18 | The Gander Ripple Effect

Absolutely Canadian

New from CBC Arts, we profile ten Canadian artists from different cultural backgrounds, exploring their identity through dance, music, poetry, visual and performance art, and how they are redefining and reshaping Canadian art.

Documentary | 1 season

Art is my Country

Every new Canadian has a story. “Becoming Canadian” travels to citizenship ceremonies right across the country to capture some of those stories.

Becoming Canadian

When Calgarian Robert Cohen moved to L.A. to pursue his dreams of becoming a comedy writer, he quickly realized that BEING CANADIAN meant his new friends and colleagues knew nothing but the usual stereotypes about his beloved homeland. After years of frustration, Robert decided to embark on a genuine and hilarious personal quest, traveling from one end of Canada to the other, to prove his country is more than just maple syrup and Mounties. Imagine "Sherman's March", but wearing a toque.

Docu-drama | 90 min

Being Canadian

The time has come for our drag performers to sashay into the spotlight. This nine-part docu-series from CBC Arts showcases the true North strong and fabulous.

Documentary | 3 seasons

Canada's A Drag

A look at the changing face of Canadian farms from the perspective of local farmers, Chinese immigrants, and investors.

Season 2 | My Farmland

CBC Docs POV

Fatma and her son Majed fled Syria for the safety of Toronto, but their troubles are far from over.  Hockey Mom looks at what happens after "year one" ends.

Season 3 | Hockey Mom

A look at the private Margaret Atwood. Meet the woman behind the stories.

Season 3 | Margaret Atwood: Encounters

Cazhhmere is a proud Canadian. Her ancestors were among the first black settlers to come to Canada in the 1600s - her family has spent hundreds of years weaving itself into the fabric of our nation. Despite this deep history, Cazhhmere is constantly questioned about where she is originally from. Cazhhmere sets out to change your perception of what a multi-generational Canadian family looks like. She delves into the story of the Downey/Collins family, which includes fighting in WWI and WWII, standing on an Olympic podium, appearing on the silver screen, and breaking through barriers in Canadian politics. Through interviews with her family members, she shares her family’s rich history and shows an overall sense of unity that is seldom seen in black families in today's media landscape. In a country that is widely known for being a "global melting pot," our nation can easily forget that not every person of color is a newcomer to Canada.

Documentary | 23 min

Deeply Rooted

From The Vaults is an all-access music journey into a Canadian treasure that few have ever seen: The CBC Archives. Hosted by Amanda Parris and Tom Power, this series features performances and candid interviews with the biggest names in music over the past 60 years, including Sammy Davis Jr., The Who, Leonard Cohen, Shania Twain, and many more. From The Vaults shines a bright light on a remarkable musical story - our own.

Interview and talk-show | 1 season

From The Vaults

Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind is an exploration of the career, music, and influence of legendary Canadian musical icon Gordon Lightfoot.

Documentary | 88 min

Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind

"If we lose the language, we will no longer be Haida – Haida is the only thing that distinguishes us from other people." - Delores Churchill. Retake follows the journey of co-directors Gwaai Edenshaw (Haida) and Helen Haig-Brown (Tsilhqot'in) as they work to produce Edge of the Knife, a feature-length film told entirely in the critically-endangered Haida language. The film tells the story of a traditional Haida legend, showcasing the Haida culture in many ways that have never been seen by a broad audience. In this short documentary, you’ll meet the cast and crew of the film as they live, work and learn alongside Haida elders and speakers. Today, there are only 24 fluent Haida speakers left; many of the actors had to learn the language to learn their lines. See the celebration - and the struggle - as Gwaai, Helen and a 56-person cast and crew seek to make a movie in the historic Haida village site of Yan. The islands of Haida Gwaii, off British Columbia’s west coast, have been home to the Haida people for thousands of years - the land, sea and forest sustain them. In 1862, a smallpox epidemic in BC devastated many communities and the effects of the illness still echo today. Yan itself suffered a 90 percent loss of its population. Survivors resettled in the nearby community of Masset where they were met with racist and genocidal government policies, seeking to assimilate the Haida people and erase their culture and language. The Haida people resisted; holding on to their way of life in secret, speaking their language quietly and behind closed doors. In 2017, over 150 years later, Gwaai and Helen chose Yan for this ambitious film project; one that would help preserve and revitalize the Haida language. Retake offers an intimate behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Edge of the Knife, including the challenges of working in a remote, formidable location and in a critically-endangered Indigenous language. For the cast and crew, the project was an opportunity to learn or reconnect with the language that lives deep within themselves and Haida Gwaii. Directed by Kristi Lane Sinclair (Haida/Cree), this stunning film captures the difficulties and the joys of filmmaking and ultimately, the land and the language that make the Haida people who they are.

Documentary | 24 min

Retake

STILL STANDING follows Canadian comedian Jonny Harris as he sets off across the country, to discover the hidden comedy in Canada’s small towns.

Stand-up | 9 seasons

Still Standing

The beautifully normal absurd story of a man who did everything right, perhaps not quite at the right time. Fine arts student, immigrant, husband, father of two, and owner of his own condom business.

The Condom King of Newfoundland

In Ethiopia, it is often said that “an artist in exile is like a fish out of water.” Despite this belief, a growing number of Ethiopian artists, musicians, writers, actors and journalists are fleeing the violence and repression that is spreading in Ethiopia. Many have landed in Toronto, thanks to Canada’s refugee policy. Safe from physical persecution, they must begin the emotional and spiritual struggle that comes from being cut off not only from the community and people they love the most, but also from elements of life that gave them purpose. Famous at home, they have become nobodies in exile. In Tizita, three Ethiopian musicians reflect on what they have left behind, how they made it to Canada and how they are trying to rebuild their identities — to become new fish in new water. The film follows the musicians as they gather to play music drawn from the unique Ethiopian traditional pentatonic musical scale. The scale contains different combinations that are tied to specific themes — “tizita” is associated with songs and stories built around memories. The film is directed by Gezahegn M. Demissie, an Ethiopian documentary filmmaker who is also a refugee in Canada, trying to reinvent himself.

Documentary | 19 min

Tizita

We Are Canada celebrates the future of Canada by profiling the next generation of change-makers, who are shaping the future of those around them.

We Are Canada

Jonathan Torrens hosts a night of comedy about life in Canada, with comics Leonard Chan, Howie Miller, Amanda Brooke Perrin, Jess Salomon, Jacob Samuel, and Big Daddy Tazz.

Season 17 | Eh Material

Winnipeg Comedy Festival

From films to series to documentaries, watch stories that reflect our diverse nation.

Watch popular shows like Schitt's Creek, Luther, Kim's Convenience, plus Films and Live TV on any device

Filters and sorts

All "This is Canada" content

Absolutely Canadian

Art is my Country

Becoming Canadian

Being Canadian

Canada's A Drag

CBC Docs POV

CBC Docs POV

CBC Docs POV

Deeply Rooted

From The Vaults

Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind

Retake

Still Standing

The Condom King of Newfoundland

Tizita

We Are Canada

Winnipeg Comedy Festival