Canadian Culture Through Film – 02 – The Canadian Context

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For our second week of this 15 class course on Canadian Cinema, we ask what is Canadian Cinema, and what makes it different from its neighbour to the south? For one, Canadian culture is subsidized by the government in order to protect itself from the globalized and overbearing American culture. Secondly, Canada has many faces and cultures, each represented in Canadian Cinema. From indigenous voices, to anglo, franco, and immigrant ones, we will explore each of these Canadian cultures (in that order) through the films they produced.

In the United States, you’ve got „Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” In France, there’s „liberté, égalité, fraternité.” In Canada, we talk about „Peace, order and good government.” Indeed, the way we run things up here is a little different than our American neighbours to the south. In Canada, government is largely trusted and relied upon, not treated with as much suspicion. We’re not as opposed to regulation, and almost everyone is happy with our socialized medical system, for whatever its problems. We also don’t have a Presidential system of government. On the federal level, we vote for members of parliament, and whichever party dominates a majority—or sometimes largest minority—of seats runs the show. This makes for a different approach to politics, one that is often more cooperation and coalition-based—though not always. Oh, and we still answer to the Queen of England!

This week I will begin the class by discussing the ideas of Canadian philosopher and media academic, Marshall McLuhan.

From Wikipedia:

Herbert Marshall McLuhan (July 21, 1911 – December 31, 1980) was a Canadian philosopher, whose work is among the cornerstones of the study of media theory. Born in Edmonton, Alberta, and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, McLuhan studied at the University of Manitoba and the University of Cambridge. He began his teaching career as a professor of English at several universities in the US and Canada before moving to the University of Toronto in 1946, where he remained for the rest of his life.

McLuhan coined the expression „the medium is the message” and the term global village, and predicted the World Wide Web almost 30 years before it was invented. He was a fixture in media discourse in the late 1960s, though his influence began to wane in the early 1970s. In the years following his death, he continued to be a controversial figure in academic circles. However, with the arrival of the Internet and the World Wide Web, interest was renewed in his work and perspective.

Then, I will introduce you to the films of François Girard, a filmmaker that I find best expresses a truly Canadian perspective on the world. For one, his films all feel quite international, starring actors from the world over. Also, the stories he tells are Canadian in nature, relating to historical events or characters that only Canadians recognize, like pianist Glenn Gould for example.

I’m Jason Rodi, live from NOMAD creative studio on NOMADlife.tv. By the train tracks of the Montreal Mile End, our building serves as a coworking production studio where we make webcasts, videos, events, and art. Our motto: ALL WE HAVE IS NOW.