Between 1966 and his death in 2003 R.D. Lawrence wrote 30 books, published in 16 languages and 32 countries...
But you've probably never heard of him.
Canada's Best Kept Secret combines original, never before seen interviews and archival footage to tell the story of the prolific Canadian who provided a voice for those without one.
Perhaps best known for his work with wolves, R.D., along with his wife Sharon cared for and rescued over 2,000 animals on their acreage in the northern highlands of Ontario. His impact on the green movement of the 20th century was immeasurable; his work heavily influenced the awareness of conservation and the importance of respecting our wild kin. However, because of his curmudgeon attitude, his work, despite reaching tens of thousands the world over, is mired in obscurity -- especially when compared to his more outward contemporaries.
Canadaʼs Best Kept Secret celebrates the life and work of this forgotten Canadian who fought against the current before it was fashionable. He wrote about wolves. Before it was cool.
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Interwoven stories about love and its reflection in hope, pain, anxiety, excitement, ambiguity, defeat. Love narrated in a time of crisis, a time of anxiety, excitement, violence, pain, hope. A film made with shots stolen from reality, in a documentary style.
For two years, we have been filming the street demonstrations, and incorporating our actors in this social landscape. The result is a film in which the collective and the intimate, come together. Both the characters and the people in the street, like identical crustaceans, take to the street to express their shame and rage for what is happening and to find a solution.
They ultimately externalize these inner feelings that are hidden under their shells.
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Bairrada, a small town in the heart of Portugal, where life goes slowly and there are increasingly more empty houses, received a special visit:
An international group of musicians led by Magda Mendes, traveled from Rotterdam to Bairrada searching for the perfect musical alchemy. Magda wanted to merge her experiences outside Portugal with the latent magic of her homeland, where she first met the singing.
In the midst of a financial crisis director Adolfo Estrada was able to capture stories in the calm of a beautiful but disappearing rural community. Stories about the past, about music and dance, emigration and relationships in a community that has always been rich without money.
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A writer, a female cop, and a former air force pilot experience major disruptions in their lives forcing them to redefine their understanding of the world. Each has to grapple wih fear and trauma and undergo massive inner transformations in which their lives are forever changed. The visual presentation is enhanced by the director's own colour palette. As a painter, he applies muted colours and hues to the film's emulsion with startling results.
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Her first documentary, "Youku", is an example of Ms. Hongyu's intellectual and spiritual depth. She uses an oral history approach to tell a simple but profound story about 85 year old Yang Bailiang's life history. Ms. Hongyu's documentary beautifully sculptures Yang Bailiang visually whose hands and face are remarkable, while revealing the potter's simple peasant life, a constant struggle to survive using pottery making skills to barter for food, learned from her great, great, great grandmother; a heritage dating back to the Neolithic age, 6000 years ago, among the Li Minority of Hainan Island.
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