NFB makes films free online
The National Film Board of Canada has launched a new project to allow Canadians to see its films through online streaming.
Oscar winners such as 1952's Neighbours, 1977's I'll Find a Way and 2004's Ryan are among the more than 700 films now available for screening online at NFB.ca.
The online screening room was created as part of a $1.3-million project to digitize the NFB's collection of historic films.
"This is part of our ongoing response to the digital revolution," NFB chair Tom Perlmutter said in an online news conference on Wednesday.
The NFB, which restructured its film programs over the past 18 months to free up resources for the digital project, plans to put 10 new films a month online.
Classics such as Mon Oncle Antoine and Nobody Waved Goodbye are free for online screening, along with pioneering animation by Norman McLaren and animated films such as The Big Snit and The Cat Came Back.
A group of filmmakers and curators chose the first films to be made available from among the 15,000 productions made by the NFB, said Deborah Drisdell, director of strategic planning.
I was looking forward to seeing my favourite NFB film, The Ballad of Crowfoot, on the site when I heard this news. I tried once and there was nothing but a RealPlayer clip.
I tried a couple of minutes later and here it is!
Very cool! That's excellent news for someone like myself who doesn't have cable :)
Mon Oncle Antoine! Amazing!