''Borealis'' is a 2008 documentary film by
Frank Wolf that follows two friends on a 3,100 km canoe adventure through the northern
Boreal forest
Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces ...
of Manitoba and Ontario. The film looks at the industrial threats to the pristine, vast wilderness north of the 51st parallel from the perspective of those who live in the region. The film is notable for its quirky and humorous tone in spite of the subject matter. It won the Grand Prize as well as Prize for Best Canadian Film at the 2009 Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival
and was one of the Top Ten Most Popular Canadian Films at the 2008
Vancouver International Film Festival
The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October.
The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Fest ...
. It aired multiple times on CBC's
documentary in Canada in 2009–10.
About the Filmmaker
Frank Wolf (born in 1970) is a Canadian filmmaker, adventurer, writer and environmentalist. Wolf's creative works specialize in adventure and environmental documentary film. His handful of films include Wild Ones,
The Hand of Franklin
''The Hand of Franklin'' is a 2015 Canadian documentary film by Frank Wolf that follows a four-person team attempting to row the Northwest Passage in order to shed light on climate change in the Arctic. The film won the award for 'Best Documentar ...
,
Kitturiaq
''Kitturiaq'' is a 2013 Canadian documentary film by Frank Wolf that follows two friends on a remote 620 km wilderness canoe journey over the vast Labrador Plateau. Set in the Inuit/Innu regions of Nunatsiavut and Nunavik, the film shares ...
, On the Line,
Mammalian
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
, and Borealis, all of which broadcast on CBC's documentary channel in Canada. Wolf, acts as starring role and director in his films, using a humorous approach in order to make the environmentalist and adventurer documentaries appealing to a broader audience.
Awards
•2008 Vancouver International Film Festival Official Selection: runner-up for NFB audience award, best documentary
•2009 Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival Official Selection: winner of Grand Prize for best overall film, winner of prize for best Canadian film
•2009 Beloit International Film Festival Official Selection
•2009 Powell River Film Festival Official Selection
•2009 Reel Paddling Film Festival Official Selection
•2009 New Zealand Mountain Film Festival Official Selection
Reviews
"The challenge of making this film was almost as severe as the challenge of the journey it depicts. The makers showed great imagination to get around the limitations of a zero budget, livening up the narrative with interviews, jokes, sight gags, even dance! It gently raised important issues along the way, allowing these issues to arise quite naturally out of the journey itself." -VIMFF Jury Statement for Grand Prize winner 'Borealis'
"An appealing ground-level spin on environmental issues" - The Vancouver Province
References
External links
*
Borealis Official Film Website
2008 films
Canadian documentary films
Documentary films about nature
Documentary films about canoeing
Documentary films about forests and trees
Films directed by Frank Wolf
Films shot in Ontario
Films shot in Manitoba
2000s English-language films
2000s Canadian films
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