''Final Offer'' is a Canadian film documenting the 1984 contract negotiations between the
United Auto Workers Union
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers (UAW), is an American labor union that represents workers in the United States (including Puerto Rico ...
(UAW) and
GM. Ultimately, it provided a historical record of the birth of the
Canadian Auto Workers Union
The Canadian Auto Workers (CAW; formally the National Automobile, Aerospace, Transportation and General Workers Union of Canada) was one of Canada's largest and highest profile labour unions. In 2013, it merged with the Communications, Energy and ...
(CAW) as
Bob White, the head of the Canadian sector of the UAW, led his membership out of the International Union and created the CAW.
The movie depicts life in an era of massive industrial change in North America. The audience sees the emergence of automation and how it begins to affect the lives of the working class. Other themes depicted are labour relations, life on the picket line, and corporate
restructuring.
A
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...
production, ''Final Offer'' is directed by
Sturla Gunnarsson
Sturla Gunnarsson (born August 30, 1951) is an Icelandic-Canadian film and television director and producer.
Gunnarsson was born in Reykjavík in 1951. He moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, with his parents when he was seven years old. As he ...
and Robert Collison, written by Collison, and produced by Collison, Gunnarsson and
John Spotton
John Spotton Canadian Society of Cinematographers, C.S.C. (January 1, 1927 - March 3, 1991) was a Canadian filmmaker with the National Film Board of Canada.
A versatile artist who worked as a director, producer, cinematographer and editor, Spo ...
.
The movie features Henry Ramer as the narrator,
Buzz Hargrove,
Roger Smith, chairman of
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
, and founding CAW president
Bob White.
Awards
*
Banff Mountain Film Festival,
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise. At above Banff is the community with the second highest e ...
: Grand Prize of the Festival, 1986
*
Banff Mountain Film Festival,
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise. At above Banff is the community with the second highest e ...
: Rockie Award for Best Political and Social Documentary, 1986
*
7th Genie Awards
The 7th Genie Awards were held March 20, 1986, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre to honour achievements in Canadian film in 1985. The ceremony was co-hosted by Leslie Nielsen and Catherine Mary Stewart."Genie hosts announced". ''Toronto Star'' ...
,
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
: Best Feature Length Documentary, 1986
* Golden Gate International Film Festival, San Francisco: Special Jury Award, 1986
*
Columbus International Film & Animation Festival
The Columbus International Film + Animation Festival is a Columbus, Ohio, United States annual film festival which is designed to encourage and promote the use of film and video in all forms of education and communication.
It is the first and ol ...
,
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
: Chris Award, First Prize, Industry & Commerce, 1986
*
Chicago International Film Festival
The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the comp ...
, Chicago: Gold Plaque, Social/Political Documentary, 1986
* Prix Italia, International Competition for Radio and Television Productions,
Lucca, Italy: Italia Award for Best Documentary, 1986
See also
*''
Roger & Me'' – 1989 documentary film, featuring
Roger Smith and
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore (born April 23, 1954) is an American filmmaker, author and left-wing activist. His works frequently address the topics of globalization and capitalism.
Moore won the 2002 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for ' ...
References
External links
Watch ''Final Offer'' at NFB.ca*
English-language Canadian films
Canadian documentary films
National Film Board of Canada documentaries
General Motors
Canadian Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
Economic history of Canada
Labour history of Canada
Films directed by Sturla Gunnarsson
Documentary films about the labor movement
Best Documentary Film Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners
1985 documentary films
Documentary films about the automotive industry
1980s English-language films
1980s Canadian films
Labour history of Ontario
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