''Gateway to Asia'' is a 10-minute 1945 Canadian

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

, directed and produced by Tom Daly for the

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 ...

(NFB) as part of the wartime ''

Canada Carries On ''Canada Carries On'' (French: ''En avant Canada'') was a series of short films by the National Film Board of Canada which ran from 1940 to 1959. The series was initially created as morale-boosting propaganda films during the Second World War. Wit ...

'' series. The film documents the importance of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as a "gateway" to Asia and the Pacific. The

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

version of ''Gateway to Asia'' is ''Au seuil du Pacifique''.

Synopsis

Before the war, British Columbia was treated as a unique "back door" to the Pacific and considered by many as one of Canada's playgrounds. Visitors were often enchanted by the scenery but were not aware of the rich bounty of the region including forests, mountains and the sea. The lumber and

pulp and paper The pulp and paper industry comprises companies that use wood as raw material and produce pulp, paper, paperboard and other cellulose-based products. Manufacturing process The pulp is fed to a paper machine where it is formed as a paper web an ...

industries represent the greatest livelihood for thousands of B.C. citizens. The fast-growing mining industry with its roots back to

Gold Rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

days and the extensive commercial

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...

which provide more than 1/2 the fish production in Canada, are also important. In wartime, the population of British Columbia has utilized its vast natural resources and industrial strength to become a critical factor in Canada's war effort. From its shipyards comes nearly 3/4s of all the Canadian ships constructed in the Second World War. Its residents have made a substantial contribution to the

home front Home front is an English language term with analogues in other languages. It is commonly used to describe the full participation of the British public in World War I who suffered Zeppelin#During World War I, Zeppelin raids and endured Rationin ...

workforce. Although there is a diverse population in Canada's most westerly province, 70% of its people have British origins. Other ethnic group make up the province's population include Japanese- and Chinese-Canadians as well as a significant number of Sikhs. With the outbreak of a

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

, however, major ramifications were caused in B.C.'s population, especially among the large numbers of Japanese-Canadians. Overnight, the 22,000 citizens of Japanese background were removed from the Pacific coast and their property seized. British Columbia provides a vital link between the rest of Canada and its neighbours in the Far East, Asia and Russia. The use of the Northwest Staging Route with airstrips,

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

s and radio ranging stations built in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, the

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

and British Columbia was a "skyway" to Asia. The aircraft that flew this route not only supplied the ongoing construction of the Alaska Highway but also served to ferry American

lend-lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

for the Soviet Union Air Forces from the United States to Alaska, and then across the Bering Strait to

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...

. At the threshold of a new age, with the advent of high-speed air travel, Canada's Pacific gateway to Asia, will also become a new international trade route to connect to over 1/2 of the people of the world.

Cast

* General A.G.L. McNaughton as Himself (archival footage)

Historical context

The widespread expulsion of Japanese-Canadians from

Pacific coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western or southwestern border, except for Panama, where the Pac ...

"restricted" areas, as depicted in ''Gateway to Asia'' is reflective of official government policy during the Second World War. While mention is made that property was abandoned, the large fishing fleets, farms and businesses owned by Japanese-Canadians, through the

War Measures Act The ''War Measures Act'' (french: Loi sur les mesures de guerre; 5 George V, Chap. 2) was a statute of the Parliament of Canada that provided for the declaration of war, invasion, or insurrection, and the types of emergency measures that could t ...

(1942), were actually sold with their previous owners forced to give up their rights for recourse. The detention camps may not have been prisons, but the film uses them as a backdrop, along with ominous music representing Japan, to justify the expulsion with the disclaimer that a final determination of permanent resettlement has not yet been made. By 1945, the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

had enacted legislation to codify the impounding of property and removal of both Nisei and foreign-born Canadians of Japanese origin.

Production

Typical of the NFB's Second World War documentary

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

s in the ''Canada Carries On'' series, ''Gateway to Asia'' was created as a morale boosting propaganda film. The film used a compilation documentary format that relied heavily on newsreel footage edited to provide a cogent message. Morris, Peter
"Film Reference Library: Canada Carries On."
''Canadian Film Encyclopedia''. Retrieved: April 9, 2016. The deep baritone voice of stage actor Lorne Greene was featured in the narration of ''Gateway to Asia''. Greene was known for his work on radio broadcasts as a news announcer at '' CBC'', as well as narrating many of the ''Canada Carries On'' series. His sonorous recitation led to his nickname, "The Voice of Canada", and to some observers, the "Voice-of-God".Rist 2001, p. 84. When reading grim battle statistics or narrating a particularly serious topic, he was known as "The Voice of Doom"."Bonanza's Canadian Lorne Greene."
''Bite Size Canada''. Retrieved: April 9, 2016.

Reception

''Gateway to Asia'' was produced in 35 mm for the theatrical market. Each film was shown over a six-month period as part of the shorts or newsreel segments in approximately 800 theatres across Canada. The NFB had an arrangement with

Famous Players theatres Famous Players Limited Partnership, DBA Famous Players, is a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous ...

to ensure that Canadians from coast-to-coast could see them, with further distribution by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

.Ellis and McLane 2005, p. 122. After the six-month theatrical tour ended, individual films were made available on 16 mm to schools, libraries, churches and factories, extending the life of these films for another year or two. They were also made available to film libraries operated by university and provincial authorities.Ohayon, Albert
"Propaganda cinema at the NFB".
''National Film Board of Canada'', July 13, 2009. Retrieved: April 9, 2016.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Bennett, Linda Greene. ''My Father's Voice: The Biography of Lorne Greene''. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse, Inc., 2004. . * Ellis, Jack C. and Betsy A. McLane. ''New History of Documentary Film''. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005. . * Leach, Jim and Jeannette Sloniowski, eds. ''Candid Eyes: Essays on Canadian Documentaries''. Toronto: University of Toronto, 2003. . * Lerner, Loren. ''Canadian Film and Video: A Bibliography and Guide to the Literature''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997. . * Rist, Peter. ''Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. . * Sunahara, Ann Gomer. ''The Politics of Racism: The Uprooting of Japanese Canadians During the Second World War''. Toronto: James Lorimer and Company, 2000, First edition 1981. .

External links

*
to Asia'' at the NFB Collections page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gateway to Asia 1945 films Canadian black-and-white films Canadian short documentary films Canadian aviation films Quebec films Canadian World War II propaganda films English-language Canadian films National Film Board of Canada documentaries 1945 documentary films Black-and-white documentary films Films produced by Tom Daly Films set in British Columbia Films shot in British Columbia Internment of Japanese Canadians Canada Carries On Columbia Pictures short films 1940s Canadian films