Grierson

Grierson

1973•58m•6.5/10

Documentary

Ratings

🎬TMDb

6.5/10(2)

A portrait of John Grierson, the first Canadian Government Film Commissioner and founder of the National Film Board in 1939. Interweaving archival footage, interviews with people who knew him and footage of Grierson himself, this film is a sensitive and informative portrait of a dynamic man of vision. Grierson believed that the filmmaker had a social responsibility, and that film could help a society realize democratic ideals. His absolute faith in the value of capturing the drama of everyday life was to influence generations of filmmakers all over the world. In fact, he coined the term 'documentary film'.

Open in PickFlick

Production

ONF | NFB

Language

EN

Status

Released

Release Date

Cast

Michael Kane

Michael Kane

Narrator (voice)

John Grierson

John Grierson

Self (archive footage)

Norman McLaren

Norman McLaren

Self (archive footage)

Sydney Newman

Sydney Newman

Self

Basil Wright

Self

Lorne Greene

Lorne Greene

Self

Woodrow Wilson

Woodrow Wilson

Self (archive footage)

Roberto Rossellini

Roberto Rossellini

Self

Joseph McCarthy

Joseph McCarthy

Self (archive footage)

Joris Ivens

Joris Ivens

Self

Indira Gandhi

Indira Gandhi

Self

Margaret Grierson

Self

Alberto Cavalcanti

Alberto Cavalcanti

Self

Bosley Crowther

Self

Pierre Juneau

Self

Lester B. Pearson

Lester B. Pearson

Self (archive footage)

Recommended

Boudica

Boudica

Inspired by events in A.D. 60, Boudica follows the eponymous Celtic warrior who rules the Iceni people alongside her husband Prasutagus. When he dies at the hands of Roman soldiers, Boudica’s kingdom is left without a male heir and the Romans seize her land and property. Driven to the edge of madness and determined to avenge her husband’s death, Boudica rallies the various tribes from the region and wages an epic war against the mighty Roman empire.

Boudica

2023

5.9

The Adventures

The Adventures

Joy, a secretary at a large multinational company, has an online shopping problem, likes to read adventure novels and watch travel and adventure shows. She daydreams about living a life of adventure.

The Adventures

2023

5.9

Hunters

Hunters

As John T. Wrecker continues his task of protecting a group of refugees from a virus, the threat of something new and even more dangerous grows ever closer in the form of monstrous mutants.

Hunters

2021

6.0

Lion

Lion

The lion has to become more physically fit. The gazelle does not think he is capable of doing so.

Lion

2017

6.2

Sayen: Desert Road

Sayen: Desert Road

Sayen follows a lead to the picturesque desolation of the Atacama Desert. There, she reluctantly teams up with a young Atacameño girl, Quimal, looking to clear her father’s name and save her town from becoming an arid wasteland due to Acteon’s exploitative water usage.

Sayen: Desert Road

2023

6.2

After the Pandemic

After the Pandemic

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where a global airborne pandemic has wiped out 90% of the Earth's population and only the young and immune have endured as scavengers. For Ellie and Quinn, the daily challenges to stay alive are compounded when they become hunted by the merciless Stalkers.

After the Pandemic

2022

5.1

Kingdom III: The Flame of Destiny

Kingdom III: The Flame of Destiny

To defend their kingdom against a sudden invasion, a mighty general returns to the battlefield alongside a war orphan, now grown up, who dreams of glory.

Kingdom III: The Flame of Destiny

2023

7.5

Kill

No overview available.

Kill

2011

7.0

Dear David

Dear David

Shortly after comic artist Adam responds to Internet trolls, he begins experiencing sleep paralysis. As he chronicles increasingly malevolent occurrences in a series of tweets, Adam begins to believe he is being haunted by the ghost of a dead child named David.

Dear David

2023

4.6

The Last Week of September

The Last Week of September

Pietro Rinaldi, an elderly writer, widower and tired of life, plans to commit suicide on his birthday. After the sudden and tragic death of his daughter and son-in-law, Pietro will have to look after his teenage nephew Mattia.

The Last Week of September

2024

6.4

F

A group of teachers must defend themselves from a gang of murderous kids when their school comes under siege after hours.

F

2010

6.1

Granit

Granit

Mozambique requests from Russia is being helped in the fight against militants of the "Islamic State" and a special group led by a commander with the call sign Granit is coming to the country.

Granit

2021

7.0

Similar Movies

All Over the Place - A Portrait of Tuncel Kurtiz

All Over the Place - A Portrait of Tuncel Kurtiz

Tuncel Kurtiz is an international actor who has worked in various countries such as Turkey, Germany, and Sweden throughout his fifty-year career. He has starred in countless works in cinema, stage and television and has received many awards, including the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. He has directed two documentaries and a feature-length fiction film. Kurtiz's acting performance ranges from popular melodramas to major plays such as Mahabharata (Peter Brook), encompassing many different genres and styles. As an actor, Kurtiz believes in the creative power of chaos: 'Chaos is the most difficult to create / Not a false chaos / Many things come out of chaos'. Through testimonies, film excerpts, and archive footage, this documentary reflects Tuncel Kurtiz's diverse body of artistic work in all its dimensions for the first time. In the background of this detailed portrait are Turkey's turbulent years and the reality of exile.

All Over the Place - A Portrait of Tuncel Kurtiz

2025

Figure 3

How do you deal with life's curveballs? FIGURE 3 tells trapeze artist Korri Singh Aulakh's story of being diagnosed with the chronic autoimmune condition Myasthenia Gravis. It's the third installment in FIGURES, a new series of portrait films. Shot on a mix of 16mm film, VHS and digital.

Figure 3

2019

Petit Rempart

Petit Rempart

Mariem, 53, a former estate agent, has been living at a shelter for several months. Surrounded by women in far more precarious circumstances than herself, she tries to regard her unprecedented social downfall as an immersion in real life. By the time she leaves, Mariem’s view of the world will have changed forever, enriched by all the women she has met along the way.

Petit Rempart

2025

Entretien politique : Histoire et mode d'emploi

Entretien politique : Histoire et mode d'emploi

No overview available.

Entretien politique : Histoire et mode d'emploi

2020

7.0

Ivan the Terrible

Ivan the Terrible

Ivan, first tsar of Russia. History will remember him as "the Terrible. Russian people love him for centuries. He liberates Russia from foreign oppressors, demands absolute obedience and loyalty in order to radically modernise Russia? Ivan IV, Grand Duke of Moscow, first Tsar of Russia by the grace of God. A madman? A sadist?

Ivan the Terrible

2014

6.5

The Bubble

The Bubble

Diving deep into the true causes of the Great Recession, the financial crisis of the 2010s, renowned economists, investors and business leaders explain what America is facing if we don't learn from our past mistakes. Is the economy really improving or are we just blowing up another Bubble?

The Bubble

2018

5.5

Belmondo, le magnifique

Belmondo, le magnifique

With more than 70 films and 160 million cumulative tickets in France, Jean-Paul Belmondo is one of the essential stars of French cinema.

Belmondo, le magnifique

2017

7.7

The Lives of Albert Camus

The Lives of Albert Camus

Albert Camus died at 46 years old on January 4, 1960, two years after his Nobel Prize in literature. Author of “L'Etranger”, one of the most widely read novels in the world, philosopher of the absurd and of revolt, resistant, journalist, playwright, Albert Camus had an extraordinary destiny. Child of the poor districts of Algiers, tuberculosis patient, orphan of father, son of an illiterate and deaf mother, he tore himself away from his condition thanks to his teacher. French from Algeria, he never ceased to fight for equality with the Arabs and the Kabyle, while fearing the Independence of the FLN. Founded on restored and colorized archives, and first-hand accounts, this documentary attempts to paint the portrait of Camus as he was.

The Lives of Albert Camus

2020

8.0

Beside Bowie - The Mick Ronson Story

Beside Bowie - The Mick Ronson Story

Beside Bowie: The Mick Ronson Story is a documentary about the life and work of Michael "Mick" Ronson, the guitarist, songwriter, producer and arranger who, in the early part of his career, performed with David Bowie as one of the 'Spiders from Mars'.

Beside Bowie - The Mick Ronson Story

2017

8.2

Spielberg

Spielberg

A documentary on the life and career of one of the most influential film directors of all time, Steven Spielberg.

Spielberg

2017

7.6

Jackie Chan: Building an Icon

Jackie Chan: Building an Icon

Jackie Chan is a true icon of Asian and Chinese culture. Over a 45-year-long career, he has carved a niche for himself as an actor, stuntman, director, and screenwriter, but also singer and formidable businessman. After starring in almost 200 films, Jackie Chan has reconciled fans of genre film and Hollywood blockbusters, whilst bridging the gap between Asian and Western cinema. Through film excerpts, archive footage and images, and an offbeat approach inspired by the visual codes of the golden age of kung fu films, this documentary will take a look back at the creation of a popular hero who has come to be an icon for China, and for the entire Asian continent.

Jackie Chan: Building an Icon

2021

7.7

Glenn Close, l'art de la transformation

Glenn Close, l'art de la transformation

Actress Glenn Close can transform herself into different roles like a chameleon. Behind this versatility lies an artist who had to get over a lot in her personal life to become the star she is today. Close looks back on her long career of prestigious filmmaking.

Glenn Close, l'art de la transformation

2025

6.3