Cinema in the National Capital Region
Carleton University’s location in Canada’s National Capital Region has allowed the Film Studies program to forge connections with an array of film-related research institutions, including Library and Archives Canada and the National Gallery of Canada, where students can access superb collections for primary research, allowing undergraduate and graduate students alike to make original contributions to knowledge. An additional benefit of living in Ottawa are the numerous artist-run spaces and other visual art and film venues that bring contemporary work into students’ lives. Ottawa is also home to two excellent repertory cinemas, the Mayfair Theatre and the Bytowne Cinema. A further attraction for cinéphiles is the Canadian Film Institute, which screens films throughout the year from around the world.
Off-campus library holdings and resources
Its Ottawa location provides the Film Studies program with research facilities unequaled anywhere in Canada.
The film archive, library and documentation centre of the National Library and Archives Canada is a major complementary resource. The film archive is a full member of the International Federation of Film Archives and is recognized as a world-class film archive and has ties with other film archives around the world for the purposes of loan, exchange and purchase of materials. It is the deposit archive and library for all films produced in Canada and is responsible for preserving and disseminating Canada’s entire film heritage. In addition, it has extensive public and private documentation relating to the history and production of film in Canada. The Cinémathèque québécoise, with its materials on French and Quebec cinema, is not out of reach in Montreal. At the University of Ottawa, some periodical holdings, and some imprints, especially in French, supplement the MacOdrum Library’s collections.
The collections of the Canada Museum of Science and Technology offer opportunities to research the history and development of image and sound technologies, including film, radio and television broadcasting. The National Gallery of Canada has a collection of films by Canadian artists, many of whom are important figures in avant-garde cinema (Michael Snow, Jack Chambers, Joyce Wieland, et al). The National Gallery and the Canada Council Art Bank also continue to showcase and acquire Canadian and international video art and both have significant libraries on the subject. The extraordinary resources of the Ottawa area are a particular incentive to research and study in the field of Canadian film and video.
Our Community Partners
We are also grateful to some of these organizations for providing us with practica/internship placements.
Ottawa International Animation Festival
Independent Filmmaking Coop of Ottawa (IFCO)