Conviction

Avec l'aide de femmes incarcérées et de militants de première ligne pour la défense des droits des détenus, Condamnation imagine des solutions de rechange à la prison. Non pas un autre film sur la « prison désocialisante », mais bien un film sur la « société brisée », cette collaboration reconstruit avec audace et ingéniosité notre communauté depuis l'intérieur. Le documentaire oblige le spectateur à se demander pourquoi nous emprisonnons les plus vulnérables, et à quel prix.

Timely and wise, this important documentary about the state of prostitution laws in Canada is a revelation. Those laws, forged in the 19th century, are now being challenged by both pro-prostitution and anti-prostitution forces, with no evident consensus about which way forward is either best or likely. The film's examination of the sex industry in Sweden and New Zealand sheds further light on the situation at home. Buying Sex carefully guides the viewer through a wide spectrum of disagreement, exploring the many points of view in this age-old yet contemporary debate. Articulate and impassioned formerly prostituted women and sex workers make their claims for and against the proposed changes, while policy-makers, lawyers and even male consumers also offer insight and commentary on this vexing issue. Respecting the differences of ideology and opinion as Canada works its way toward an uneasy consensus, the film challenges us to think for ourselves and offers a gripping and invaluable account of just what is at stake for all of us.

Feisty, fiercely independent and firmly rooted in place, 90 year-old Mabel Robinson broke barriers back in the 40s when she became the first woman in Hubbards, Nova Scotia, to launch her own business-a hairdressing salon where she still provides shampoo-n-sets over 70 years later. Weaving animation and archival imagery with intimate and laugh out loud moments in the salon, the film celebrates the power of friendship, doing what you love and staying active. With no desire to retire anytime soon, Mabel gives voice to a generation who are not front and center of cinema or the pop hairstyles of the day, and subtly shifts the lens on our perception of beauty and the elderly.