Foster Child
Foster Child is a 1987 documentary film by Gil Cardinal, exploring the filmmaker's search, at age thirty-five, for biological family. Cardinal often meets with frustration during his search, but eventually finds his natural family and discovers his Métis roots.[1][2]
| Foster Child | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Gil Cardinal |
| Produced by | Jerry Krepakevich |
| Cinematography | James Jeffrey |
| Edited by | Alan Bibby |
Production company | National Film Board of Canada |
Release date | 1987 |
Running time | 43 min 05 s |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
In Foster Child, Cardinal documents his discovery of his past, including the reasons why his birth mother gave him up for adoption when he was one year old, and sees photographs of his deceased biological mother for the first time.[2] He learns in the film that she had died in 1974, after a long history of alcohol and poverty.[3]
This National Film Board of Canada production received over 10 awards, including four Golden Sheaf Awards, a Special Jury Prize at the Banff Television Festival and a Gemini Award for best direction for a documentary program. It was broadcast on CBC's Man Alive series.[1][4]
References
- "Foster Child". Collection. National Film Board of Canada. 1987. Retrieved 2009-10-22.
- Cullingham, James (18 December 2015). "Gil Cardinal: Canadian documentarian found his identity in film". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
- Beavon, Daniel J. K.; Voyageur, Cora Jane; Newhouse, David (2011). Hidden in Plain Sight: Contributions of Aboriginal Peoples to Canadian Identity and Culture. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 9781442640740. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- Wise, Wyndham. "Gil Cardinal". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica-Dominion. Retrieved 2009-10-01.