ommissioned and edited by filmmakers and scholars Jim Shedden and Barbara Sternberg, is a necessary and overdue contribution to Canadian film history. Rather than make large, encompassing claims about “Canada” and “Canadian filmmaking,” the book takes the “moments” from its title as a structuring device, combining concise but informative glances at pictures and practitioners into an expansive survey. York University professor Michael Zryd authors the first and longest section, which takes on the unenviable task of providing an overview of the history of the Canadian avant-garde scene(s) from an institutional perspective; the second half, written predominantly by filmmaker and author Stephen Broomer, offers biographies of major filmmakers and close readings of their works. Intended as describes an approach to experimental cinema as defined by the those who make it, highlighting the work of filmmakers who wear multiple hats as educators, curators, and fundraisers.
