Canadian pride is making its way to the screens
Canadian filmmakers at the Toronto International Film Festival are advocating for a 'Watch Canadian' campaign to prioritize domestic content. Actors and directors argue that Canadian stories are often overshadowed by foreign media and deserve greater local support.
Why it matters
This movement reflects broader cultural anxieties regarding national identity and the influence of foreign media markets on domestic creative industries.
TORONTO – While taking to the red-carpet Friday night to promote his new film, The Stunt Driver , Montreal’s Jay Baruchel was asked why most Canadians are more likely to know American daredevil Evil Knievel better than they would know Ken Carter, the Canadian daredevil his new movie is based on.
“This is what happens when we grow up in a country where a foreign culture is given priority of real estate on our TV screens,” Baruchel told CTV News Friday.
With the backdrop of the U.S. trade war and a growing cultural rift between the two countries, some Canadian movie-goers and movie stars appear to be more vocal in prioritizing and defending Canadian content at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, taking the momentum from the “Buy Canadian” movement and transforming it into a “Watch Canadian” campaign.
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