BC Stories

Filmed during BC's worst fire season on record, this series follows the brave firefighters on the frontlines of wildfires.

Follow the human stories behind the life-and-death stakes of organ transplants in British Columbia.

This portrait chronicles the highs and lows of visionary Vancouver-based architect Arthur Erickson's personal and professional life.

Follow volunteer members of North Shore Rescue as they help people in distress in the mountains, canyons and forests of North and West Vancouver.

The daughters of Mimie Ho, a driving force in the annual Vancouver Chinatown parade, navigate the choice between honouring their past and letting it go.

The history of British Columbia is retold from a diverse and inclusive perspective by those who have lived it and those who have studied it.

Hogan's Alley was once the heart of a thriving Black community in Vancouver. Now a new generation is trying to carve out new spaces for community.

For 30 years, eclectic vintage boutique Burcu's Angels has been a haven for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Vancouver.

Filmmaker Thea Loo takes a deeply personal look at the lingering toll of a flawed immigration pathway between the Philippines and Canada.

As development encroaches on once-pristine lands across BC, a Tsay Keh Dene man and his Grandfather reflect on the past and future of caribou.

Two doctors share their stories of displacement during the Second World War - a Japanese Canadian man born in Vancouver, and a Canadian born in Japan.

Sarah, a Jewish lesbian mom living in Vancouver, navigates the complexities of identity after finding out she's predisposed to breast cancer.

Dakelh filmmaker Joy Haskell explores the intricate spiritual and cultural relationship between wild salmon and Indigenous people in BC.

A thriving community of poets in Vernon, BC, share their evocative poetry and what drives them to put words on the page.

Nearly 75 years ago, Kwakwaka’wakw Chief Mungo Martin and Jewish ethnomusicologist Ida Halpern saved over a hundred Kwak'wala songs from being lost forever.

Victoria-based composer Ari Kinarthy, who has a rare genetic condition, sets out to create a musical score that captures his life experiences.

Filmmaker Keira Loughran and Helen Lee set out to examine the legacy of their respective grandmothers - women of indomitable spirit who fought against Canada’s anti-Chinese immigration laws.

A Dene-Kwagul photographer and a conservationist/guide take a horseback journey through BC's pristine Muskwa-Kechika wilderness.

Two gritty teams of hobbyist cavers attempt to break records for the longest and deepest caves in Canada.

Curators of community archives across BC are working to preserve a more inclusive history, bringing to light untold stories from the past.

A dedicated medical team faces the challenges of working in Vancouver General Hospital's emergency department, one of the busiest in BC.

Arts communities rally to save poet Al Purdy's cabin - once a mecca for the pioneers of Canadian literature.

How legendary artist Robert Davidson became one of the world's foremost modern artists and a leading figure in the revival of Haida culture.

This docudrama tells the story of logger-turned-environmentalist Grant Hadwin's destruction of a 300-year-old tree held sacred by the Haida.

Follow paramedics and dispatchers at BC Emergency Health Services, from the high-pressure control centre to the crews on Lower Mainland streets.

For over 40 years, society columnist and photographer Malcolm Parry has been chronicling the goings-on in the city of Vancouver.

Cowichan filmmaker Harold C. Joe explores how the cedar tree is central to the cultural life of West Coast First Nations.

Stories of hope and homecoming intersect as three Indigenous changemakers in BC learn and document the teachings of their Elders.

Chinese Canadian dance artist Tony Chong dives into his family’s history to find his place in the world.

The remarkable story of the Asahi baseball team, who won the prestigious Pacific Northwest Championship for five straight years.

Terminal cancer patient James Pollard rallies his family and friends to stretch his final years into an unconventional project.

Filmmaker Trish Neufeld embarks on a heart-wrenching journey with her mom, whose mind is unravelling from a rare form of dementia.

The injust Japanese internment is explored through the story of Kyuichi Nomoto, one of the first Japanese Canadians to graduate from UBC.

An Indo-Canadian family in small-town BC try to come to terms with the sexual abuse of three sisters by an older relative.

Filmmaker Marie Clements gives us a joyful look into the mind of Niall McNeil, an artist, playwright and performer with Down syndrome.

Three siblings whose mother was from the Musqueam First Nation travel to their father's ancestral village in China for the first time.

High in the snowy peaks of BC, adventurers, nuns, artists and photographers are drawn to a life in the mountains.

Emily Carr's unconventional life and her connection to the First Nations peoples of the northwest coast of BC deeply influenced her art.

Alanis Obomsawin weaves together voice recordings of her friend, Haida artist Bill Reid, recounting episodes from his life.

Filmmaker Julia Kwan captures the subtle nuances of a culturally diverse neighbourhood - Vancouver's Chinatown.

On a journey to become his true authentic self, Vancouver-based fashion model Krow transitions from female to male and conquers the runways of Paris.

Haida filmmaker Christopher Auchter revisits the 1969 raising of Robert Davidson's totem pole on Haida Gwaii - the first in almost a century.

Over 45 years, street photographer Foncie Pulice snapped thousands of photos of people in downtown Vancouver, capturing a moment in time.

Fuelled by a drive to take the lead, Vancouver's Rach McBride comes out as the first non-binary professional triathlete.

Photojournalist Rita Leistner explores the physical and emotional challenges experienced by a community of BC tree planters.

In this stop-motion animated film, ‘Nakwaxda’xw Elder Colleen Hemphill tells the story of growing up on a tiny float-house in the Pacific Northwest.

Paralyzed from the waist down, Leo Sammarelli attempts to become the first person to climb Vancouver's Grouse Grind on his hands.

Sidelined by rheumatoid arthritis, Olympic snowboarder Spencer O’Brien finds the strength to re-enter the sport through her Indigenous culture.

An ethnobotanist contemplates her relationship with plants as she comes to a deeper understanding of her identity as a Skwxwu7mesh woman.

Vancouver ornithologist and artist Dr. Rob Butler explores the lives of crows while looking back on a lifetime of corvid obsession.

Director Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers tells the story of the Musqueam's vigil to halt a Vancouver condo development that unearthed ancestral remains.

What does home mean? For each person, it's different and so personal. In Take Me Home, prominent British Columbians reflect on what home means to them.

Ten short films showcase the people, places and things that have left their mark on BC's design and architecture history.

The remarkable story of a unique group of artists who used photography to launch Vancouver into the fine arts stratosphere.

From acclaimed filmmaker Charles Officer comes the story of Harry Jerome, Canada's record-setting track and field star.

Métis/Dene filmmaker Marie Clements navigates the cultural complexities stemming from the work of American photographer Edward Curtis.

Historians and First Nations Elders recount the near-mythic life of Tzouhalem, Chief of the Cowichan First Nation during the mid-1800s.

A Vancouver couple pledges to quit grocery shopping for six months and survive only on rescued food. What they find is shocking...

Nelson filmmaker Amy Bohigian explores the history of the Kootenays through the stories of people who have lived there over the past century.

Amidst a raucous civic election, can the people of Nelson deal with a wave of global populism encroaching on their counter-culture haven?

Ten short films celebrate authors, writing and the book culture that has helped shape BC's unique identity.

A look at the issues surrounding the repatriation of artifacts and human remains to their rightful Indigenous communities.

Peek inside the studios and homes of artisans on Gabriola Island in this intimate portrait of their craft, way of life and community.

A look at some of the musicians, deejays, gigs and clubs that made British Columbians swing and shout since the 1930s.

In the early 1900s, photographer Senjiro Hayashi took images of people of every race, class and gender in Cumberland, BC.

A group of strangers from Vancouver’s queer community band together to support the resettlement of a gay asylum seeker from Uganda. Unexpected challenges lead them all down an emotional road in a year-long search for personal freedom.

Intimate portraits of Indigenous artists and knowledge keepers showcase cultural resurgence and resilience across the Northwest Coast.

The Fort Nelson First Nation attempts to restore decades of industrial impacts to help stabilize boreal caribou populations.

From Los Angeles to Vancouver, this film showcases the homes built by the pioneers of West Coast Modernist architecture.

Spoken word artist Shane Koyczan prepares for his most personal poem yet as he embarks on a journey to reconnect with the father he never knew.

Canadian architect Raymond Moriyama overcame injustice and went on to design groundbreaking works, including the Canadian War Museum.