The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is a federal cultural agency within the portfolio of the Canadian Heritage Department. Initially known as the National Film Commission, it was created by an act of Parliament in 1939. Its mandate, as set forth in the National Film Act, 1950, is “to produce and distribute and to promote the production and distribution of films designed to interpret Canada to Canadians and to other nations.”
75th Anniversary Commemoration : May 2, 2014
A set of five stamps in booklet format and a souvenir sheet were issued by Canada Post Corporation to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the NFB.
Souvenir Sheet
The Government of Canada issued a news release on April 29, 2014 providing the following "Quick Facts" about the NFB:
• The NFB is founded in 1939 by documentary pioneer John Grierson in accordance with the recommendations of the National Film Act, laying the foundation for a homegrown film industry.
• In 1941, Norman McLaren joins the NFB to open its animation studio and pioneer breakthroughs across a range of animation techniques.
• The first Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject goes to the NFB, for Churchill's Island, beginning a string of successes that would see the NFB win 12 Oscars―and garner 72 nominations, more than any film organization in the world outside Hollywood.
• In 1964, the NFB establishes its French production branch, reinforcing the NFB's leadership role in francophone filmmaking and helping to build a distinct national cinema in Quebec.
• The NFB's immersive multiscreen experience In the Labyrinth creates a sensation at Expo 67 in Montreal, leading to the invention of the giant-screen IMAX format.
• In the 1980s, Winnipeg takes the global stage as a centre of animation excellence, with such classics as Richard Condie's The Big Snit and Cordell Barker's The Cat Came Back.
• In 1993, Alanis Obomsawin's documentary film Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance is named Best Canadian Feature at the Toronto International Film Festival.
• In 2009, the NFB launches its online Screening Room and establishes digital production studios in Vancouver and Montreal that have produced such acclaimed works as Welcome to Pine Point, Bear 71 and the interactive animation BLA BLA.
• In 2012, Sarah Polley completes Stories We Tell, one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful Canadian documentaries of all time.
• As the NFB marks its 75th anniversary, NFB.ca and partner platforms have surpassed 50 million viewings, with NFB interactive productions and digital platforms winning over 100 awards, including 7 Webbys.
The Millennium Stamp
1. Millennium Collection Album
The National Film Board stamp was one of 68 Millennium stamps first issued in a hardbound book, Canada Post The Millennium Collection : Expressions of a People, on September 15, 1999. The stamps were printed two to a page.
National Film Board and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation stamps were printed on the same page
2. Millennium Collection Souvenir Sheet
Canada Post Corporation re-issued the Millennium stamps in panes of 4 stamps issued over a three month period from December 17, 1999 to March 17, 2000. The souvenir sheet with the National Film Board stamp was released on December 17, 2000.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Millennium Stamp Collection
1. Wikipedia : Canada Post Millennium Stamps
(This site describes the stamps and provides links to article dealing with each subject.)
2. Postal History Corner articles:
