As part of THE NFB IN LIBRARIES programming, the Niagara Falls Public Library will present Sons as part of the monthly series from the Niagara African Caribbean Culture Organization (NACCO).

Sons | Justin Simms | 2024 | 70 min

It’s a boy!  

March 2016. Justin Simms becomes a dad.

But his joy is tinged with unease. Little Jude enters the world at a time when traditional notions of masculinity are being contested as never before. How can he teach his boy to be a good man?

With Sons, eight eventful years in the making, the Newfoundland-based filmmaker confronts the challenge with imagination and creative flair, crafting a big-hearted documentary essay on parenting, patriarchy—and the pain and pleasure of guiding boys through the turbulent cultural waters of the early 21st century.

Woven throughout is luminous informal footage of Jude’s early years, charting his trajectory from helpless newborn to hurricane of a boy, obsessed with dinosaurs and superheroes.

How can fathers steer sons away from negative models of masculinity and help them become caring adults? What does it even mean to be a “good man”? Isn’t it enough to nurture basic human qualities—empathy, confidence, common decency—without dwelling on gender?

Join the Niagara African Caribbean Culture Organization (NACCO) each month for a movie from the National Film Board of Canada (NFB).

Sons | OFFICIAL TRAILER on Vimeo

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FREE SCREENING
To have more information on this screening, consult the library’s website.