September 30 marks National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day. This day honours the experiences of Residential School Survivors and the children who never made it home.   

The Canadian government used the Residential School System to systematically separate First Nations, Métis and Inuit children from their families and erase Indigenous cultures and languages. With the first residential school established in 1831 and the last residential school closing in 1996, it is estimated that 150,000 Indigenous children attended residential schools.   

On September 30, 2026, the AGO is engaging visitors in continued learning, guided by Indigenous art and artists. From 11 am until 8 pm, six short films directed by Indigenous filmmakers will be screened in Walker Court. Then, beginning in the afternoon, art educators will offer tours that highlight First Nations, Métis and Inuit Art throughout the Gallery, including the J.S. McLean Centre for Indigenous + Canadian Art on Level 2. 

Courtesy of the National Film Board, the collection of short films spans documentary, fiction and animation. Featuring a range of stylistic approaches and subject matter, these films will offer visitors valuable perspective, prompting them to reflect on the day’s meaning.       

Learn more about each short film below.  

Now Is the Time (2019), Dir: Christopher Auchter 

On the 50th anniversary of the first new totem pole raising on British Columbia’s Haida Gwaii in almost a century, Haida filmmaker Christopher Auchter steps through history to revisit the day that would signal the rebirth of the Haida spirit. 

Feather Fall (2024), Dir.: Ossie Michelin  

In 2013, viral images of Indigenous resistance caught the world’s attention. Ten years later, the journalist who captured the moment returns to Elsipogtog to document the aftermath of a historic protest against oil giant SWN. 

Three Thousand (2017), Dir: Asinnajaq   

In this short film, Inuk artist Asinnajaq plunges us into a sublime imaginary universe—14 minutes of luminescent, archive-inspired cinema that recasts the present, past and future of her people in a radiant new light.  

Arctic Song (2021), Dir: Germaine Arnattaujuq 

Arctic Song is a short film of Inuit creation stories expressed through song and animation, based on the original artwork of Inuit artist, storyteller and co-director Germaine Arnattaujuq. 

The Lake Winnipeg Project: Poplar River (2021), Dir: Kevin Settee 

This film explores Poplar River First Nation’s intergenerational responsibility of protecting the lands and waters in their territory for generations to come. 

When All the Leaves Are Gone (2010), Dir.: Alanis Obomsawin 

As the only First Nations student in an all-white 1940s school, eight-year-old Wato is keenly aware of the hostility towards her. She deeply misses the loving environment of the reserve she once called home, and her isolation is sharpened by her father’s serious illness. When Wato’s teacher reads from a history book describing First Nations peoples as ignorant and cruel, it aggravates her classmates’ prejudice. Shy and vulnerable, Wato becomes the target of their bullying and abuse. Alone in her suffering, she finds solace and strength in the protective world of her magical dreams. 

Visit AGO.ca for more information about National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day on September 30 at the AGO.