Directed by Paul Cowan, produced by Gerry Flahive, Paul Saadoun and narrated by Canadian actor R.H. Thomson, the doc "Paris 1919", a National Film Board of Canada co-production had its North American premiere May 1 @ Toronto's "Hot Docs", with an encore screening scheduled for May 10."...For six months in 1919, Paris was the capital of the world. The last shots had just been fired in the most devastating war of all time - and the old global order lay in tatters. Delegations from over 30 nations urgently descended upon Paris for the most ambitious peace talks in history. At the helm were the Big Four - President Woodrow Wilson along with leaders of France, the UK and Italy.
They endeavored to engineer a peace treaty 'for all time', creating instead an embittered Germany already dreaming of retaliation - and creating contentious new entities like Iraq and Yugoslavia..."Inspired by author Margaret MacMillan's novel, "Paris 1919", goes inside this singular event with a vivid sense of character and narrative, in a compelling story that blends re-enactments with archival images, as director Cowan captures the drama of diplomacy, evoking the atmosphere of a metropolis returning to life and a disquieting reflection on one of history's great missed opportunities.
"I am extremely happy with the warm reception audiences around the world have already given 'Paris 1919', but as a Canadian filmmaker, distribution in my home country is where my heart lies,” said Cowan.
"There is no other festival in the world that means as much to me as Hot Docs..."
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