Pepita Ferrari facts for kids

Pepita Ferrari was a Canadian filmmaker who lived from 1952 to 2018. She was known for making interesting documentary films. A documentary is a type of movie that tells a true story about real people or events.

Working with the National Film Board

In 1994, Pepita Ferrari began working closely with the National Film Board of Canada. This is a special organization in Canada that helps create and share films. They helped Pepita make seven of her films. Five of these films can even be watched online in both English and French!

Early Films

Pepita's very first film as a director was called By Woman's Hand. This documentary was about a group of talented Canadian women painters. They were known as the Beaver Hall Group. This group was also connected to another famous art group called the Group of Seven. In By Woman's Hand, Pepita focused on three important artists from the Beaver Hall Group: Prudence Heward, Sarah Robertson, and Anne Savage.

Exploring Documentaries

In 2010, Pepita Ferrari made another important documentary called Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary. In this film, she talked to many famous documentary filmmakers. Some of them included Nick Broomfield, Werner Herzog, Kim Longinotto, and Errol Morris. These filmmakers watched parts of their own movies. They then discussed how they made choices about filming and what was right or wrong to show.

What is a Documentary?

Capturing Reality tried to answer a big question: "What exactly is a documentary?" The film showed viewers how a documentary is made. It followed the process from the very first idea all the way to the final edited movie.

Writing About Film

Besides making films, Pepita Ferrari also wrote articles. She wrote for a Canadian magazine called Point of View. This magazine is all about documentary films and photography.