Vimy Flight – Birth of a Nation operates in alliance with A Nation Soars, a Department of Canadian Heritage-sponsored trilogy that commemorates Canada’s integral contributions with the evolution of First World War aviation. The trilogy includes a series of documentaries and a host of supporting educational initiatives that explore how aviation changed the course of the First World War. Led by Sound Venture Productions and The Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS), this is a truly national initiative, and one that highlights the lesser-known yet distinctly Canadian aspects of the air war.
Copyright 2017 VIMY FLIGHT © - Birth of a Nation. All rights reserved.
Sound Venture Productions ANS Team
L to R: Barry Stanton,Tim Joyce, Dan Aykroyd, Bob Barrett, Mike Laewen
A Nation Soars has already completed the first two parts of its commemorative trilogy. The educational activities achieved with both Drawn to Victory & Wings of Courage have already seeded considerable legacy tools including:
- The creation of 2 giant (8 x 11 metre) travelling floor maps entitled The Western Front and Vimy Ridge, with accompanying teacher resources and activities, for borrowing by schools free-of-charge across the country.
- Two x 1 hour broadcast documentaries, narrated by English actor Dan Aykroyd and French explorer Bernard Voyer. Drawn to Victory explores the revolution of mapmaking during the Great War, and Wings of Courage explores the bravery of our Canadian aviators. (both films are premiering in the fall 2016 on CPAC English & French).
- The building of 2 replica First World War Sopwith Pup biplanes. Led by The Canadian Museum of Flight in Langley BC, this involves a dedicated group of skilled volunteers as well as members of Vimy Flight. A key part of this is the inclusion of participating Air Cadets who through this experience, have forged an emotional connection to their ‘same-age’ contemporaries of 100-years past.
- Repeated promotion/feature stories in 2015 & 2016 issues of Canadian Geographic magazine.
- A website full of online educator resources and educational videos inspired by the films, the giant maps and the magazine articles.
- A series of poster maps, school-pack kits along with extensive social media support and promotion.
A Nation Soars is currently in production on the final documentary of the trilogy entitled Flight Path of Heroes, which focuses on the air war contribution at The Battle of Vimy Ridge. As part of this, we are profiling Vimy Flight as they prepare for a historic mission to Vimy, France in April 2017. This story will be nationally broadcast in both English & French in the fall of 2017.