Based on the book Watch and Warn by Allan Coggon.
Watch and Warn is ground zero history. It’s an untold story about ordinary Canadians who, in the daily routine of their lives, volunteered to keep a close watch for enemy threats to our country during World War II.
Housewives, school children, fishermen and lighthouse keepers became official observers for the Aircraft Detection Corps (RCAF). Their job was to scan the skies and seas and report any suspicious sightings of aircraft and vessels – even spies.
Close to 30,000 Canadians signed up. Many areas were vulnerable to enemy attack, including Halifax Harbour, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Hudson Bay area, the great canal locks at Sault Ste. Marie and the vast BC coastline.
Producer Cliff Chadderton states, “Twenty-three ships were sunk in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and an Allied vessel was torpedoed a mere 15 miles from Halifax Harbour. For those who think that Canada was not in danger, just consider that again.”
Interviews with former Observers, citizens and RCAF personnel are combined with archival images to convey those anxious years when the war came very close to home.
Awards:
- Silver Award - 2007 Questar Awards (New York)
- Bronze Award - 2007 Worldfest-Houston (Texas)
- Bronze Award - 2007 Mercury Awards (Ossining, New York)