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The filmmaker Kent Donguines discusses his new documentary Treasure of the Rice Terraces, having its world premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival (05 October 2025), with Joseph Planta. Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   Kent Donguines joins me again. The filmmaker has a documentary that will debut at the 44th Annual Vancouver International Film Festival, this Sunday, 05 October 2025 with another screening on Monday, 06 October 2025. Treasure of the Rice Terraces has several journeys for Kent. First, he travels from Canada to Buscalan, a secluded mountain community in The Philippines. He’s also travelling home to the country of his birth, and at the same time tries to reconcile his roots with his identity. The film is also a journey through several hundreds of years of Philippine history with tattooing. Indigenous Filipinos hundreds of years ago got tattooed to signify rank or status in society. With the arrival of colonisers, especially the Spanish who also brought their Roman Catholic mores, tattooing was frowned upon even banned. This continues into the twentieth century with more recent ideas that a tattoo suggests immorality or criminality. Kent unpacks all of this with historians and contemporary cultural figures in The Philippines and elsewhere, including the tattoo anthropologist Lars Krutak. We also meet Apo-Whang od, who at 108 still practices the art of Kalinga tattooing, which involves tapping. I’ll ask Kent about what that involves, as we see him get tattooed in the film. What’s also fascinating is how Kent finds his own identity through the tattoos he has and adds to. We see him find connection with the Butbut people, especially the apprentices of Apo-Whang od, like Grace Palicas, who is her grandniece, and one of the now many in their village taking up the ancient art. The film is presented by Telefilm Canada, and supported by BC’s Knowledge Network. Visit www.viff.org for tickets and information on the screenings. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Kent Donguines; Mr. Donguines, good morning. The post Kent Donguines first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The filmmaker Alison Reid discusses her documentary The Art of Adventure, featuring Bristol Foster and Robert Bateman, having its world premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival, with Joseph Planta. Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   Between 1957 and 1958, two young men, Bristol Foster and Robert Bateman, decided to go on an adventure of a lifetime. They purchased a Land Rover that they called The Grizzly Torque, and set about travelling some 14,000 kilometers through Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Foster, felt his family’s upbringing a little constraining in Toronto, while Bateman was a little restless as he started his career as a high school teacher. Both men were interested in nature and the outdoors, and as we see with the distinguished lives they led after this adventure, they’re certainly shaped by the landscape, creatures, and people they encountered. This is all the subject of a new documentary having its world premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival, The Art of Adventure. There’s a screening Sunday afternoon, 05 October 2025 at the Vancouver Playhouse. There are other screenings Tuesday, 07 October, and Sunday, 12 October, and probably more. Visit www.viff.org for tickets and information. The film’s director and producer Alison Reid joins me now to talk about this film, and highlighting the adventure, showcasing the vivid film and photography that both Foster and Bateman shot on the trip, as well as illustrating how this adventure influenced their later work; Foster as an academic, filmmaker, and naturalist and conservationist, and Bateman as an activist and artist of world renown. They’re the stars of the film, but so’s the Grizzly Torque itself. It goes with them on this journey, houses them throughout, and makes its way back to Canada. Alison Reid’s career in film began as a stunt performer and coordinator. She’s gone on to produce and direct the comedy The Baby Formula, and the documentary The Woman Who Loves Giraffes. She’s also directed episodes of Beyond Black Beauty, Hudson & Rex, and Murdoch Mysteries. We spoke earlier this week. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Alison Reid; Alison, good morning. The post Alison Reid first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The activist, consultant, and former civil servant Max Brault discusses his new book The Race to the Starting Line: What You Need to Know About the Accessible Canada Act for Making a Barrier-Free Society (Initiate, 2025), with Joseph Planta. The Race to the Starting Line: What You Need to Know About the Accessible Canada Act for Making a Barrier-Free Society by Max L. Brault (Initiate, 2025). Click to buy the book: Race to the Starting Line Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   Earlier this year, Max Brault published a new book, The Race to the Starting Line: What You Need to Know About the Accessible Canada Act for Making a Barrier-Free Society. It’s a fascinating book about how starting in 2015, soon after the Justin Trudeau Liberals came to office, a new act of Parliament would be created from the ground up to look at the obstacles that over eight million Canadians with disabilities face, be they physical, architectural, technological, or attitudinal. With the goal of creating a barrier-free Canada by 2040, I’ll ask Mr. Brault who joined me a couple of weeks ago, about the progress, as well as look back at the effort to craft an act that though imperfect, worked to address concerns since the passage of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms over forty years ago now. But as the book’s title suggests, it’s just the starting line, and there’s more to accomplish. Max L. Brault is a recognised leader in accessibility and disability advocacy, with many years in the public service and consulting. Visit https://maxbraultsmafoundation.ca/ for more information. This book is published by Initiate. We spoke two weeks ago, with Max joining me from Ottawa. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Max Brault; Mr. Brault, good morning. The post Max L. Brault first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The critically acclaimed and bestselling author and poet katherena vermette discusses her new poetry collection Procession (House of Anansi Press, 2025), with Joseph Planta. Procession by katherena vermette (House of Anansi Press, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Procession Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   katherena vermette joins me now. The award-winning writer and poet is out today with her third collection of poetry, Procession. The poems are heartfelt, cognisant of the past and the present, with an eye to the future. She explores the connections we have with one another, whether they’re friends, families or Nations. She lovingly remembers those she loved and those that loved her. The collection also focuses the reader on how finite our time is, and ours aren’t the only lives; for example, we’re part of something bigger, something that’s gone on long before, and hopefully will go on long after we’ve left. I found the collection thoughtful as well as fun. When she looks back at thoughts or writing from when she was a child, there’s often a laugh, a lot of wisdom and something thought provoking. She’s taken that insightful disposition into her more contemporary works as we think about what we see when we see photographs, especially how they shape memory more often than we’d like to concede. I enjoyed being amongst her poetry in Procession, because I was seeing the parade of memories as I read, of all the people I’ve encountered, good and bad, but mainly good. Though as you’ll hear us discuss, there are some people who might even warrant a good, “fuck you.” katherena vermette received the Governor General’s Literary Award for Poetry for her first book, North End Love Songs. Her novel The Break won many awards and was a bestseller. She holds an MFA from the University of British Columbia. She is a Red River Métis (Michif) writer from Treaty 1 territory. Her father’s roots run deep in this land, dating back over two centuries, and her mother’s side is Mennonite. This new collection is from House of Anansi Press. She joined me from Winnipeg two and a half weeks ago. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, katherena vermette; Dr. vermette, good morning. The post katherena vermette first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The publisher Scott McIntyre discusses his new memoir A Precarious Enterprise: Making a Life in Canadian Publishing (ECW Press, 2025), with Joseph Planta. A Precarious Enterprise: Making a Life in Canadian Publishing byScott McIntyre (ECW Press, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: A Precarious Enterprise Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   I’ve had a unique perch these last twenty-one years doing the program, seeing the various books that have published in this country, and the publishers themselves. A new memoir sheds more light on the process and the experience of being a publisher. In A Precarious Enterprise: Making a Life in Canadian Publishing, Scott McIntyre recounts the heady days of publishing books when he started working in books in the late 1960s. As he chronicles the rise of independent Canadian publishers like Jack McClelland’s McClelland & Stewart, where he worked early in his career, to the founding of his own house Douglas & McIntyre, he chronicles the fall of the independents, as well as booksellers. In his nearly forty years at Douglas & McIntyre, they published some two thousand books, becoming one of Canada’s largest and most respected houses. And as one reads, the author was always at the heart of the enterprise. You read about how a publisher obtains a book, and the sort of money involved, and the interpersonal relationships that invariably need to be cultivated; and in some cases, personal friendships that develop. You get insights as to the process of publishing something of high quality, and how one goes about promoting and selling the thing. Mr. McIntyre, who joins me now, highlights the memorable bestsellers, some that were even at the centre of the national conversation soon after they were released. This book is full of great stories, and is published by ECW Press. Scott McIntyre is a member of both the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia. For over forty years, he has worked in publishing, and fought for more supportive publishing policy, even shaping a groundbreaking UNESCO treaty that enshrines the principle of cultural diversity within international law. He joined me from here in Vancouver earlier this month. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Scott McIntyre; Mr. McIntyre, good morning.  The post Scott McIntyre first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The award-winning journalist and writer Linden MacIntyre discusses his bestseller An Accidental Villain: A Soldier’s Tale of War, Deceit and Exile (Random House Canada, 2025), with Joseph Planta. An Accidental Villain: A Soldier’s Tale of War, Deceit and Exile by Linden MacIntyre (Random House Canada, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: An Accidental Villain Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   Linden MacIntyre joins me again. He’s just released a new biography, An Accidental Villain: A Soldier’s Tale of War, Deceit and Exile. It’s a compelling and fascinating biography of the little-known Sir Hugh Tudor. He was a junior officer in the Boer War, and went on to  distinguish himself in the First World War as a senior officer, rising to the rank of Major-General. In 1920, old friend Winston Churchill calls on Tudor to serve in Ireland. As Minister of War in Lloyd George’s cabinet, Churchill thinks Tudor could resist the threat to British colonial authority posed by the Irish rebels. Soon, Tudor’s police force, the Black and Tans employ death squads and inflict brutal reprisals against the IRA, as well as Sinn Fein politicians. This all culminates on 21 November 1920, Bloody Sunday, when the Black and Tans slaughter Irish football spectators. Tudor didn’t have a diary or letters that might explain his actions or suggest his motives. That’s what makes Mr. MacIntyre’s new book so compelling. He goes through the archives and the diaries and letters of Tudor’s contemporaries to try and piece through this consequential life. Later in Tudor’s life, he makes his way to Newfoundland. This third act, if you will, provides more intrigue, not to mention family drama. I’ll get Linden to tell us more, about getting to know Tudor, finding out about his life and times, and answering some of the questions as to why Tudor ended up in Newfoundland. Was it to leave his wife and children behind? Was it for other love? Was it simply for business? Was it to dodge assassination attempts? And what happened when it was rumoured assassins might have sought Tudor in his later years in St. John’s. Linden MacIntyre is the award-winning and bestselling author of multiple novels including the Giller Prize winning The Bishop’s Man. He’s won many awards for his distinguished career as a broadcast journalist. He spent twenty-four years as a co-host of the fifth estate. The book is already a Number One bestseller, published by Random House Canada. We taped this interview in late August. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Linden MacIntyre; Mr. MacIntyre, good morning. The post Linden MacIntyre first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

BC Treaty Commissioner and former BC Liberal MLA and cabinet minister George Abbott discusses his new book Unceded: Understanding British Columbia’s Colonial Past and Why It Matters Now (Purich Books, 2025), with Joseph Planta. Unceded: Understanding British Columbia’s Colonial Past and Why It Matters Now by George M. Abbott (Purich Books, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Unceded Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.  A compelling and important book of the year is the newest from George Abbott. Unceded: Understanding British Columbia’s Colonial Past and Why It Matters Now is a well-researched, highly readable narrative of the relationship that the government has had with Indigenous peoples. Mr. Abbott, who joins me now, chronicles over 150 years of BC-Indigenous relations, providing necessary history as well as his own perspective after many years as a member of the Legislative Assembly, and a cabinet minister in the Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark governments. The book provides the background on landmark Supreme Court decisions, as well as the land claims process, whether it’s the Nisga’a or Tsawwassen treaties. George Abbott is a BC treaty commissioner, and a former BC Liberal MLA and cabinet minister. He is an adjunct professor of political science at the University of Victoria, and the author of Big Promises, Small Government: Doing Less with Less in the BC Liberal New Era. I’ll ask George about his work on the BC Treaty Commission, as well as its future, what with various criticism about its usefulness. And though he’s been part of the commission for several months now, he had been proposed as chief commissioner over a decade ago by the last BC Liberal government, only to have the appointment yanked from under him shortly before assuming his seat. I’ll ask about that, and why the treaty process is ideal compared to going to courts. This new book is published by Purich Books, which is an imprint of UBC Press. We spoke last Friday, with George joining me from Victoria, BC. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, George Abbott; Mr. Abbott, good morning.   The post George Abbott first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The award-winning broadcaster Scott Oake discusses his memoir For the Love of a Son: A Memoir of Addiction, Loss, and Hope (Simon & Schuster, 2025), with Joseph Planta. For the Love of a Son: A Memoir of Addiction, Loss, and Hope by Scott Oake (Simon & Schuster, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: For the Love of a Son Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   One of the more moving and inspiring books of the year is the Number One bestseller For the Love of a Son: A Memoir of Addiction, Loss, and Hope. It was released to great notices this past spring. In the book, the popular broadcaster Scott Oake writes honestly and candidly about his son Bruce’s struggle with opioid abuse. It’s a battle that Bruce lost in 2011 at the age of twenty-five, but it’s one that has since inspired Scott, his late wife Anne, and their son Darcy, the celebrated illusionist, to do what they can to help others. In the wake of their grief, they launched the Bruce Oake Recovery Centre, where in Winnipeg, they’ve been lauded for their revolutionary treatment facility staffed by peers, addicts and alcoholics in recovery. The book discusses the challenges at finding the land, raising the money, and breaking ground for this facility, challenges that also include political ones. The book does a tremendous job in chronicling the cycles of addiction. What Bruce, as well as Anne and Scott go through as a family is a struggle, one that has successes but also failures. You see how those with addictions struggle with wanting or asking for help, and when you add the epidemic of addiction throughout the country, not to mention the world, very often getting help is a struggle, least of all financially. The lesson in this book is that, Bruce, even with a family where they had the means to get detoxed and treatment, it wasn’t always a guarantee. Throughout the book you get to know Bruce, he’s not a statistic, but he’s somebody who was a funny, charismatic kid, who found community growing up in boxing and rap music. I’ll ask Scott about what all this has been like for his family, and what sustains him today despite the grief of mourning Bruce, and losing the family’s matriarch, Anne, who died in 2021. Scott Oake is the award-winning CBC Sports, Sportsnet, and Hockey Night in Canada broadcaster. His weekly After Hours, after the late hockey game on Saturday night, is a popular must-view show not just for hockey fans, but for folks like me who enjoy a good interview. Scott’s skill at storytelling is great to watch throughout the NHL season. He has covered Canada’s biggest sports moments, including the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, and the CFL. He is on the Media Roll of Honour of the Manitoba Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association, and is a Member of the Order of Manitoba, and Order of Canada, which he was invested with in Ottawa this past Canada Day. 100% of the after-tax royalties of this book, co-written with Michael Hingston, will be donated to the Bruce Oake Recovery Centre. The book is published by Simon & Schuster. I spoke to Scott in mid-August. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Scott Oake; Mr. Oake, good morning. The post Scott Oake first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The journalist and author Marjorie Simmins discusses her new memoir In Search of Puffins: Stories of Loss, Light and Flight (Pottersfield Press, 2025), with Joseph Planta. In Search of Puffins: Stories of Loss, Light and Flight by Marjorie Simmins (Pottersfield Press, 2025). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: In Search of Puffins Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   I first encountered Marjorie Simmins in 2016, when she emailed me after it had been suggested by mutual friends that she be in touch. She and her beloved Silver Donald Cameron were making their way west in late 2016 to winter in the milder climes of Metro Vancouver from where they made their home in the east, in Nova Scotia. Both Don and Marjorie are originally from Vancouver. I was delighted to have both Marjorie and Don on the program, as soon as they motored their way across the country. They both came into the office at home to chat, first Marjorie on a book of hers, and Don on one of his, and then we did one with the two of them. I saw firsthand their affection and respect for one another, not just as married people but as writers. And it was lovely seeing how they supported one another. I look up from my desk now at a photograph from that sunny November day, a selfie of the three of us. It’s with the warmth of that memory that I sat at my desk recently, looking up at that photo on the wall from time to time, as I read Marjorie’s latest book In Search of Puffins: Stories of Loss, Light and Flight. The book looks at Marjorie and Don’s story, their love, their life together, and the loss after Don’s death at the height of COVID in June 2020. Don’s still around, as you’ll read, certainly throughout the book, he’s like a character, a voice through the book, guiding Marjorie, or giving her a laugh. The book is also great at illustrating grief and how hard it is to navigate. Marjorie during Don’s final days, and how she goes about to a new chapter in her life is damn near heroic. Marjorie joins me again, and I’ll ask her about how she finally got writing again, especially finishing this book. I’ll ask her about wanting to move back to Vancouver, but how she found that unfeasible. There’s a lot in this book, a lot that’s useful, but a lot that’s just worthwhile as Marjorie is a great writer; in some parts of the book, it reads as poetic. The website for more is at www.marjoriesimmins.ca. This new book is from Pottersfield Press. We taped this interview nearly two weeks ago, with Marjorie joining me from Truro, Nova Scotia. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Marjorie Simmins; Ms. Simmins, good morning. The post Marjorie Simmins first appeared on thecommentary.ca.

The writer and singer-songwriter Rodney DeCroo discusses his new book Night Moves: The Street Photography of Rodney DeCroo (Anvil Press, 2025), with Joseph Planta. Night Moves: The Street Photography of Rodney DeCroo by Rodney DeCroo (Anvil Press, 2025). Click to buy this book from Anvil Press: Night Moves Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta: I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.   Rodney DeCroo joins me now. The author, poet, singer-songwriter has just published a new collection of photographs. It’s a collection that largely reflects the world that Mr. DeCroo sees in East Vancouver. It’s often ironic, whimsical, serious, tense, but always real. The images he captures with his camera, largely self-taught, evoke a Vancouver that’s not what people immediately see when they Google for images of Vancouver. This is the Vancouver that’s on Commercial Drive, or Main Street. This isn’t Kerrisdale or Kits, Yaletown or Champlain Heights. It’s a Vancouver that’s trying or barely trying to make ends meet, that’s crushed by the world around us. The evocative photographs feature people as they go about trying to get to work in the heat, in the snow, and since it’s Vancouver, the rain. Sometimes there are photographs of people just taking a rest on the curb or the bus stop bench, or guys shooting the shit at a coffee shop on The Drive. I’ll ask Mr. DeCroo about this collection, how he goes about taking pictures, and more. Rodney DeCroo is the author of two previous books of poetry Allegheny, BC, and Next Door to the Butcher Shop. Also, a well-known, touring singer-songwriter with eight albums to his credit. His solo plays Stupid Boy in an Ugly Town and Didn’t Hurt have toured across Canada and the US. The full title of the book is Night Moves: The Street Photography of Rodney DeCroo. It’s published by Anvil Press. The foreword is written by Mike Usinger. I talked to Rodney nearly two weeks ago. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Rodney DeCroo; Mr. DeCroo, good morning.   The post Rodney DeCroo first appeared on thecommentary.ca.