John Bessai

Research

Research & Scholarship Research Focus

My research examines how media, public service institutions, and digital storytelling shape public discourse and social transformation. Key areas of investigation include:

  • Digital storytelling and democratic engagement – How NFBC interactive media projects challenge dominant narratives and serve as alternative public spheres.
  • Cultural and environmental memory through media – Examining how visual and material culture shape public understandings of ecological history and sustainability.
  • Media’s role in crisis response and reconciliation – Analyzing how documentary storytelling addresses colonial legacies and Indigenous representation.
  • Survival through artistic style – Investigating how art and media reflect societal resilience, particularly in NFBC productions.

Selected Publications & Media Contributions

  • Bessai, J. (Forthcoming, March 2026). The National Film Board of Canada’s Multimedia Expansions of Global Genre Fiction. Literature, Critique, and Empire Today.
  • Bessai, J. (2024). Interdisciplinary Dialogues: Media Arts in Humanities Scholarship. Scaffold: The Journal of the Institute for Comparative Studies in Literature, Art and Culture.
  • Bessai, J. (2024). Review of the book Sitting Bull and the Paradox of Lakota Nationhood by G. C. Anderson. H-Net Reviews.
  • Bessai, J. (2017). The Margaret Atwood Effect. Waterfront Magazine.

As a director, writer, researcher, and course director, I integrate innovation, entrepreneurship, and narrative to create projects that inspire public dialogue and drive social action.

Selected Projects

  • Green Heroes (Producer, Director, Writer, 2009–2018) – A multi-platform environmental documentary series with TVO profiling sustainability pioneers.
  • The Paul Kane Project (Producer, Director, Writer, 2000–2006) – An interactive documentary and museum exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum.
  • Museum Maestros (Producer, Director, Writer, 2007) – A documentary film for Bravo!
  • Radical History: The Ward (Producer, Researcher) – A narrative game in the design stage that explores post-World War II modernization through the demolition and expropriation of Toronto’s downtown core, impacting Chinatown, war refugees, immigrants, and the city’s poor.

My work has been recognized at HotDocs, MIPTV, The Banff World Media Festival, the Stark Museum (Texas), the Musée des Beaux-Arts (Montreal), and the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto).

Recent Conference Presentations

I have presented my research at leading interdisciplinary conferences, including:

  • Digital Territories: The NFBC’s Interactive Projects as Sites of Land Reclamation and Cultural Freedom (AAAD Interdisciplinary Conference, James Madison University, USA, 2025).
  • Challenging Historical Narratives: Environmental Memory Through Visual and Material Culture (Global New Voices Conference, Association for Art History, London, 2024).
  • Truth and Reconciliation through Artistic Narratives: The NFBC’s Role in Addressing Colonial Legacies in Canada (Northeast Conference on British Studies, Amherst College, 2024).
  • Interpreting Survival through Style: The NFBC’s Artistic Contributions to Public Discourse (Making Style Work Conference, Yale University, 2024).
  • Narratives of Resilience: The NFBC’s Role in Societal Change During Crises (Michael Gordon Memorial History Graduate Conference, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2024).

My work combines scholarly research, media practice, and public engagement to contribute to ongoing discussions about cultural democracy, digital storytelling, and the media’s role in shaping public consciousness.