Conform

Conform tells the fascinating story of the nearly 8,000 Mennonites who left Manitoba and Saskatchewan for northern Mexico in the 1920s, in the largest mass emigration in Canada’s history. Convinced they had been promised autonomy over the education of their children when they immigrated from imperial Russia a half-century earlier, they felt betrayed by public school legislation introduced during the First World War, meant to instill loyalty to Britain and a common Anglo-Canadian culture. Fearful for the survival of their churches and their traditional, separate way of life, these Mennonites made the difficult decision to leave their established communities and once again start over in a new country that offered the rights and freedoms they considered critical to the exercise of their faith. Directed and written by Andrew Wall.

Produced by Refuge 31 Films and the Plett Foundation.