In a scene from 'Triage: Dr. James Orbinski's Humanitarian Dilemma,' Dr. Orbinski and Dr. Tamir examine patient with a gunshot wound in Baidoa Hospital, Somalia. (Steve Simon)

Amnesty International is staging its 13th annual Human Rights Film Festival in communities across Canada with many of the films shot under dangerous circumstances to capture powerful stories of struggle, sacrifice, and triumph.

Among the films Amnesty is bringing to the screen are Triage: Dr. James Orbinski’s Humanitarian Dilemma and Burma VJ, both eye-opening accounts of a world where people faced profound hardship with inspirational courage.

Dr. James Orbinski worked with Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) during the height of the Somali famine and the Rwandan genocide. In a style of realistic “film truth” called the vérité style, director Patrick Reed takes us on a tour of Orbinski’s memories of this dark chapter in human history.

To triage, we learn, is to pass judgement on whether a person can be medically rescued in a situation where there are more wounded than can possibly be treated. Doctors are forced to prioritize treatment by sticking a piece of tape to their patients' foreheads; a one means treat right away, a two should be treated within 24 hours, and a three means the person is judged irretrievable.

It's a tale where those with the heart to help try to save lives in a world bent on killing, and the evidence of this pummels their consciousness daily. Yet they try to save those that they can or at the very least help the dying pass in some semblance of comfort. This is the premise of Orbinski’s conclusion of the importance of the right to human dignity.

In 'Burma VJ,' Burmese monks lead crowds of people in an uprising against the country's military dictatorship in September 2007. Their rallying cry: 'All beings of the universe be free, free from fear, free from distress, free from poverty, may they hav (Courtesy of Amnesty International Vancouver)

This essence of dignity can be found in the small details Orbinski reflects on throughout the film, such as the mother and son who climb through his window at dusk and sleep in his coat closet for safety and protection, and how he risks his life to satisfy a little girl’s hopes of rescuing her injured mother. The sanctity of human dignity emerges from the utter humanity and constant compassion Orbinski shows toward the people he meets in his travels.

Burma VJ follows a group of amateur video journalists in Burma as they succeed in shattering the propaganda of the state military dictatorship. It is through the eyes of these brave young men—and with the help of an independent television station called the Democratic Voice of Burma, located in Oslo, Norway and broadcasting via satellite—that the world learned about the events of September 2007, when 30,000 monks marched in Rangoon under the banner of freedom for the people.

“The people are suffering; the government is doing nothing,” says Joshua, the film’s main protagonist of his reason for risking so much to document the truth.

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Anders Østergaard, the film is comprised largely of the VJ’s own footage to tell the moving story of a people standing up to a military dictatorship and the incredulous involvement of Buddhist monks. For those who have ever pondered what could move people to risk their lives in hopes of change, this extraordinary film offers a firsthand account.

This year’s festival coincides with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In honour of this and Amnesty’s current action campaign, Demand Dignity Vancouver organizers have arranged an art exhibit on the topic of dignity to dovetail with the festival.

Local artists have been invited to submit works that “consider the meaning of human dignity.” Festival visitors are invited to bid on the work in a silent auction. Admission to view the artwork is free during festival hours.

The 2009 Amnesty International Film Festival is Vancouver’s biggest ever, with over 25 films, showing from November 13 -16. The festival is playing during the same dates in Toronto. After that, a version of the festival will take place in Victoria (November 20-22), Whitehorse (November 27-28) and Calgary (December 10). For more info, visit www.amnestyfilmfest.ca.