Based on a true story, the The Stork Derby follows the tragic misadventures of three women who competed to produce the most babies in order to qualify for an unusual bequest in a will.

In 1926, when wealthy lawyer Charles Millar died in Toronto, it was discovered that he had bequeathed a million dollars to the woman in Toronto who would have the most babies in the ten years after his death. Fueled by the circulation-hungry Toronto Daily Star, “The Great Toronto Stork Derby” held the Dominion in thrall throughout the Depression years, with hundreds and thousands of women hoping to escape the ravages of the Depression via mass procreation.

The contest boiled down to three front runners: French-Canadian Vivanne Kennelly (Pascale Montpetit), whose anxiousness to win at all costs led to tragedy; Colleen Brant (Janine Thierault), who had multiple babies by multiple fathers; and Gina Bonaggio (Ellen David), an impoverished Italian immigrant. Dutifully chronicling each twist and turn of the contest, Canada’s only female journalist Kate Harrington (Megan Follows) first regards the whole affair as demeaning to women, but ultimately becomes an ardent crusader for fair play when, during the 1938 court trial to determine the winner, it becomes obvious that the Canadian government continues to reinforce traditional colonial bigotry and prejudice. (2002)