Canadian Culture Through Film – 13 – Earth Day + the films of Xavier Dolan

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Yesterday, April 21st, was Canadian Film Day, hence the t-shirt, and today, April 22nd, we celebrate another Earth Day, and for the occasion I thought of showing you a short documentary I made in 2012 called Symphonie pour un 22 avril (Symphony for an Earth Day), capturing a historical march organized by Dominic Champagne, a great theatre and circus director, and reknown activist. This protest called upon everyone in Montreal and the rest of Quebec to come together to create what may be the biggest flashmob in history: 300 000 people creating the shape of a hand-shaped tree. This symbol was inspired by The Man Who Planted Trees, the incredible animation film I shared with you a few weeks back. Frédéric Back, the film’s creator, joined the march, and I got to stage the moment when he planted an oak tree himself, right at the root of the human tree. I had the immense pleasure and privilege of working with some of the greatest talents I’ve ever been in contact with, many of whom didn’t have any particular political stance, and might not have usually been activists. I was one of those, given the great responsibility of capturing a message I had not been close to until then. I felt this distance gave me perspective on the issues, the slogans, the fellowship that developed in Montreal that great summer of 2012. I would be lying if I told you I didn’t get caught by the wave that took us over then. Something awoke in me that day, perhaps the idea that caring is easier when we are together, when we are many. It was a summer of possibilities, and while almost only 10 years have passed, history has already repeated itself many times over.

For the second part of the class we will look at the work the young and very talented filmmaker, Xavier Dolan. His first film, 2009’s I Killed My Mother, premiered at Cannes. He was 19 years old. Since then he has written and directed no less than 8 feature films, and won Cannes’ most coveted award, the Grand Prix. You will appreciate this Mile-Ender’s singular vision and courage to express the most profound and often difficult emotions. His films could easily be categorized as pretentious, or fall prey to melodrama, but somehow the honesty in his work rises above all of that.

We will hence look at Xavier Dolan’s entire filmography in the hope that you will also fall in love with this visionary director.

Canadian Culture Through Film is filmmaker Jason Rodi’s first teaching experience. It is a course given to Vermont’s Champlain College students meant to immerse these young Americans in a neighbouring culture through the contagious passion Jason has for cinema. Much to his delight, the class is taught online, live from Rodi’s Montreal production studio, NOMAD.

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