Pearson-Shoyama Institute
PLACE DU CANADA

Referendum Take Two/Prise 2

Hello,

The National Film Board of Canada has produced a film called "Referendum: Take Two/Prise 2." I am attaching the press release for the film and thought you may be interested and that you might have some interest in posting it on your site. Thanks very much for your time.

From: tina verma
t.verma@nfb-onf.ca

For Immediate Release:

REFERENDUM: TAKE TWO / PRISE 2

Premieres in English on OCTOBER 27 on Newsworld
Premieres in French on OCTOBER 29 on Canal D

Montreal, October, 1996:

The 1995 Quebec vote on sovereignty was the most important political event in recent Canadian history. REFERENDUM: TAKE TWO / PRISE 2 is a 70-minute, bilingual film produced by the National Film Board of Canada's English and French-language documentary studios. It will be broadcast on television to mark the first anniversary of the vote.

The English-language version premieres on Newsworld's The Passionate Eye at 9:00 p.m. EDT, on Sunday, October 27th. The French-language version airs on Canal D at 8:00 p.m. EDT, on Tuesday, October 29th.

Culled from over 250 hours of footage and the work of 23 filmmakers, REFERENDUM: TAKE TWO / PRISE 2 provides a nuanced and fascinating portrait of a society at a decisive moment in its history.

Featuring the famous and not-so-famous -- from a philosphical cab driver to leading figures of the "oui" and "non" sides -- the film captures the passion and polemics surrounding the second referendum on Quebec sovereignty in fifteen years.

The film is particularly interesting as a portrait of people and their emotions. A cinéma verité-style documentary, REFERENDUM: TAKE TWO / PRISE 2 was filmed on street corners, in taxis, stores and private homes as well as in newsrooms and political backrooms. It includes no narration or off-camera commentary. The images speak for themselves -- allowing Quebeckers and other Canadians to tell their own stories as they express their hopes and fears for the future during the tension-ridden days leading up to the vote.

"This is a rare and exciting instance of collaboration between French and English-language filmmakers," says producer Adam Symansky. "The documentary brought together directors from across the country, representing various aspects of the debate: francophone, anglophone and allophone, native and non-native".

Among the political and media figures who appear in the movie are Quebec cabinet minister Louise Harel, former Quebec cabinet minister Liza Frulla, Grand Chief of the Cree Mathew Coon-Come, CBC and Radio-Canada journalists Michael Enright and Bernard Derome, Montreal columnist Josh Freed, and academics Charles Taylor and Christian Dufour.

REFERENDUM: TAKE TWO / PRISE 2 was produced for the National Film Board of Canada by Adam Symansky and Jacques Vallée. The coordinating director was Stéphane Drolet and production manager was Marc Bertrand. The film was edited by Babalou Hamelin.

The following filmmakers were involved in the project: Joséphine Bacon, François Beauchemin, Diane Beaudry, Jean-Thomas Bédard, Maurice Bulbulian, Marie Cadieux, Marrin Canell, Paul Cowan, Yves Dion, Zoe Dirse, Martin Duckworth, Sam Grana, Jerry Krepakevich, Richard Lavoie, Martin Leclerc, Mike Mahoney, Sharon McGowan, Guy Nantel, Carol O'Brien, Gilles Péloquin, Gerry Rogers, Beverly Shaffer and Cheryl Sim.