Playing Oneself

December 6, 2004

December 6
Screening debate in the presence of the characters from the films Being Osama, Édith et Michel and Enfants de choeur.

Montreal, November 26, 2004 - With the support of the National Film Board of Canada, following in the wake of the successful 7th edition of the Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal, documentary fans are invited to attend the next Lundis du Doc on December 6, to meet some real-life documentary film characters: Ossama Naggar (Being Osama), Édith Fournier (Édith et Michel) and Pierre Anthian (Enfants de Choeur). The film directors will also be on hand to exchange on the topic “Playing oneself” and to react to excerpts from the films.

How do one portray oneself on screen without giving the impression one is acting a role? Is it easy to be oneself in front of the camera? How does one react to this intrusion into one’s private life? In principle, characters chosen to be in a film accept to reveal their true selves to the filmmaker and the audience. Yet does the image they project, which is only partial, correspond to their original expectations? Do they feel betrayed to some extent? Can one feasibly protect or control the image one projects without affecting the outcome of the film?

All this depends on the level of confidence and collaboration established between the filmmaker and the subject. The filmmaker has his or her own perception and point of view to defend on an artistic level, as shaped during the editing process.

Egyptian-born Ossama Naggar, an opera lover and importer of classical music, is one of the six Montreal Ossamas we meet in the film Being Osama by Mahmoud Kabbour and Tim Schwab. The film draws intimate portraits of these characters, united by a common name and their experience as Arabs living in Canada after the events of 9/11.

Edith Fournier is a psychologist who is presently the primary support person for her film director husband Michel Moreau, stricken with Alzheimer’s disease. In Jocelyn Clarke’s film Édith et Michel, Edith accepts to reveal the intimacy of their daily existence, deeply affected by the onset of this tragic illness.

Pierre Anthian was the Accueil Bonneau choir director in Enfants de choeur by Magnus Isacsson. We observe him attempting to master, with difficulty, the turbulent members of his troupe. He is presently finishing a work of fiction entitled Recyclage that borrows heavily from real life, based on characters from the choir.

Lundis du Doc is organized by the Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal (RIDM), in partnership with the National Film Board (ONF). It is a series of screening-debates that attempt to shed light on the creative process in documentary filmmaking and to reflect on various aspects of the profession.

This screening-debate will take place at the NFB Theatre and will be moderated by RIDM head of programming Bernard Boulad.

Monday, December 6, NFB Theatre
Tickets on sale at the door: Regular: $7 / Students and seniors: $5

Contact: Swann Freslon, Head of Communications, RIDM
Information: (514) 499-3676 - www.ridm.qc.ca