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Documentary and Television: From Marriage of Reason to True Love
Forum 2006

Friday, November 10, 2006, 9 am to 5 pm
NFB Cinema, 1564 Saint-Denis, Montreal
Fee: $20, lunch and RIDM kit included; students, $12

This year, on the occasion of Forum 2006, “Documentary and Television: From marriage of reason to true love,” the Documentary Network invited the professional community to discuss how to improve the presence and presentation of documentary on private and public television.

Television is the primary mode of distribution for documentary film. Through television, documentary can quickly reach hundreds of thousands of citizens. But audience numbers don’t tell the whole story; the quality of the viewing experience also counts. The issue for documentary is whether television gives it a form (length, commercial breaks, cross-platform formats) and presentation framework (interview with filmmaker and participants, citizen and expert debates, advertising) that will lead to the film being well received. Does the audience - or rather do audiences - have access to a range of genres? Do current budgets allow the subject to be treated properly? As for documentary itself, is it finding a new face? Is its language appropriate, relevant and bold?

Three multi-generational teams of panellists shared their reflections on the content, form and presentation of documentary on broadcast television: Fernand Dansereau (filmmaker, An Ecology of Hope), Nathalie Barton (producer, American Fugitive: The Truth About Hassan), Yanick Létourneau (filmmaker, Chronique urbaine), Luc Harvey (director and producer, Le Tsunami, in the series Tragédies), Carmen Garcia (producer and co-director, Nadia’s Journey), Hélène Choquette (filmmaker, Bonnes à tout faire), Patricio Henriquez (filmmaker, Disobey) and Martine Asselin (filmmaker, Jennifer en 3 temps).

An intelligent, open and constructive dialogue got under way as representatives from the major public and private broadcasters responded to those reflections: Jean Pelletier, Senior Director, Public Affairs, Features and Documentaries, Radio-Canada; Louise Gendron, Executive Director, Programming and New Media, Télé-Québec; Jean-Pierre Laurendeau, Vice-President, Programming, Canal D; Jacinthe Brisebois, Head of Acquisitions and External Production, ARTV; Lyne Denault, Vice-President, Programming, Canal Vie.

The moderator was André Picard, the meeting secretary was Geneviève Quessy, and the Forum 2006 coordinator was Lucette Lupien.

The Documentary Network would like to warmly thank the sponsors of Forum 2006: Telefilm Canada, SODEC, the Société civile des auteurs multimédia, the National Film Board of Canada, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, Radio-Canada, Télé-Québec. Special thanks to the Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal (RIDM) for generously hosting the event during their Festival.