HOMING with Iphigénie Marcoux-Fortier
Filmmaker Iphigenie Marcoux-Fortier initiated Homing as a way to explore the concept of home with the rural women of her extended community. She invited women of diverse backgrounds to speak together and to make short films about what home means to them. The notion of “unlearning” colonial frameworks – personally and collectively – was central to the project. Building trust was a critical first step in developing partners. Iphigenie invited participants into her family YURT (a small circular building) that is on the land where she was raised. By inviting participants onto her territory, her intention was to set the stage for intimate encounters and to offer a form of hospitality that she would weave through every step of the process. She then helped each woman to make a short film about a place or space they consider home. Finally she curated conversations and events to bring her partners into conversation with each other.
IN CONVERSATION
February 3rd, 2021
HOMING is a documentary co-creation initiated by Quebec filmmaker Iphigenie Marcoux-Fortier. In partnership with 26 rural Quebec women of diverse backgrounds, she co-created a series of short poetic films about what home means to each woman and used these films to instigate dialogue. This conversation begins with a short overview of the Homing project, an initiative that Iphigenie developed as part of her Masters in Communication Studies at Concordia University in Montreal. Before initiating Homing, Iphigenie had worked for years facilitating collaborative initiatives with Indigenous media organizations such as the Mapuche Cinema and Communication School of the Aylla Rewe Budi on Mapuche territory (Chile) and with Wapikoni, a Montreal/Tiohtià:ke non-profit that trains Indigenous community members in filmmaking. Iphigenie explains the importance of “setting the stage” for co-creation and what steps she took to inspire trust. In the second part of the video, Iphi and Mance Dominique Champagne each discuss their motivations for being involved with the Homing project and challenges they faced. Mance was one of the first participants to join the Homing project and after years of working as a cook on naval ships she was eager to explore what home means to her at this moment in her life.
Watch The Homes of Céline Here
Iphigénie Marcoux-Fortier has been creating documentaries for over twenty years. She is the co-founder of the production company Les glaneuses (lesglaneuses.org), through which she co-creates films anchored in the concept of territory. These films raise questions of identity, highlight intercultural encounters, explore philosophies of life and death, and are attuned to small gestures, details and places. As a filmmaker-mentor, she has accompanied the creation of more than forty short films in diverse indigenous contexts. In light of her experience, Iphigénie conceives documentary filmmaking as a political and poetic process and as a tool for bridge building.
Mance Dominique Champagne Mance was one of the first participants to join the Homing project and after years of working as a cook on naval ships, she was eager to explore what home might mean at this moment in her life.