Contributors: Amy Magowan Greene, Meky Ottawa and Iphigénie Marcoux-Fortier

 

HOMING explores the process of documentary co-research-creation as a tool for dialogue with women from different cultures living in the same rural area. A collage emerges of diverse microhistories of women, home and rurality.

 

What about consent? Amy says: “Last year, I found myself in a yurt, with two people that I barely knew. In fact, I had never met with Meky before. And they were listening to me with care to what I had to say. But, before that, the table had been laid. Iphigénie has send me a consent form that attracted my attention. [...] It talked about creating conditions of consent that allowed for and promoted creative risks. So, I saw that at any point in the process I could withdraw, select, manipulate the material that I produced. I was at all times the owner of how I was represented.” HOMING, beyond story, cares about sensitive engagement.

 

What about languages? Meky says: “She just asked us 'What is home for you?' and I started to answer the question in French, which is my second language, and I had a hard time to really connect my thoughts in my heart and my memories and my reflection [...] And then I started to speak in Atikamekw and it really connected from really what I think, what I feel, who am I in my spirit. I think it was very interesting for me to get to know myself this way and, you know, just go in my mind and discover places where I never went before.” HOMING, against story, cares about listening to others in the way they wish to speak.

 

What about storytelling? Iphigénie says: “HOMING goes beyond the act of storytelling, inasmuch as it uses documentary co-creation to generate new social configurations of a rural territory. In order to open our hearts and to see and hear stories of encounters of home and at home, we need to take new roads. Storytelling is not the purpose of HOMING; it is the tool in order to create otherwise the land we live on.” HOMING, using stories, cares about creating a sense of home and belonging.