Concordia's Journalist-in-Residence reaches new heights with experiential opportunities

Award-winning documentary journalist Francine Pelletier says increasing visibility of documentary in the department was her goal when coming into the role as journalist-in-residence in Concordia’s Department of Journalism, three and a half years ago.

Three and a half years in, Pelletier says her residency has done that and more.

“I’ve loved these last three years as journalist-in-residence,” Pelletier says. “It's been wonderful to be privy to the students' enthusiasm.”

Her residency thus far has consisted of virtual workshops, mentorships and screenings with high-profile documentary filmmakers like Julian Sher, Sarah Spring, Martin Duckworth, David Gutnick and Félix Rose.

Pelletier also hosted a screening of her latest documentary, Battle for Quebec’s Soul. The following year, she published a book, Au Québec, c’est comme ça qu'on vit, expanding on the documentary’s findings.

In the last year, Pelletier has begun offering students experiential learning opportunities.

Experiential learning opportunities resonate with students

Last semester, Pelletier gave students the special opportunity to tour the National Film Board of Canada in Montreal, where students saw the inner workings of the cultural institution responsible for many groundbreaking films in Quebec and Canada.

Pelletier also invited some students to shadow her on her own documentary shoots for her upcoming documentary on Quebec Solidaire’s Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois in Gatineau and Trois-Rivières.

Both opportunities were a hit in the department.

“Journalism was thought to be something that was best learnt in the trenches, not on school benches,” Pelletier says. "Hands-on experience is crucial to the apprenticeship of journalism."

“There's nothing more exciting for students than to suddenly get a glimpse of what their professional life might look like, while still immersed in university. It acts as a huge light at the end of a long tunnel.”

Undergraduate journalism student Jasper Bleho-Levacher was one of the students selected to shadow Pelletier on her documentary shoot this semester in Gatineau.

“I gained valuable experience in the field and in documentary work,” Bleho-Levacher says. “It was a little intimidating at first, but it ended up being a really great experience.”

Students had the chance to shoot footage, interview and watch Pelletier and her team in-action.

“We were largely autonomous and that was great because we were free to cover what we wanted to cover and let our personal journalistic instincts guide us,” Bleho-Levacher says. “I was able to experience something new and to be present for a very important moment for our province.”

For Graduate Diploma in Journalism student Julia Israel who went on the Trois-Rivières shooting day, this opportunity was incomparable.

“Watching a journalist in the field is eye-opening and is not something that can be offered within a classroom,” Israel says. “It was exciting to see Pelletier and her team run around the debate venue, following politicians and different subjects of the documentary for interviews.”

“I gained a lot of insight into their improvisational skills, and how they prepare for a shoot in advance to be as adaptable as possible. It was very helpful to see how they worked together as a team.”

Momentum for more documentary in department

Pelletier says she’d love to see documentary become an even larger research attraction and strength in the department, alongside the department’s Science Journalism Hub and Institute for Inclusive, Investigative and Innovative Journalism, reflecting an ever-changing media landscape.

“Less and less students are pining for a permanent job in a newsroom and are focusing more on what they want to do -- on their own creativity. The growing interest in documentary, with its possibilities of being more personal, more original or simply more thorough, is a direct response to these changing times,” Pelletier says.

“It's a real pleasure as well as a privilege to be helping students discover what they feel passionate about.”

Find out more about Concordia’s Department of Journalism.