ELAN History Series: 2012
ACCORD Phase 2
ELAN AGM at Shift Space. Left to right: Peter MacGibbon (VP), Shelagh Plunkett (Secretary), Chuck Childs (President), Guy Rodgers (ED), and Tim Brady (Treasurer).
Photo by: Unknown (If you are the photographer of this photo, you can email us at communications@quebec-elan.org so that we can credit you!)
The ACCORD project created an inspirational workshop series for the staff of Regional Associations from the Eastern Townships, West Quebec, Quebec City, Rouyn-Noranda, the Gaspe, and communities along the Saint Laurent from Rimouski on the south shore to Baie-Comeau on the north shore—as well as communities along the Labrador coast and the Magdalen Islands.
The ACCORD project produced 26 artistic events around the province, where 111 artists performed for 6,500 audience members in rural and remote communities. These included four workshops for twelve regional associations, a series of touring events, the launch of a website, and schmoozers in Montreal, Wakefield, Quebec City, Townships and Laurentians. ACCORD workshops provided artists with practical skills on planning, scheduling, budgeting and publicizing events.
Documenting Histories
ELAN partnered with Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) to sponsor and adjudicate the Quebec Roots Video Contest. The contest was co-presented by Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) and CBC Montreal.
The Quebec Roots Video contest featured youth-produced stories of Quebec’s English-speaking communities, telling the stories of their communities through pictures, sound and spoken word. The videos shared a glimpse into their personal histories through the traditions of oral history, and recording the stories of community and family elders. The three winning submissions included family histories in St-Lambert, the fishing village of Tabatière in the Lower North Shore, and a family’s passage from Wales in the 1600s through Massachusetts and Vermont, to the Eastern Townships of Quebec.
Official Language Media Strategy
Through 2012, ELAN made representations to CRTC, the Parliamentary and Senate Standing Committees on Official Languages. A Community Broadcast and Media Strategy meeting in 2012 brought together community partners to forge alliances, and leverage opportunities and resources. The Media Strategy led to lobbying with Videotron that ended up producing 20% English-language content on MAtv a few years later.
Poster for community meeting to develop a Broadcast and Media Strategy in collaboration with Concordia University Television.
‘The Quebec English-language Production Council (QEPC) was created to represent the English-language production industry in Quebec. Its members include major producers of English-language television programs, feature films, and other media, as well as ACTRA-Montreal and the Directors Guild of Canada –Quebec Region. Together, these associations have over 2,500 members representing about 80% of the people working in the English-language industry in Quebec. Kirwan Cox became QEPC’s executive director. In subsequent interventions with CRTC, QEPC represents producers while ELAN represents the interests of the English-speaking community for content that tells its stories.
In 2012, Rogers purchased CJNT to create a Montreal version of CITY TV. CRTC’s decision 2012- 697 made it a requirement for Rogers to spend at least 3% of its national independent production budget for CITY TV in English Quebec. This was the first time a private broadcaster was required to take into consideration the interests of minority language producers.’
From A Short History of Broadcasting Advocacy.
Board photo Left to right: Chuck Childs, Susan McIntosh, Anne Clark, Rob Lutes, Valerie Buddle, Shelagh Plunkett, Andrew Tay, Amy Blackmore, Dan Webster, Bettina Forget, Tim Brady, Geoff Agombar (staff), Bryan Demchinsky, and Peter MacGibbon.
Photo by: Guy Rodgers
Linguistic Bridges
ELAN participated in the 2012 Montréal, métropole culturelle forum, reviewing the 2007-2017 Action Plan. At this time, Quebec’s then-Premier Pauline Marois of the Parti Québécois announced the investment of over 100 million dollars to fund public libraries, outdoor public art, the creation of more living and studio space for artists, and stimulation for private funding for cultural initiatives.
Among the recommendations pursued by the Montréal, métropole culturelle forum were the development of the Quartier des spectacles “by supporting the development of new, affordable cultural facilities and spaces”, the “development of cultural districts” throughout Montreal boroughs, and assistance programs to owners of heritage buildings in Montreal. Guy Rodgers delivered a speech (in French) about the inclusion of English-speakers into the cultural landscape of Montreal, which turned out to be the most quoted and tweeted intervention of the day.
The Assemblée Nationale passed a unanimous motion celebrating “the contribution of our francophone and anglophone artists in spreading Quebec culture on the international stage”. Simon Brault wrote that Montreal’s multilingualism is an asset that makes the city modern and cool.
… Culture Montreal is an excellent forum where artists from all ethnic and linguistic backgrounds can come together to speak with other artists and with the citizens in the communities in which we live.
From presentation by Guy Rodgers on November 26, 2012.
ELAN Schmoozer at Bily Kun. Left to right: Dima Karout, Dan Webster, Anna, Yuki, and Courtney Wing.
Photo by: Guy Rodgers
