Roxanne Boucher is the winner of the Adrian Sheppard Memorial Award for 2024. The professors unanimously chose Roxanne for her outstanding contributions to the program and her academic excellence. Finishing her fourth year, Roxanne has one of the highest GPAs in the program, made more impressive by the year she spent studying abroad in the UK. Like the award鈥檚 namesake, Roxanne is inquisitive, thoughtful, and has a keen sense of the larger intellectual and moral stakes of film theory and culture. With this award we encourage Roxanne to pursue her studies further at the graduate level and we award it with the certainty that, regardless, she has a bright future ahead. Congratulations Roxanne!

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Congratulations to Honours Film Studies and Journalism graduate Shadea Nance who was one of six recipients of the 杏吧原创 University Student Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Research Award.

The post Film Studies graduate receives the CU Student Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Research Award appeared first on Film Studies.

Penny McCann is an Ottawa-based narrative and experimental filmmaker with over 30 years of experience. McCann got her start in 杏吧原创鈥檚 Film Studies Program with a double major in English Literature. 

How did you get into filmmaking?

I went through a not wholly circuitous route to get into filmmaking; I started off at 杏吧原创 in a general degree and went into English lit when they were setting up the film studies department. They were offering some film courses so I started taking film courses and ended up double majoring in English literature and film studies. Then I did my Master’s in Canadian studies with a focus on Canadian film, because there was no master鈥檚 in film studies at the time. I was busy working in theatre, and I did a lot of work with Sock 鈥楴鈥� Buskin (Theatre Company). And so, when I graduated with my master鈥檚, I ended up working at the Great Canadian Theatre Company. I was involved in theater for maybe five or six years, learning how to work in front of house before I got into stage management. And so I got into film when I was a stage manager in a festival theatre. I was hanging out with actors, writers, directors, and people like that. And then my friend, Sybil Penny, said 鈥淲hy don’t you have a series of one-act plays written by women? Why don’t you write something?鈥� So, I did, and it went on stage, and I was managing. It’s a bit stressful to watch the play that you wrote while you’re in the booth calling cues. The play was actually pretty good, and so that play became The Sisters, my first drama which I made in 1993. That initial one-act play with three actors became the first thing that led me to working with a local production company that was, strangely enough, looking for somebody with experience in stage management and some knowledge of film. That was me, so I became an associate producer, learned the business, and started working on my own projects.

What was your experience in this program at that time?

There were a lot of great professors and many crossovers between English Lit and film, which was really interesting. Everybody was enthusiastic, so it was a very good time to be there.

Are there any memories that specifically stand out?

In film room 100, I think it’s still downstairs in St. Pat’s, we watched films on 16-millimetre at the time, so that was interesting. There was a host of filmmakers who came to visit and speak to us. Filmmakers like Donald Brittain came to visit, which was very cool. Brittain was a National Film Board Director, and he did quite amazing documentaries in the 1960s and 70s and into the 80s.

How did your experiences at 杏吧原创 help you with your filmmaking?

It gave me a strong background in film theory and analysis, a range of directorial styles, and national styles, so it was a really good overview of what filmmaking can be.  I remember watching short works by Quebecois women filmmakers that I was really blown away by. I remember watching Brenda Longfellow films. One of her short films stood out. It’s an experimental film called Our Marilyn (1987). It’s about a swimmer, a magnificent film in black and white with optical printing.

How did you get into the practical side of filmmaking?

I got into it through SAW Video, which is now called Digital Art Resource Center (DARC). In 1988, they had something called the Jumpstart Program for emerging video makers, for people who hadn’t made anything before. A friend of mine encouraged me to put something in, and I submitted a grant for a film called Marching to Pretoria. It was about the reverberations of the South African apartheid in a Canadian childhood. It was right at the time when Nelson Mandela was released. Strangely, in public school, the Canadian songbook had a song called Marching to Pretoria which is a weird kind of rollicking banjo song about soldiers marching in South Africa. My Jumpstart Grant application was successful, so I made my first video.

I served on the board there for many years, and in 2004 I became the director; I was there for 14 years.  Over that period, I learned filmmaking, worked with other filmmakers, and just learned the practice through taking workshops and things like that.

What would you tell someone who was considering pursuing film studies at 杏吧原创?

I would tell them to learn as much as they can, but also to look beyond the film studies program and see who’s making work locally. Discover the kind of work that you like, and understand that there’s a whole range of approaches to filmmaking. Unpack your assumptions about what filmmaking is, and gain confidence as a filmmaker forging ahead.

What advice would you give to someone who is currently pursuing film Studies?

Ask questions and take from it what you will, but there is no one path to becoming a filmmaker and whatever path you choose could be the right one for you. What I learned early as a filmmaker was not to listen to people. There are a lot of people who will tell you that you can’t, that you’re either doing it wrong, or that you have no business doing it. I was a young woman who had no relief at that time. 鈥淲ho was I to think I could be a filmmaker鈥� was basically the attitude I got over and over again. You just have to ignore all that, block out the noise, and keep moving forward.

What was your experience putting together your exhibition at Gallery 101?

I really enjoyed the process. It was during COVID, so it was kind of weird. People just weren鈥檛 leaving their houses at the time, but that particular exhibition was quite satisfying. I’m working on a new project that would take that concept of a Max MSP-generated wall of many screens. In this case, it was nine screens based on images or loops of various landscapes across Canada. It was called . My new project would take that exhibition into a different kind of realm and expand upon it. I learned a lot from it, and I was quite happy with it. I have done exhibitions before, but that was the biggest one I’ve done to date.

Is there anything else that you wanted to share about experiences at 杏吧原创 or your experience as a filmmaker?

One of the things about being a filmmaker is that it tends to be solitary and communal at the same time. You work alone to develop the project often, and then you work with a cinematographer, editor or sound designer, actors, whoever to make that project happen. I think it can be daunting.

In terms of being a filmmaker, the advice I would have is to take care of yourself while you’re doing it. It’s very easy to take all your savings, put it into a project, and end up unhappy with it at the end because you don’t know enough yet. So, you need to pace yourself and understand that it鈥檚 okay if a project isn’t what you want it to be. You鈥檝e learned what have you learned, and then keep moving forward. That’s where it comes down to community and finding that group that supports you. Look for local places that will show your work to see how people respond to it. It’s a slow process and took me a long time. I’ve been doing this for 30 years now, and it鈥檚 only now that I feel like my work is gaining some agency.

The post Alumni Profile: Penny McCann appeared first on Film Studies.

Lily Inskip-Shesnicky is currently a fifth-year film studies major with a minor in computer science at 杏吧原创 University. She is interested in supernatural/horror cinema combined with Canadian and sapphic cinema. Her favourite films include the Rocky Horror Picture Show (Sharman, 1975), Nausica盲 of the Valley of the Wind (Miyazaki, 1984),and Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Sciamma, 2019).

Why did you choose 杏吧原创 Film Studies?

I didn鈥檛 choose film studies. In the beginning, I went into computer science, but then I realized it just was emotionally taxing to be doing a degree that I wasn’t passionate about, just because I thought I needed to have a fallback plan. Eventually, I switched to film studies in my second year. I was already at 杏吧原创, so it made sense to stay here, but we also have one of the better film theory programs in Canada because a lot of other schools have more production or business-focused film programs.

How did you hear about the program?

I went to an arts high school in Ottawa. I think knew about it because I was in a writing program, so besides going into like English or something, film studies would have been another choice because of screenwriting. But I found the program based on the first-year course.

How would you describe being in 杏吧原创 Film?

I would say enticing because there are so many different niche subjects. If you want to learn about Scandinavian cinema, learn about sci-fi, learn about contemporary Quebecois cinema or film and philosophy, you can do it all.

I would also say creative. You would think that film theory doesn’t have much room for creativity, but you get to choose from a lot of different topics and it’s really fun flexing your brain muscles to think of different ways to analyze a film. For example, I wrote a paper about semiotics and film. I was questioning, does film have a grammar and a language? It was interesting comparing it to other language studies.

It’s also really rewarding and exciting to work with the professors to figure out what to write, how to do it, and what readings are helpful. Sometimes they connect you with experts outside of the program.

What skills have you learned from film studies?

Critical thinking and analysis skills. The ability to look at a piece of media in general, not even just a film, but artworks, comics, books, whatever, and see through the top layer of the media to analyze what the creators鈥� intentions were. Also, bringing different lenses to different media, like feminist perspectives.

Also becoming a better writer overall, an academic writer. I鈥檝e gained research capabilities, like how to find what you’re looking for. I also became a research analyst for one of our professors here, Kester Dyer, researching supernatural Quebecois cinema.

I also took the screenwriting and filmmaking classes, so I got to experience the more hands-on side of film. You also learn about the industry and its history, so you get a good idea of how the industry runs, which helps you see the current market in a different light.

How have you used these skills in other areas of your life?

If I’m going to see a movie with my friends or reading a book, I find that I can turn on a critical side of myself to really analyze and pick out the different aspects that I want to talk about.

I also have a broadened worldview from taking different national cinema courses. An embarrassing amount of my knowledge of the outside world besides Canada and western nations is because of my film courses鈥�.I don’t normally like history, but I find that film has given me a new appreciation for it.

I’m also doing a computer science minor because I didn’t want to waste the credits I got in my first year, but I think I can still apply certain things I learned in film to computer science. For example, pacing myself when doing my assignments. In computer science, you have to produce the right answer, no matter what you do, which is frustrating. In film, it’s more about how you get to your answer rather than whether it鈥檚 the right one or not.

Is there a specific class that you enjoyed?

My favourite class of all time was Introduction to Film Theory, because Mark Furstenau was such a good professor. But I’ve developed a niche research interest. I love Canadian cinema because going into film studies, I didn’t really think we had a definable National Cinema. I took the introduction to Canadian cinema course, which was interesting. Then there’s the Canadian genre course, which went into horror movies in Canadian cinema and introduced me to some of my favourites like Blood Quantum (2019) by Jeff Barnaby. It鈥檚 an Indigenous zombie movie. The director recently passed away, which was very sad because he’s only made three movies.

Any advice you would like to share?

For anyone who isn’t in film studies or is doing a minor and they’re debating switching into film, just do it. It’s taxing to be in a program you don’t necessarily care about or even a program you do care about when there’s another program you care about more. It’s just not worth the emotional upheaval to constantly be wishing you were doing something else.

I would also say make use of your resources. We have the Audio-Visual Resource Center (ARVC) where you can stream movies. If you’re looking for a niche thing for a paper, they’re more likely to have it than other places. The Ottawa Public Library also loans out DVDs, which is useful and if you don’t have a DVD player, you can screen them at the AVRC.

We also have a Film Lounge which you can go to, it鈥檚 only accessible by campus card so it’s a bit more private and it has a very nice ambiance. It’s also for music and another program, but it’s one of the nicest lounges I’ve been in considering how small the programs are.

Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions and go to office hours because professors love discussing their topics. If you’ve taken more STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) classes, I feel like office hours can be kind of daunting, but that’s definitely not true in film studies.

Did you complete a practicum or independent study?

I did a semester at Library and Archives Canada. I worked as an archivist and a visual media intern. I had to watch a bunch of media produced from 2014 to the present day, and the only thing that tied all of it together was that it had to be funded in part or in some way by the Government of Canada. I liked seeing all the different types of media that are out there and just how random all this stuff was. One day I’d be watching children’s cartoons, and the next day I’m watching a show about Alberton truckers. It was a good learning experience, and it’s a good way to spice up your timetable.

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Meet more 杏吧原创 Film Studies students and alumni in the Student Stories section.

The post Student Profile: Lily Inskip-Shesnicky appeared first on Film Studies.

is a producer at the renowned National Film Board of Canada鈥檚 Animation & Interactive Studio. She has produced over 30 shorts which have garnered awards at festivals such as TIFF. Credits include The Weatherman and the Shadowboxer by Randall Okita, Deyzangeroo by Ehsan Gharib and Shannon Amen by Chris Dainty, as well as international coproductions Hide by Daniel Gray (Hungary/France) and Impossible Figures and Other Stories I by Marta Pajek (Poland). Maral has helped to develop some of Canada鈥檚 top rising talents through the NFB鈥檚 Hothouse apprenticeship program, which has spawned a series of one-minute hits. In addition to films, she has produced interactive projects with a distinct artistic edge, such as Paloma Dawkins鈥� acclaimed VR work, Museum of Symmetry. The National Film Board of Canada is Canada’s public film and digital media producer and distributor. It has received more Academy Award nominations than any film organization in the world outside Hollywood. NFB Animation has garnered 7 Oscars庐 and is renowned for world-class, creator-driven animation.

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LILY: Lets start with a soft introductory question; what are some of your favourite genres and/or areas of interest regarding film?

MARAL: I don鈥檛 think in genres really. I鈥檓 open to anything that鈥檚 honest and believable. I watch a lot of British comedy, documentaries of all kinds, indie films. Animation has a special place in my heart because it鈥檚 such a powerful medium of expression and very versatile.

LILY:  What was your overall experience with film studies at 杏吧原创? 

MARAL: I was a bit skeptical at first because there was no practical component and I worried about how I would ever find work to pay back my student loans. But I quickly fell in love with the program because it was about history & philosophy through cinema. The classes introduced me to different cultures and traditions, and also to experimental film which blew me away. Experimental cinema talks about the world we don鈥檛 see empirically but which we feel and are shaped by. Watching and writing about film with a critical eye and ear meant I got to learn the language and understand how it could be used. The practical aspects of the craft that I longed to learn came through trial and error 鈥� a group of us reignited the film club and started putting theory into practice by making our own shorts. We did 48hour film challenges and started a festival and collaborated on each other鈥檚 ideas, often borrowing equipment from the more affluent journalism department.

LILY:  What was your original goal going into university and did that change at all during your time at 杏吧原创?

MARAL: I actually started off in the journalism program. But it felt too mechanical for me. My one elective in first year was a film class, taught by Laura Marks. Her passion for underground cinema was infectious 鈥� she introduced us to experimental films, African and Asian cinema, neorealism, and just expanded my horizons through film. So my focus switched from learning a profession to learning for the joy of it and letting university be a place of discovery. That鈥檚 how I ended up with a minor in music 鈥� I just kept taking classes for sheer interest until I had enough credit for a minor. I never expected to get a job in the film industry.

LILY: Wow that鈥檚 wonderful, so you鈥檙e working in film now? 

MARAL: I鈥檓 a producer at the National Film Board of Canada, in the Animation & Interactive Studio. It鈥檚 creative, inventive, unorthodox 鈥� all the things that turned me on during university. I get to work with incredible artists from all walks of life on their passion projects. We have the freedom to explore, take risks and try new things. The work is meaningful, sometimes deeply personal. It鈥檚 an immense privilege and I鈥檓 grateful for it.

LILY: How did film at 杏吧原创 help prepare you for that? Or like, influence the path you took to get there?

MARAL: Film studies was a mysterious thing for me during university. As much as I enjoyed what I was learning, I needed to connect it with my world somehow, because I knew I didn鈥檛 want to be a teacher or a critic. So I volunteered at film organizations in town, which led to summer jobs and getting to know the scene. Through that I learned what I liked and didn鈥檛 like about the industry. In 4^th year, I got a coop placement at a wonderful artist-run production centre called SAW Video. They gave me free reign to do whatever I could within the scope of the placement. I curated a screening event which I turned into a self-reflexive multi-screen installation, where the audience became part of the show. Spending time at the coop put me in the hub of Ottawa鈥檚 film community and that鈥檚 how I discovered the Ottawa International Animation Festival (actually a close friend was doing his coop placement there). I volunteered at that festival so that I could attend screenings for free, and that鈥檚 how I stumbled into the wild world of indie animation. I was blown away. They offered me a job and that鈥檚 how I met the fine folks at NFB. And eventually they offered me a gig and I moved to Montreal. That turned into many more gigs and eventually a full-time producer position. The work I do now is quite broad 鈥� we have a very flexible definition of animation; it often involves live action and hybrid techniques. But it all draws on the fundamentals I learned at 杏吧原创 鈥� storytelling, cinematography, montage, performance, POV, technology鈥ven the power and politics behind the scenes.

LILY: I love it! As we鈥檙e wrapping up I want to ask: what would you tell someone who wants to study film academically but is unsure about it?

MARAL: I would say, keep an open mind. Studying film is learning many disciplines all at once: art, photography, history, music, politics, psychology, technology, communication, critical thinking. It鈥檚 not going to give you an obvious career path but it鈥檚 incredibly enriching and the skills you gain are versatile – you can apply them to different industries.

LILY: This has been an enriching and wonderful interview. Is there anything you want to add for our readers?

MARAL: It鈥檚 easy to have preconceived notions about what a career in film might be like, or even what aspects of it you think you like or dislike. But you don鈥檛 really know until you try. So get your hands dirty 鈥� get involved, volunteer, do grunt work, learn DIY. I never would have thought I鈥檇 be doing what I鈥檓 doing or that such work even existed. It was through meeting great people and being open to new experiences that I鈥檓 fortunate enough to be doing what I鈥檓 doing. I had a support from good people, so nurture your relationships and remember that filmmaking is highly collaborative. Even if you鈥檙e making something all by yourself, staying connected to others will fuel you. And you might land outside production which can be rewarding too, because it鈥檚 still about culture and the way we see and shape the world through media.

The post Alumni Spotlight: Maral Mohammadian appeared first on Film Studies.

Our Alumni Spotlight series returns, as Lily Inskip-Shesnicky interviews 2021 Masters in Film Studies graduate, Rachel Loewen about her time at 杏吧原创 and new adventures in the UK.

Lily: Hi Rachel, let鈥檚 start with the question that every film major will get asked repeatedly for the rest of their lives: what are some of your favourite movies or genres?  

Rachel: Fantasy and science fiction are my go-to genres to watch for fun. I like movies that take me away from reality and allow me to live in a fantasy world for awhile. I would have to say that my favourite movies of all time are the three Lord of the Rings films. I watch them every year or so!

Lily: Okay, now that the important question has been answered, let鈥檚 talk about 杏吧原创. You were a graduate student in film studies, what was that experience like for you?

Rachel: I loved every moment of it! The two years of the program absolutely flew by, even with me finishing my degree during the pandemic. Some of my fondest memories came from my time at 杏吧原创. Specifically, I loved the strong sense of community in the department and among the MA students, even during lockdown. 

Lily: What was your original goal going into university and did that change at all during your time at 杏吧原创?

Rachel: My original goal was just to stay in academia. I鈥檝e always been happiest when I鈥檓 studying, to the point that I would be excited for the summer holidays to end because I wanted to get back to campus. All I knew was that, at the end of my BA in Film Studies and Sociology, I was not ready to leave university. Although I had harboured dreams about pursuing a PhD one day, it was my time at 杏吧原创 that made me decide to pursue that path. I was a TA while at 杏吧原创, and I fell in love with teaching. I knew after the end of my first discussion group that I wanted pursue a career in academia. 

Lily: That鈥檚 so wholesome. What are you up to now? 

Rachel: I am living my dream! Currently I鈥檓 in the UK pursuing my PhD in Film and Television at the University of Warwick. I honestly could not be happier. 

Lily:That鈥檚 so wonderful to hear! How would you say film at 杏吧原创 helped you prepare for that?

Rachel: 杏吧原创 gave me the confidence that I could do my PhD. I found that researching and writing my thesis, along with working closely with my supervisor, gave me a taste of what writing a PhD dissertation would be like. 杏吧原创 was literally a training ground for what I鈥檓 doing now, and I am utilizing so many of the skills I learned at 杏吧原创 as I work on my PhD. 

Lily: What would you tell someone who wants to go into Film Studies at 杏吧原创 but is unsure about it?

Rachel: It is worth it! Don鈥檛 get me wrong 鈥� it is hard. There were lots of late nights and early mornings during my degree. But I developed so much as a person, and as a scholar, because of it. I made lasting friendships, along with memories that still make me smile. The program is so rewarding, and I highly recommend it. 

Lily: That鈥檚 exactly how I feel as well, 杏吧原创 Film Studies has been such a great experience! Is there anything else you鈥檇 like to say before we close off?

Rachel: Out of all the things I love about 杏吧原创鈥檚 Film Studies program 鈥� and I could write an entire list! 鈥� is that they take a wide view on the discipline. It is not all 鈥榝ilm鈥� in the classic sense, although film is a vital part of what is taught. I wrote my thesis on YouTube video diaries, a fellow student wrote a MRP (Major Research Paper) about memes, and another student wrote a thesis on deepfakes. Film Studies is so much more than movies 鈥� it is the pursuit of knowledge regarding how moving images are constructed and function in our daily lives. Film Studies at 杏吧原创 changed my life. Maybe it will change yours, too. 

The post Alumni Spotlight: Rachel Loewen appeared first on Film Studies.

In the first instalment of Alumni Spotlight, Lily Inskip-Shesnicky interviews 2021 Masters in Film Studies graduate, Myles Sauer, about how he chose 杏吧原创, his time in the program and his plans for the future.

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Lily: What was your experience with film at 杏吧原创?

Myles: My experience with film at 杏吧原创 was arguably two of the best years of my adult life. Living in a new city and quickly making friends with my cohort鈥攑eople who I could obsess with over movies in a way I鈥檇 always wanted鈥攚as so fulfilling.

That鈥檚 not to say it wasn鈥檛 without its challenges鈥� having to finish my major research paper at the start of lockdown in 2020 was not the jubilant conclusion I envisioned for my degree, and it goes without saying that grad school in general is a lot of hard work. But overall, it鈥檚 an experience I look back on with great fondness.

Lily: What was your goal originally going into university?

Myles: I might be unique in that I went into my MA at 杏吧原创 without any clear idea of what I wanted to do afterwards. I was a few years out of my undergrad and at a crossroads career-wise, and figured, 鈥渨hy not move to another city and go back to school for something I鈥檓 deeply passionate about?鈥� It was very much a flight of fancy that I was in the fortunate position of being able to pursue without necessarily worrying about the utility of it.

Lily: What are you doing now?

Myles: I currently work for a small web design & marketing company in Victoria, BC, where I work primarily in a content-based role creating and shaping digital experiences for mainly municipal clients. I also plan on volunteering with one of our local repertory theatres and become more involved in the film community here.

Lily: How did film at 杏吧原创 help you prepare for what you’re doing now?

Myles: While my current work isn鈥檛 one-to-one with what I studied at 杏吧原创, being able to parse and interpret information and clearly communicate in writing are essential skills that were honed during my time in university. So much of my work is concerned with communicating to a specific audience, so what better field to study than film, which is so often about our experience as audience members?

Lily: What would you tell someone who wants to go into film theory but is unsure about it?

Myles: It鈥檚 fun! Being able to think critically and on a deeper level about something that鈥檚 so often considered just entertainment is such an enriching experience, and you鈥檙e bound to meet with other like-minded people who are just as excited about film as you are. The opportunities will come if you鈥檙e looking for them, but the process of study is its own reward.

The post Alumni Stories: Myles Sauer appeared first on Film Studies.