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CINEMA POLITICA CONCORDIA: ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

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Cinema Politica Concordia: About Us Cinema Politica Concordia: Mandate Programming Statements Fall Semester: Memory, Movements and Mobilization Winter Semester: Idle No More Event Highlights Fall 2012 Winter 2013 Promotional Activities Old School Promo E-promo Archives: Encouraging Access Youtube & Vimeo Channels Special Library Collections Research and Archival Viewing Library Interns Videographers Translators Volunteers Volunteer Recruitment Volunteer Activity Volunteer Appreciation Big Thanks Go Out to Our Worker-Bees Board of Directors Volunteers Interns Collaborators Accomplices

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ClNEMA POLITICA CONCORDIA: ABOUT US

Cinema Politica is a media arts, non-profit network of community and campus locals that screen independent political film and video by Canadian and international artists throughout Canada and abroad. Cinema Politica's largest and longest running local was founded at Concordia University, Montreal in 2004. Ever since, Cinema Politica Concordia attracts between 300 and 600 people to its weekly screenings. Each semester, programming is focused around themes that touch on social justice, environmental and cultural identity issues. In addition, all screenings aim to bridge political independent filmmaking, local activism and civic education and engagement. Cinema Poltica Concordia is administered by the Concordia Cinema Politica Student Association (CCPSA) which is a legally incorporated non-profit fee-levy group funded by undergraduate and graduate students at Concordia. All our screenings occur during the Fall and Winter semesters and take place weekly on Monday evenings at 7:00 pm in Room H-110, 1455 de Maisonneuve West with a few exceptions. All screenings are by donation, open to the public, and are followed by discussions or Q&As with filmmakers and/or local organizers.

ClNEMA POLITICA CONCORDIA: MANDATE:

2.1 The CCPSA has the mandate to promote and support the objectives of Cinema Politica Concordia by providing Concordia students (the General Membership) with: 1) An exhibition venue where regular film screenings and discussions of current pressing social, environmental and political issues, take place in an environment that is pluralistic, democratic, accessible and inclusive, 2) A Research Archival and Viewing Library (RAVL) complete with digital files of films screened at Cinema Politica Concordia events where students may conduct independent research into documentary and political film. 3) Part-time employment, and volunteer and internship opportunities at Cinema Politica Concordia, which is a chapter of a national and international non-profit organization.

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2.2 Further to these services, the CCPSA is obliged to follow the mandate of the parent organization, the Cinema Politica Network, as stipulated in the Cinema Politica Network Locals Agreement document, and summarized here:! Cinema Politicas main objective is to disseminate, exhibit and promote the discussion of political cinema by independent artists, with an emphasis on Canadian works. Films that are screened are chosen for their potential to engage an audience on important socio-political, cultural, environmental and economic issues. They are films that provocatively challenge dominant ideologies and accepted norms. Exhibited works are selected for their innovation and Cinema Politica screenings seek to educate, entertain and especially inspire audiences to participate in openly democratic practices. Emphasis is placed on works that tell stories that are "3

underrepresented by mainstream media, including narratives around minority struggles within Canada (gender and sexual identity for example).

! PROGRAMMING STATEMENTS: !

FALL SEMESTER: MEMORY, MOVEMENTS AND MOBILIZATION

Its been quite a year for resistance to the worlds oppressive systems and regimes. The Arab Spring, the Occupy Movement, and Quebecs Maple Spring have all inspired a surge in creative work, featured in our Fall 2012 program. In the spirit of social movements the world over, this collection is sure to quicken your pulse, tug at your heart, and pump your fist! With a record-high 15 screenings, weve attempted to match the pace and passion of activists, students, and local community organizers. We ope with SQUAT, about Barcelona-based housing activists, and move into music and mobilization with THE FURIOUS FORCE OF RHYMES. This is followed by the herstory of a revolutionary feminist art collective in THE HERETICS, which leads us to the frenetic 2009 Croatian student uprising in BLOKADA. Our program continues with international solidarity and Palestinian resistance in the inimitable 5 BROKEN CAMERAS, followed by the game-changing history of AIDS activism in UNITED IN ANGER, and the incredible struggle of Indias lowest caste in JAI BHIM COMRADE. The finale screening of WE ARE WISCONSIN hurls us into the beginnings of the Occupy movement in North America. There are plenty of other mobilizing titles between these interventions and provocations, and we urge you, no, dare you, to join us for an alternative education one that refuses to forget or ignore the movements that build a more just and fair world.

WINTER SEMESTER: IDLE NO MORE

A torrent has been rising within communities on the margins of mainstream society. Many have felt the injustice mounting, the oppression too unbearable, the lies and whitewashing too familiar. Enter Idle No More, launched in December 2012 by indigenous peoples. On the cusp of a groundswell, this seasons lineup is curated in the spirit of solidarity with that movement. Weve gathered together 15 contentious, collective, capricious, cathartic, creative and combustible docs that might stop your heart while bursting your joints all the while fuelling fires built on the shorelines of our collective consciousness. Join us when we confront the international aid complex in HAITI: WHERE DID THE MONEY FO; when we follow African artists building solidarity in UNITED STATES OF AFRICA; when we bare witness to the heroism of the KUCHUS OF UGANDA, and celebrate the women who have made feminism a fought-for reality in Canada in STATUS QUO. This winter program compels you to join the nascent social movement against Russias oligarchy in WINTER, GO AWAY; to better understand direct action and state violence in BLACK BLOCK; to seek justice in Argentina "4

against Barrick Gold in LAND IN REVOLT; and lastly, to build resistance and community in the movement that inspired this seasons program, initiated by the subjects intimately portrayed in THE PEOPLE OF KATTAWAPISKAK RIVER. Cinema is not passive, and we indigenous and non-indigenous refuse to be idle.

EVENT HIGHLIGHTS

The 2012-2013 programming of Cinema Politica Concordia involved a varied selection of engaging political documentaries, with audience attendance averaging between 300-600 persons per screening. Cinema Politica Concordia hosted a total of 30 film screenings for the 2012-2013 fiscal year, averaging 15 screenings per semester. CP Concordia also co-hosted an extra spring screening on April 16th in partnership with Anti-War Efforts Concordia. Screenings were held weekly, with each event attempting to integrate different community groups, activists and experts into the discussion as part of our mandate.

FALL 2012

One of our most popular events of the fall semester was the October 22nd, 2012 screening of THE HERETICS, a documentary exploring feminism, media and art through the 1970s NYC feminist art collective that produced the journal Heresies. The event was held in recognition and in celebration of Women Make Movies 40th anniversary. The November 22nd screening of UNITED IN ANGER: A HISTORY OF ACT UP, co-sponsored by the HIV/AIDS Lecture Series Concordia, marks another of our highlighted events for the fall semester, with over 550 audience members, as well as director Jim Hubbard in attendance for a post-screening discussion. Hundreds of audience members came out for one of our most exciting events of the fiscal year, the screening of the documentary JAI BHIM COMRADE on November 24th, 2012. This musical odyssey was 14 years in the making, and it shines light on the Dalit struggle in India. The internationally acclaimed activist and director Anand Patwardhan was in attendance for a post-screening Q&A. The event was held in collaboration with Mel

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Hoppenheim School of Cinema, the Documentary Centre at Concordia, Kabir Cultural Centre, Montreal Serai, CERAS (South Asia Centre), SAWCC (South Asian Women's Community Centre), DOC Quebec and QPIRG Concordia. The fall 2012 semester was also marked by our annual collaboration with Montreal film festivals FNC (Festival du nouveau cinema) and RIDM (Rencontres internationales du documentaire de montreal) who co-hosted very successful screenings of THE FURIOUS FORCE OF RHYMES, and THE CARBON RUSH, 5 BROKEN CAMERAS, and HERMANS HOUSE respectively, all of which brought together between 500-600 audience members at each event.

WINTER 2013

The 2013 winter semester was equally packed with local and international gems and many more exciting collaborations. Our largest event of the winter semester was INSIDE LARA ROXX, which screened on January 31st, 2013. This Canadian doc took a deeply empathetic and personal look into the life of a Montreal woman who emerged from the adult entertainment industry after contracting HIV. The event brought together over 600 audience members, as well as director Mia Donovan and subject Lara Roxx, and was a collaborative effort between Cinema Politica Concordia and the Concordia HIV/AIDS Lecture Series. Another highlight event was the January 28th screening of THE PEOPLE OF THE KATTAWAPISKAK RIVER, the latest work by legendary filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin, which offered a disturbing and moving corrective to mainstream accounts of the aboriginal community whose members ignited the international movement known as Idle No More. Audience attendance reached over 400, and director Alanis Obomsawin was present for a post-screening Q&A. Furthermore, the March 8th International Womens Day screening of STATUS QUO? THE UNFINISHED BUSINESS OF FEMINISM IN CANADA had over 400 audience members in attendance, and also brought forth much collaboration and community involvement. The screening, which offers a sweeping look as the state of feminism, the history of the womens movement and the status of women in Canada, was co-presented by the Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Families of Sisters in Spirit, the Philippine Womens Centre of

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Quebec, and CCSL. An audience Q&A followed the film with director Karen Cho, Barbara Legault (RebELLEs), Bridgit Tolley (FSIS), and Cecilia Diocasson (PWC-QC) leading the discussion. Finally, Cinema Politica Concordia had the opportunity to co-host a very special final screening on April 8th with STELLA, the Simone de Beauvoir Institute and CCSL. SCARLET ROAD follows Australian activist and sex worker Rachel Wotton as she fights for sex worker rights and challenges the laws and mores around sexuality and those who are differently abled. The event brought together over 450 audience members and included a very special Q&A with subject Rachel Wotton.

PROMOTIONS:

! OLD SCHOOL PROMO !

Over the 2012-2013 fiscal year, Cinema Politica Concordia focussed on developing more successful promotional tactics. Promo always takes place through a variety of media, both new and traditional, and went out on a weekly or bi-weekly (per-event) basis. Promotional activities via traditional media involved film reviews and advertising in student and community newspapers, such as The Link, The Concordian and CULT Montreal. In addition, volunteers and part-time CP Concordia employees flyered and postered events and locations both on and off campus to promote our screenings. In addition, volunteers circulated CP Concordia schedules and posters both on and off campus, leaving them in critical high-traffic locations, such as cafes, venues, galleries and different student group spaces. Promotion at outside community events included various Israeli Apartheid Week activities, Howl Arts Collective events, the Montreal Anarchist Bookfair, as well as a variety of different film and art festivals including Docville, POP Montreal, Art Matters, etc. Finally, throughout the academic year Cinema Politica Concordia held weekly tabling sessions on campus in the Hall Building Mezzanine, and attended several extra tabling events organized by FLAC, the Peoples Potato, Disorientation, SAF, the CSU and GSA, etc.

E-PROMO

Cinema Politica Concordia has been concentrating on expanding our reach through electronic promotions this year, mainly through the use of our e-newsletter, which is sent out on a weekly basis to 7,500 subscribers, and which details our upcoming events and collaborations. In addition, all CP Concordia screenings were posted to the CSU websites event calendar and "7

the Concordia Now events calendar, as well as to numerous community calendars such as The Gazette, The Montreal Media Coop, CULT Montreal, Radical Montreal, etc. Furthermore, our events were often featured in Frigo Vert and Sustainable Concordias events calendars/ newsletters, as well as the GSAs weekly newsletter to their constituents. Regular announcements were also made by our collaborators on CJLO and CKUT radio stations. Moreover, this year CP Concordia focused targeting our promotion to specific individuals, groups and associations, which took place on both a departmental and community level. This targeted electronic promotion and outreach took place on social media,a as well as through email correspondence. On campus, departmental administrative assistants and professors specializing in the topics addressed in our programmed films were individually contacted to pass the event along to their students and other faculty and staff members. Off campus, different stakeholder groups and organizations were selected every screening, and were invited and informed about the events via social media. Targeted promotion is important not only to increase the number of persons who regularly attend CP events, but also to ensure that local community members who are directly involved, interested, and affected by the issues at hand are informed and have access to our weekly screenings.

ARCHIVES: ENCOURAGING ACCESS

YOUTUBE & VIMEO CHANNELS

Throughout the 2012-2013 year, Cinema Politica Concordia has continued to develop their archives in order to make them readily available to the public. CP Concordia has contributed to their Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/CinemaPolitica) and Vimeo (http:// vimeo.com/channels/cinemapolitica) channels on a regular basis, constantly updating the pages with new film trailers, interviews with filmmakers, and recorded post-screening Q&As to ensure that they remain easily available for public viewing.

SPECIAL LIBRARY COLLECTION Secondly, CP Concordia has continued its collaboration with Concordia Universitys Sir George Williams Library and has expanded on the Cinema Politica Collection. This special collection contains all of the Canadian-made documentaries screened by Cinema Politica Concordia up to and including the 2012-2013 year, with a few exceptions based on film rights and availability. All films have successfully arrived in the ConU library and are available upon request via CLUES (http://library.concordia.ca/research/subjects/sociology/newvideos.php? guid=cinemapolitica). CP Concordia hopes to launch a promotional campaign for this collection in the fall of 2013.

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RESEARCH AND ARCHIVAL VIEWING LIBRARY

Finally, the members of Cinema Politica Concordia have also continued to work on organizing RAVL, The Research and Archival Viewing Library, which has been an on-going special project of CP Concordia for the past couple of years. RAVL aims to make a wide collection of previously-screened documentary films available to the Concordia community. As of now over 40 films have been digitized, and will soon be available to be viewed in our office space and viewing library at H-733-01, 1455 de Maisonneuve, upon special request and strictly for research purposes. During the 2012-2013 year, CP members have mainly focused on acquiring and setting up viewing equipment, including a secondary TV which will screen subtitled documentaries on mute in the communal space outside of our office during lunch hours. In addition, work was also done to create promotional material and to develop a feasible sign-up system for the project. We hope to finalize these plans for the fall 2013 school semester, and launch RAVL officially for CP Concordias 10th Anniversary in the upcoming year.

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VIDEOGRAPHERS

An essential part of our mandate is to provide unique internship opportunities for credit for Concordia undergraduate and graduate students in order for them to build on their professional skills and gain valuable work experience in a non-profit setting. This year we provided two internships for students in Communication Studies and Cinema. As videographers, they attended and recorded all of our special screenings with speakers in attendance, interviewed local filmmakers and guests, produced short videos, promo clips and ads for Cinema Politica Concordia.

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TRANSLATORS

We have also set the foundations for a collaborative program with the Dpartment dtudes franaises in order to set up a translation internship program for students in the department. Students will be responsible for translating and subtitling film and video work by independent filmmakers with limited funding. We hope to get this program off its feet in the upcoming academic year.

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VOLUNTEERS:

VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT

Once again, Cinema Politica Concordia faced the yearly hurdle of recruiting a new set of dedicated and loyal volunteers, as many regulars from the previous year had either graduated or taken on extra commitments. To this end, Cinema Politica Concordia sent out a call for volunteers in the e-newsletter, advertised with the CSU, and participated in many orientation fairs and events to introduce the organization to new students. We followed this up with a Volunteer Orientation Meeting on September 24th. This year volunteer recruitment and coordination was organized by Cinema Politica Concordias Assistant Coordinator, Rachel Prudhomme, who facilitated volunteer commitment and activity. Throughout the two semesters, CP Concordia continued to actively recruit new volunteers, at least half of which regularly attended and helped out at our weekly screenings during both semesters. Volunteers were of a variety of backgrounds and ages from both within and outside of the Concordia community.

VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES

Cinema Politica Concordia largely runs on the support of its volunteers, whose main responsibilities are running our weekly screenings and helping with promotions. Within the scope of our weekly screenings, volunteers are responsible for setting up and taking down the Cinema Politica table, collecting donations, distributing schedules and flyers, circulating the enewsletter signup sheet, calculating audience attendance, and circulating the microphones during Q&A sessions. Volunteers also help to set up and run our weekly collaborators table, the Co-op Bookstore. Apart from relying on volunteers for the smooth running of our weekly screenings, CP Concordia also relies on volunteers to help spread awareness for the organization and our individual events. This task involves the distribution of schedules throughout the year, handing out flyers and putting up posters, as well as being responsible for our weekly tabling sessions in Concordias Hall Building. In addition, volunteers provided support to many of our collaborators and co-presenters, for example by distributing schedules for both RIDM and FNC.

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION

Cinema Politica Concordia made sure to honour the hard work of its volunteers by hosting several special volunteer appreciation get-togethers throughout the 2012-2013 year. Each semester, our volunteer coordinator organized a group outing/activity to thank their hard work. In the fall semester we had a volunteer appreciation dinner to usher in the holidays, while in the winter a skating and lunch outing was organized to celebrate the end of another successful year

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of progressive documentary screenings, civic engagement and volunteer-run activities at Cinema Politica Concordia.

! BIG THANKS GO OUT TO OUR: !

a. WORKER-BEES i. Programmer/co-founder: Ezra Winton ii. Coordinator/co-founder: Svetla Turnin iii. Assistant Coordinator: Rachel Prudhomme iv. Assistant Coordinator: Lorenzo Signoretti v. Assistant Coordinator: Raquel Sancinetti

b. BOARD OF DIRECTORS i. Liz Miller ii. Svetla Turnin iii. Shannon Harris iv. Veronique Allard v. Arshad Khan

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c. VOLUNTEERS Adrien Orlowski, Andrew Smith, Tina Gelsomini, Shui Kay Ma, Geoffrey Nicolas, Marina Serrao, Babak Sabooniha, Nastaran Mobasher, Diandra Soares, Sydney Hall, Madison Herrick. d. INTERS Phil Creamer, Pierre-Luc Jeunet e. COLLABORATORS i. Vues dAfrique ii. Montreal Anarchist Bookfair iii. RIDM iv. QPIRG Concordia v. Sustainability Action Fund vi. Concordia Council on Student Life vii. Festival du nouveau cinma viii.No Bad Sound Studios ix. Concordias Syrian Students Association x. Immigrant Workers Centre Montreal xi. CLASSE (Coalition large de lASSE) "11

xii. Tadamon! xiii.HIV/AIDS Lecture Series Concordia xiv. Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema xv. The Documentary Centre at Concordia xvi. Kabir Cultural Centre xvii.Montreal Serai xviii.CERAS (South Asia Centre) xix. SAWCC (South Asian Womens Community Centre) xx. DOC Qubec xxi. R4 Concordias Zero Waste Campaign xxii.Canada Haiti Action Network xxiii.Rzistans Haitienne xxiv.Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery xxv.ATSA xxvi.Black History Month Montreal xxvii.Concordia Greenhouse xxviii.Centre for Gender Advocacy xxix.Amnesty International Montreal xxx.Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women xxxi.Families of Sisters in Spirit xxxii.Philippine Womens Centre of Quebec xxxiii.Israeli Apartheid Week Montreal xxxiv.Back the Tap Coalition xxxv.Council of Canadians xxxvi.Idle No More xxxvii.Simone de Beauvoir Institute xxxviii.STELLA xxxix.Anti-War Efforts Concordia f. ACCOMPLICES i. Concordia University Co-op Bookstore ii. CKUT Radio iii. Concordia University Television (CUTV) iv. CJLO

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