Les raquetteurs

Les raquetteurs
Les raquetteurs
Directed by	Michel Brault; Gilles Groulx
Written by	Michel Brault; Gilles Groulx
Cinematography	Michel Brault; Gilles Groulx
Production; company	National Film Board of Canada
Release date	1958;
Running time	14 minutes 37 seconds
Country	Canada
Language	French

Les raquetteurs is a 1958 Direct Cinema documentary film co-directed by Michel Brault and Gilles Groulx. The film explores life in rural Quebec, at a convention of snowshoers in Sherbrooke, Quebec in February 1958. The film is notable for helping to establish the then-nascent French language production unit at the National Film Board of Canada, and more importantly, the development of a uniquely Quebec style of direct cinema.^[1]

The film incorporates agile camera work and a largely synchronous soundtrack, uninterrupted by any narration, in keeping with the ethos of direct cinema to avoid any imposed "truth" on events onscreen.^[2]

Production

Grant McLean, then head of production for the NFB, had been angry that what was to have been a three-minute vignette had quadrupled in length and ordered the film to be used for stock footage. However, NFB producers Tom Daly and Guy Glover interceded on the young filmmakers' behalf.^[3]

Release

At the time of its release, Les raquetteurs raised some concerns about its "nonofficial" style, and ruffled some feathers in Quebec for its portrayal of rural Quebecers.^[4]

References

^ "Les Raquetteurs". Canadian Film Encyclopedia. Film Reference Library. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
^ Marshall, Bill (2000-10-10). Quebec National Cinema. McGill-Queen's University Press. pp. 22. ISBN 0-7735-2116-X. Les raquetteurs NFB.
^ Evans, Gary (Sep 30, 1991). In the National Interest: A Chronicle of the National Film Board of Canada from 1949 to 1989. University of Toronto Press. pp. 73. ISBN 0-8020-6833-2. Les raquetteurs NFB.
^ Ellis, Jack C.; Betsy A. McLane (2005). A new history of documentary film. New York: Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 211. ISBN 0-8264-1751-5.

External links

Watch Les raquetteurs on the NFB website

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[CFE-1] "Les Raquetteurs". Canadian Film Encyclopedia. Film Reference Library. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2010.

[Marshall-2] Marshall, Bill (2000-10-10). Quebec National Cinema. McGill-Queen's University Press. pp. 22. ISBN 0-7735-2116-X. Les raquetteurs NFB.

[Evans-3] Evans, Gary (Sep 30, 1991). In the National Interest: A Chronicle of the National Film Board of Canada from 1949 to 1989. University of Toronto Press. pp. 73. ISBN 0-8020-6833-2. Les raquetteurs NFB.

[4] Ellis, Jack C.; Betsy A. McLane (2005). A new history of documentary film. New York: Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 211. ISBN 0-8264-1751-5.

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