By Nicole Kobie
Who would’ve thought the consistently boring Genies-the Canadian version of the Academy Awards-would ever have a scandal? Not surprisingly, the scandal is silly, pointless and therefore involves Quebec politics.
The controversy-if you can even call it that-centers on the Genies being not just the Canadian Oscars, but the English-Canadian Oscars. Some French-Canadian film folk feel the Genies are too English and that they don’t sufficiently promote Quebec movies.
In an effort to counteract this, Quebec director Pierre Falardeau (who once went by "Elvis," though presumably that wasn’t French enough) refused to allow his latest film, 15 Février 1839, to be considered for a Genie, though the period piece likely would have monopolized the Feb. 7 ceremony in Toronto. Falardeau listed his reasons for skipping out in an amusing open letter.
"I refuse to be part of their very Canadian show, with its nominations for best sandwiches, best plywood and best chauffeur," he wrote. "To be recognized for ‘my genius’ in Flin Flon or Saskatoon or Corner Brook leaves me as cold as do their Rockies, mounted police and their Governor General."
However, for a Canadian show with an anti-Quebec core, the Genies let French films win pretty often. Last year, Denis Villeneuve’s Maelstrom took five awards, and this year several French-language films are nominated. Anything the Genies miss, though, will likely be recognized at the always French-dominated Jutra Awards, set for Feb. 17 in Montreal.
If you really want to debate language bias, consider the Jutras. Started in 1998 as a French alternative to the Genies, the Jutras only consider Quebec films for their awards. This year, they feature only two English films, one for editing and one for being the most successful Quebec-made film outside
the province.
If other French filmmakers follow Falardeau then few French films will hit the Genie’s national broadcast, which means few of us in the Rest of Canada will ever hear about them. If Falardeau truly wants to promote French-Canadian cinema, he shouldn’t push segregation, but encourage both award ceremonies to promote films of both languages. There’s nothing wrong with using art to push a political idea, but if promotion of Quebec film is truly what Falardeau wants, one would think he’d want to reach all Canadians, not just the French ones.
It’s easy for Falardeau to ignore the Genies-he’s won two already, and where has that gotten him? However, if 15 Février 1839 was nominated for an Oscar, one can only assume he wouldn’t take much notice of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences tendency to forget Quebec cinema.