IN THIS FERTILE PROVINCE known for growing crops, Manitobans have also found a way to cultivate art, far from the metropolitan centres of the country. Art critic and curator Lucy Lippard reminds us that “regionalism is not a limitation but an advantage.” We enjoy making documentaries in Manitoba, and our local DOC chapter contributes to the thriving community.
Precipitating Factors
With so much art emerging from Winnipeg, from the ballet of Evelyn Hart, to the rock and roll of the Guess Who, to the films of Guy Maddin, it’s not surprising that the city also produces original documentaries. The growth of the documentary community here has its roots in the founding of the Winnipeg Film Group (WFG) in the 1970s, which started (1979) by Elise Swerhone and (1980) by Halya Kuchmij being two examples of early WFG docs.
