Next
Meeting
Media Club of
Ottawa
Formerly the
Canadian Women's Press Club
the Media
Club of Ottawa presents monthly
programs of significance
to
professionals in all branches of the
communications
field.
Our
program offers a stimulating variety of speakers.
Alexandra-Pope
-
Qais-Ghanem -
speaker Amira
Eghawaby - speaker
Dani-Elle Dube - award
winner
Katelin
Belliveau -
award winner
Bruce-MacGregor - speaker
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-------Year in review |
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July 2021
COVID-19 restrictions
Our
program has been switched to
publication
of articles by our scheduled speakers on their topic
Publication
date:
Tuesday July 20, 2021
Lois Siegel
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News.....News.....News.....News....News....
Lois Siegel
Lois Siegel is a professional photographer. She worked for the Ottawa
Citizen for six years and for Cinema Canada, in Montreal for decades.
She has also been a filmmaker casting director, writer, photographer,
professor, and musician. In addition, she currently performs with the
Lyon Street Celtic Band, the French band, Sens Unique and the Ottawa
Celtic Band as well as working as a music agent.
Siegel has presented her photos at photo clubs in town.
She has taken photos of more than 400 celebrities, including
Catherine Deneuve, Donald Sullivan, Dizzy Gillespie, Leonard Cohen,
Alan Alda, Jeanne Moreau, Hugh Grant, Claude Chabrol, Nicholas Cage and
Yousuf Karsh.
Siegel has won numerous awards for her work, including the following:
1990 - her film, STUNT PEOPLE, won a Genie Award for Best Short Documentary.
1996 - her film, BASEBALL GIRLS, was selected as One of the Best
Documentaries in Canadian Cinema by “Take One” film
magazine: Toronto Film Critics Poll, and in 1998 it won the National
Educational Media Network Award: the Bronze Apple Award, USA.
2002 - Ottawa Life magazine named Siegel one of the Capital
City’s Top 50: People who are shaping the future of the National
Capital.
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 speaks to
us, virtually, in writing
Photo: Canadian Press, 1990
Beans
– A Canadian Production
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Review by Lois Siegel
Mohawk Film director Tracey Deer has created an amazing film about the
armed stand-off between Mohawks and the Canadian army – called
the Oka crisis in Quebec, 1990 and what it was like to be an indigenous
teenage girl in Canada then. For those close to the event, it was
a difficult and terrifying time. For others, this film explains
all the nuances and causes for the confrontation
The film focuses on 12-year-old “Beans,” a Mohawk girl
during the 78-day armed incident involving Quebec/Canadian governments
and the Mohawks who were peacefully protesting a golf course expansion
that would defile their burial ground. Tension increased between
their communities.
The occurrence centers on the girls. Beans, her mother and sister
decided to take a road trip to Oka during the protests… we hear
the music: “I’ve got the power.” On the golf
course, they find graves and golf balls. Then there are gun shots.
The police have raided the area to remove protesters – not unlike
the clashes between “Cowboys and Indians.” There is a
standoff. Vehicles are searched as the police look for
weapons. The Mercier Bridge, connecting the island of Montreal
with the Mohawk reserve of Kahnawake and the suburb of Chateauguay, is
blocked. The girls help by putting boxes in the road where
they live. They are kids having fun. But then barbed wired is
installed. No delivery trucks for food will be allowed to enter
Mohawk land. No more hot dogs. The girls pretend oatmeal is
food with sparkles.
When the Mohawks try to leave their land to get groceries, a man spits
at them. Then 400 people demonstrate to prevent the Indians from
leaving the reserve. They say, “Who is protecting the
rights of the white people.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Over
the course of the three months, our initial favourable impressions were
confirmed as the product evolved. There was a lot of back and forth as
we explained our needs, the team made suggestions and we indicated our
preferences and supplied text and photos. In early August, each of the
seven student teams, including ours, made 20 minute presentations via
Zoom, describing their objectives and challenges, and showing the final
products to their professors and to their clients. Iris, June and I
were delighted with the final results. We think the students are
brilliant and deserve our appreciation for an excellent product. As
they begin their job search, we hope that this experience will
contribute to each of them receiving interesting employment
opportunities and wish them much success in the future.
nstitute.
|
Bean’s friend tells her
she must toughen up. The friend hits her with a stick. To shield her
identity, Beans practices changing her name: My name is Patricia. I
like to eat Popcorn.Beans enters a white school where she faces harassment. More
people demonstrate and tell Premier Robert Bourassa how to solve
problems with Chateauguay. They cut electricity and water to the
Mohawks. Premier Bourassa’s solution – He calls in the Canadian Army.
There is numerous stock footage of these events that gives a true
feeling of what is happening. Women and children are forced
to leave to stay safe. They drive across the Mercier bridge with
lots of cars honking.…It takes hours. People throw rocks
at
the cars, break windows; the police do nothing.
Beans eventually re-enters an all-white class at school. This time the
situation is different. She stands up for who she is.
The film is beautifully shot. The acting is
excellent. “Beans” received many awards, most
notably, The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television – The
Canadian Screen Awards: Anne-Marie Gelinas Best Picture Award.
Fantasia festival – Audience Award for Best Canadian Film.
Tracey Deer: John Dunning Best First Feature Film.
“Beans” was developed with the help of The Harold Greenberg Fund.
Other links for Lois Siegel
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Media
Club of Ottawa
Executive
2020-21
President,
June
Coxon
Secretary-Treasurer.
Iris
ten
Holder
Board
of
Directors:
June
Coxon,
Iris ten
Holder,
Helen
Bednarek Van Eyk
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*
Help
build
the Media
Club's
"Melba Lent
Woelflé
Scholarship Fund.
To contribute,
Knowles*
Newsboys by Bill
Fairbarn
|
Books
about the Canadian Women's Press Club
(now
the Media Club):
- No
daughter of Mine by Kay Rex ($12)
-
The Sweet Sixteen by Linda Kay ($20)
Order
your copy by email
here.
<
Write
the title of the book in the subject line..
Payment
by Interac to the
Treasurer, <
adding
3.00
for delivery. by post..
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