A sold-out preview for Essential, a hard-hitting documentary on immigration to Quebec

In collaboration with Picbois Productions, Télé-Québec and Le Devoir, Essential premiered on Thursday January 19 at the Auditorium de la Grande Bibliothèque to a packed house. The screening ended with a standing ovation.

Essential is a rigorous, hard-hitting documentary investigation, directed by Ky Vy Le Duc (Decolonizing History) and conducted by Sonia Djelidi (Breaking the code) and Le Devoir journalist Sarah R. Champagne, on one of today’s hottest topics: immigration in Quebec.

The screening was followed by a rich discussion moderated by Marie-Andrée Chouinard (Le Devoir) with members of the film’s crew. Carole Bénédicte, protagonist of the documentary, moved the audience with her interventions.

“My biggest dream is to be here with my children and that other people don’t go through what I went through […]. Thousands of colleagues and friends are going through situations worse than mine.” – Carole Bénédicte

Representatives of various political parties were invited to take part in the public discussion: Andrés Fontecilla, MP for Laurier-Dorion (Québec solidaire), and Alexandre Boulerice, MP for Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie and deputy leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), answered the call.

“The documentary allows us to realize the gap between political rhetoric and reality. There are nearly 300,000 people from abroad living and working on temporary permits in Quebec. That’s the figure we should be debating, rather than thinking about closing the door to permanent immigration.” – Andrés Fontecilla, MNA for Laurier-Dorion (Québec solidaire)

“It’s absolutely essential that everyone sees this documentary. To be informed and then to act collectively. We need to become aware of our dependence on the services of these exploited workers and ask ourselves if this is the kind of society we want to live in.” – Alexandre Boulerice, MP for Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie and deputy leader of the NDP

Essential will be broadcast on Télé-Québec on Wednesday, January 25 at 8 p.m., and will be accompanied by a podcast available on podcast.telequebec.tv.