Polytechnique Project

More than 30 years after the Polytechnique tragedy, Marc Lépine’s admirers are still active, and the issue of gun control in Canada has not been resolved. Feminicides are piling up and anti-feminist rhetoric is proliferating on the web. Actors Marie-Joanne Boucher and Jean-Marc Dalphond have wholeheartedly embarked on a citizen’s initiative to create a documentary play on the subject. They took the risk of opening up a conversation with those whose thinking is diametrically opposed to their own, and invited us to do the same.

Podcast

6 X 20 min

Radio-Canada OHdio

ici.radio-canada.ca/ohdio

In collaboration with

Radio-Canada OHdio & Porte Parole

Production

Karine Dubois & Marie-Pierre Corriveau (Picbois Productions), Amandine Gauthier, Alex Ivanovici & Annabel Soutar (Porte Parole)

Director

Myriam Berthelet

Hosts

Marie-Joanne Boucher & Jean-Marc Dalphond

Genre

Documentary

Country

Canada

Original version

French

Duration

6 X 20 min

Year

2022

Trailer

S01 E01

Whose fault is it?

Why are admirers of killer Marc Lépine still active today? That's one of the questions Jean-Marc Dalphond and Marie-Joanne Boucher ask themselves, and that's what led them to write documentary theater. Their mission: to reach out to those who seem impossible to understand. To begin, the duo return to the scene of the Polytechnique massacre with one of the first police officers to set foot there after receiving the emergency call, Jacques Duchesneau. Among the 14 women killed was Jean-Marc's cousin.

S01 E02

Blame the weapons?

Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne attend a demonstration against gun control. Since the Polytechnique massacre, pro-gun control activists have been intimidated. Jean-Marc takles the issue head-on during a conversation with a pro-gun activist, from which he emerges shaken. Marie-Joanne handles a rifle for the first time in a shooting club. She takes the opportunity to ask the regulars about it.

S01 E03

Blame the crazies?

The survivors and families of the victims of the Polytechnique massacre have brought the fight for gun control to a head. In focusing on this battle, have we overlooked the fact that this was an anti-feminist attack? Why did we wait several years before naming it as such? After reading Marc Lépine's letter, Marie-Joanne can only question the label “mad gunman”, which trivializes the motivations behind this anti-feminist attack.

S01 E04

Blame the web?

After a much-needed break, Jean-Marc dives back into his research for the documentary piece. He tries to penetrate the world of incels, those “involuntary bachelors” whose resentment against women sometimes leads them to take violent action. Marie-Joanne meets Léa Clermont-Dion, who is concerned that misogynistic rhetoric on the web is materializing into real action. Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne summon up the courage to phone Marc Lépine's admirers.

S01 E05

Fourteen: a troubling number

While Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne pursue their case, the 14th feminicide of the year is announced in Quebec. Fourteen, the number of victims of the Polytechnique attack. More than symbolic, this number is troubling. Why do women continue to be targets, even in their private lives? Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne decide to meet a man who almost committed an irreparable act with his ex-wife.

S01 E06

Facing up

After several months, Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne nervously wait to meet the Marc Lépine admirer who has answered their call. What can we expect from a masculinist who has wallpapered his blog with praise for the Polytechnique killer? Can we even imagine striking up a conversation with him? At the end of this confronting documentary quest, the duo hope to open a dialogue, even with those we'd rather not hear from.

S01 E07

Epilogue

Jean-Marc and Marie-Joanne hear the big news: Marc Lépine's admirer, accused of wilfully fomenting hatred against women, is finally going to trial. Jean-Marc attends the hearings, while Marie-Joanne tries to understand what's at stake by talking to a lawyer. The evidence presented is disturbing. What will the verdict be? Will he be found guilty?