Documentary filmmaker Maryse Legagneur makes the leap to fiction with a work that aims to break the taboo of the legacy of the dictatorship within the Haitian diaspora. Based on extensive research, her film tells the story of a former political prisoner of the Duvalier regime who reconnects with his daughter, whom he has not seen for 20 years.
Diagnosed with stomach cancer, Haitian immigrant Reynold Célestin (Gilbert Laumord) finds himself in a palliative care unit in Montreal. Assisted by a spiritual guide, he asks to see his daughter, Vanessa (Marie-Evelyne Lessard), before he dies. She is initially skeptical about meeting him, but eventually sees him a few times. When Reynold tells her about the abuse he suffered at Fort Dimanche prison in his home country, Vanessa gradually understands the violence her father inflicted on her during her childhood.
“This film allowed me to draw inspiration from my personal history, while taking the measure of a community, with the help of numerous testimonies,” explains the filmmaker. “I wanted to find a way to tell the story of intergenerational trauma, in a story where two generations can only free themselves if each becomes aware of what the other has experienced.”
This ambitious approach spanned 12 years. “I met with former prisoners from Fort Dimanche and tried to take the pulse of the Haitian community in Quebec,” says Maryse Legagneur. “My generation is aware that it carries the baggage of our parents, who fled the dictatorship and then experienced racism here. Today, my goal is to break the silence on the perpetuation of violence.”
Culinary traditions
Food plays a central role in the protagonists’ healing efforts. Indeed, each time Reynold visits Vanessa, he asks for new, uniquely Haitian dishes. Some foods evoke memories of his detention, while others offer him a dose of comfort as he remains stuck in his hospital room.
“I designed food as a language, as a bond that facilitates the encounter between the characters,” says the director. “Reynold and Vanessa haven’t seen each other for 20 years. They develop this means to get closer.”
Haitian cuisine, she adds, is also meant to be a symbol: “The dishes that Vanessa brings are prepared in a small, messy Haitian snack bar, where people cook with love. She brings so at the hospital, little bits from outside, which give Mr. Célestin hope.” Maryse Legagneur contrasts these meals with the bland cuisine of the Quebec health system.
Restorative filming
Throughout, the film oscillates between scenes from the contemporary era and reconstructions of Reynold’s youth. We see him being violently arrested by the Tontons Macoutes, then incarcerated because of his work with a protest radio station. Dozens of prisoners are crammed into the same small cells. Several of them lose their lives there.
“It was important to me to shoot these scenes as close to Fort Dimanche as possible,” the filmmaker explains. “For all sorts of economic and political reasons, it had become unthinkable to shoot in Haiti. So we chose the Dominican Republic. It wasn’t an easy choice to make, considering the country’s history of persecution of Haitians.”
But on set, she continues, “where an extraordinary amount of reconstruction work was done after in-depth research, we began a dialogue between Haitian and Dominican actors.” “For Haitians, reliving these tragic events even acted as a healing gesture. I hope we can present the film in the Caribbean, because this subject remains taboo in cinema and in Haitian society.”
In Quebec, Maryse Legagneur notes that she has seen the film industry evolve during the 12 years she worked on the project. “At the beginning of my writing process, I was advised to adapt my script so that a certain “pure laine Quebec audience” would understand it. Today, I am pleased that the Maghreb or Haitian diasporas, for example, are more widely considered as part of the Quebec audience, and our stories as potentially universal.”