A word from fathers
In recent years, numerous studies have highlighted the growing involvement of fathers in family life. Director Marie-France Laval wanted to give voice to these men who invest their time in their children. Through the project Fathers in lightshe brought snippets of their daily life to the screen.
Their names are Pierre-Paul, Jean-René, Alexandre, Patrick and Julien. These five fathers from Laval have in common this desire to be as present as possible in the lives of their children.
In front of Marie-France Laval’s camera, they talk about their vision of fatherhood. If the director expected it to differ from one father to another, it “is even more multiple” than she had imagined. Through her interviews, which gave birth to five short films of just under ten minutes each, she notices that today’s father is looking for guidance.
“Their role is changing, for some of them at least. They have difficulty finding their place in the new equation and living their fatherhood the way they want to,” she analyzes.
There are more and more fathers who have this desire to be involved with their children, but society, overall, does not always give them the same possibilities as a mother.
Marie-France Laval, director
In a telephone interview, one of the project participants, Jean-René Lavoie, agrees. The father of a 2-year-old girl and another 11-year-old from two different unions deplores that “we sometimes put obstacles in the way [des hommes] ”, when it comes to shared custody. “The law is designed to favor mothers rather than fathers,” believes the man who tells his story to lift the veil on the challenges that many separated fathers face.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Jean-René Lavoie
Do we give fathers an important enough place in society? “It gets better with time, but, yes, it’s still a little difficult. Considering the involvement of fathers as natural is not yet integrated into society,” he thinks. To illustrate his point, he gives the example of the absence of changing tables in certain public men’s toilets.
“What struck me is that there are still a lot of things to do,” says Marie-France Laval about the place given to dads.
In the project context Fathers in light, the five participants posed for photographer Gaëlle Vuillaume. The portraits, accompanied by quotes from the fathers, are currently on display at the Sylvain-Garneau library in Laval until July 28. Visitors can also watch the short films there.
Visit the project website
In one number: 82%
Percentage of fathers of babies who say they are “very committed to their relationship with their child and [qui] are actively involved in their role. Unveiled last Wednesday by the Institute of Statistics of Quebec, these data come from the current study Growing up in Quebecwhich will follow 4,000 children born in 2020-2021 into adulthood.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER
Ahoy! Mission: archeology. Text by Frédérick Wolfe, illustrations by Guillaume Perreault
Learn differently
Creator of youth podcasts, La Fleche à l’oreille launched a very original project this spring: Ohé! Amplified posters. Available in bookstores and certain libraries, each poster is in fact an audio game. For example, in Ahoy! Mission: archeology, the child becomes a mole who must complete his internship in archeology by searching different layers of the ground in search of artifacts. Thanks to the associated mobile application, he chooses what he explores by indicating out loud the elements he wishes to discover. At the moment there are three posters. A fun and different way to stock up on knowledge.
Ahoy! Mission: archeology. Text by Frédérick Wolfe, illustrations by Guillaume Perreault. Editions Quebec America. From 7 years old.
IMAGE PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER
Grandpa’s last moments. Text by Yvan DeMuy, illustrations by Janou-Ève LeGuerrier
To support bereaved families
Sometimes you can find it difficult to talk to your child about certain subjects. How do we tell them, for example, that a loved one will receive medical assistance in dying? Grandpa’s last moments is one of the rare children’s books to address this reality. With great gentleness, author Yvan DeMuy and illustrator Janou-Ève LeGuerrier tell the close relationship between a little girl and her sick grandfather. “He prefers to leave before we are lost forever. He prefers to leave before we no longer recognize each other,” slips the narrator. A story full of love to accompany bereaved families.
Grandpa’s last moments. Text by Yvan DeMuy, illustrations by Janou-Ève LeGuerrier. Éditions Les 400 coups. From 5 years old.