© Nicolas Lachapelle, Souterrains, 2017
Souterrains
Nicolas Lachapelle
Current project
Soutien à la création
Having been forcibly removed from downtown Detroit, a number of members of the Occupy movement found refuge under the banner of Fireweed Universe City. They moved to an area neglected by law enforcement agencies that was once a residential neighbourhood but now represents the American dream in ruins—a suburban failure, a wasteland devoid of municipal services. Since then, they have illegally occupied some of the few houses that still stand here and there; their numbers grow each summer as pilgrims, idealists and people down on their luck come and go. Behind the façade of an America that still claims to be prosperous, another America can be found: poor, isolated, uneducated, without recourse, in a state of crisis. Detroit, at the heart of what is known as the Rust Belt, is emblematic of this hidden side of the American dream. This is the context in which Fireweed emerged. The name has been aptly chosen for the community and refers to the weeds that spring up in the least hospitable conditions—new life where it’s not expected. The community is a refuge against the hardness of the world; it’s a new family for some, a place of temporary comfort for others. Through this project, I wish to explore the creative potential of the crisis spreading across America, the freedom it gives to the individuals who organize themselves, the resilience of those who, as at Fireweed, join forces and promote and nurture the best of humanity.
Nicolas Lachapelle
Describing himself first as a storyteller, explorer and activist, Nicolas documents other ways of life and is interested in non-authoritarian and collaborative filmmaking. His debut feature film Lumières sur l’eau (Lights Above Water), a documentary made in collaboration with children from the Crie community of Waswanipi, is a foundation stone in this approach. Interested in language and in moving away from the constraints of narrative, Nicolas wishes to bring a sensorial quality to the cinematic experience. This tangent crosses his work and his research into whole, sensorial, and collaborative cinema and has taken him from the Côte Nord to James Bay, and from the Great North to Detroit where he works and collaborates on various projects.
