In a Québec both real and imagined, both past and present, ‘You don’t exist’ becomes a familiar refrain during Félix Dufour-Laperrière’s poetic and political travelogue. Punctuated by a compelling variety of animation techniques, Archipelago brings to life a vibrant imaginary world that acts seamlessly as both a stark contrast to and a playful collaboration with the existing archival imagery and newsreel footage, worked into the structure of a tale rooted in reality.

Shifting from Québec’s complex colonial past to the work of activist Hubert Aquin, Archipelago emerges as a historical testament to and a philosophical treatise on notions of national identity. Together with his team of animators, Dufour-Laperrière redraws his home territory in order to better understand and reimagine the paradoxical realities of a contemporary Québécois. 

This screening is a UK premiere and is followed by a Q&A with director Félix Dufour-Laperrière, hosted by the ICA Film Programme Manager Nicolas Raffin.

Also on Saturday:

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