RSJ grad releases documentary about national preservation centre

Lindsay Fitzgerald, a Ryerson School of Journalism class of 2015 grad, has produced a documentary about what it was like spending four days at the Library and Archives Canada Preservation Centre in Gatineau, Que. 

The documentary, called “Four Days at the National Preservation Centre,” (external link)  was directed by Fitzgerald, Sean Stiller, and Andrew Bateman. Stiller and Bateman graduated from Ryerson with master’s degrees in documentary media. The directors made this documentary because they wanted to go back to their creative roots. 

“It's a visual meditation on the relationship between humans, knowledge and technology,” said Fitzgerald. “[It’s about] what technological advancement means and what gets preserved, and how that informs the future or a nation's understanding of itself. I think the visuals also insinuate that we are part and parcel of all these technologies, and they are really extensions of ourselves.” 

The summary of the film is “a symphonic short documentary about the mechanics of one country’s efforts to conserve its archival heritage.” 

Fitzgerald said the directors spent four days inside the preservation centre talking to various people and their processes to preserve film, audio, and paper archives and maps. She described the preservation centre as a fascinating, strange place. 

The directors spent some time editing, and they realized they wanted the documentary to mimic the symphony of the machinery in the archives. They worked with a sound designer more closely than any of them had done before. 

Fitzgerald said her favourite part of working on the documentary was meeting new people and exploring spaces. The directors were able to have extended conversations with people and ask strange questions they would be unable to in a normal social setting. 

The documentary was picked up (external link)  by the Edmonton International Film Festival. 

It aired (external link)  on Super Channel in October. There is a chance it could be picked up by Prime Video. 

She said she feels OK about releasing a documentary during the COVID-19 pandemic. A screening in a physical space might happen some day, but she acknowledged it might be a few years from now.

She said she feels happy she made this documentary.  

“I think we were all tired of feeling as though documentary media has to bear the burden of social change or hyper-politicized pieces of work,” she said. “While those kinds of films are very important, I think it's as important to show an expanded form of what else documentary can be, which is also pensive and playful, while still being true to reality.”