Artist: Anne Marie Rocher (Toronto, Canada)
Project Title: La classe de Madame Debbie

Dates: July 31 - August 12, 2006

Anne Marie Rocher will be working on post production of the documentary La classe de Madame Debbie. This 30-minute French documentary portrays the impact of a gifted teacher on a group of eager and engaging pupils in Prince Edward Island.

Debbie teaches in an elementary school in rural Prince Edward. Most of her pupils have Acadian parents but they do not all understand French when they start school. This is due to the assimilation of their parents into the English majority, a phenomenon which affects most elementary French-language schools outside of Quebec.

As we watch Debbie exchanging ideas with her pupils and helping them learn their lines and express themselves, we see education in a new light, as a poignant and touching lesson in life and self-expression.