About the film
In 2007, Lasallien Center opened their doors in St-Michel—one of the most disadvantaged boroughs on the island of Montreal. Nourrir les Rêves introduces audiences to Paul Evra, the young altruistic director who grew up there and is leading the center and their mission to help feed the numerous families in the area who are food insecure.
Directors
Kimberley Ann Surin & Aïcha Morin-Baldé
Cinematographers
Thomas Soto
Editor
Myriam Magassouba
Sound
René Portillo Ruiz
Composer
Alexis Elina
Runtime
6 MIN
About the Directors
Kimberley Ann Surin
Based in Montreal, Kimberley Ann Surin is a Haitian-Canadian filmmaker. She graduated in 2016 from Pennsylvania State University in Communications - Film and TV. Over the years, she had the chance to work on a variety of interesting and different projects, from fiction to documentary, advertising and promotional commercials to publicity, as well as animation. In 2020, she directed and wrote her first documentary Against All Odds, a short film about the lack of diversity in professional and junior hockey with retired NHL player Georges Laraque as main protagonist. Her focus in all her creative work is to uplift the voices of Black, marginalized, and under-represented talent in front of and behind the camera. Kimberley Ann is currently in development of a feature-length documentary and feature-length drama film.
Aicha Morin-Balde
Aïcha Morin-Baldé was born and raised in Montreal of French-Canadian and Guinean descent. After graduating in Film & Communications, she completed two consecutive internships at established production companies. She has since accumulated extensive experience as a director, producer, editor and production coordinator, and has worked on various types of web productions including web series, fiction, music videos and documentaries. Using the camera to elevate black voices and stories has always been the driving force behind Aïcha's work. She is passionate about creating films that help grow Black representation in media and consistently aims to shine the spotlight on the unique individuals in her community. Her first short film Knots explores Black women's relationships with their natural hair and the stigmas surrounding it. It premiered at the Toronto Black Film Festival and will also be available at FIFBM in September 2021. She is currently writing her first short drama, a feminist piece on the subject of abortions.
Artist Statement
Working on this film, we had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with the rich community of St-Michel. Although none of us were from the neighbourhood, they made us and our team feel right at home.
We would like to thank Nathan Zoh Bi, Kendra Coulibaly, Pau Evra and his dedicated team, and all the other participants who took the time to speak with us. We would also like to thank Hot Docs for making this film possible and for supporting the Black French-Canadian community of Montreal.
