Storytelling (2001)

Cinematic representations of university Creative Writing programs are few and far between. Godard's Notre musique (2004) is set at a literary festival in Sarajevo (the famous scene where Godard shows students pictures of a destroyed Richmond, Virginia after the American Civil War), but apart from that, the only film I can think of that takes us inside a creative writing classroom is Todd Solondz's Storytelling (2001).

Storytelling is divided into two sections: "Fiction" and "Non-Fiction" (a third section, entitled "Autobiography", was cut from the final film). It is in "Fiction" that we find ourselves in a creative writing class led by Professor Scott (Robert Wisdom), a gruff, straight-shooting Black writer whose best days are behind him and who has sex with his white female students -- one of whom is Vi (Selma Blair).

Like a lot of Solondz's films, discomfort is the operative condition, and there is a lot of it in "Fiction". Coincidentally, there is a lot of discomfort in this country's writing culture (abuse, betrayal, petitions, rumours, callouts, confessions, suspensions, firings) and I wonder if it might be time to re-screen this film and follow it with a talkback session.

As to who might host such a session, it would have to be someone with experience, who understands the difference between life and art, but who is aware of how the two meet and mingle; someone with patience and passion, who is partial to logic and lyricism, affirmation and critique, intellectual and emotional intelligence... A few names spring to mind. In Vancouver -- Amber Dawn. In Calgary -- Larissa Lai. In Toronto -- Zoe Whitall. In Montreal -- Sina Queyras.