Pembroke’s Matt LeMay named Canadian Geographic Filmmaker-in-Residence

Matt LeMay's commitment, professionalism and hard work has paid off as he's been named Canadian Geographic’s inaugural Filmmaker-in-Residence.

The Pembroke filmmaker's earlier works chronicled the story of 19th century lumberjacks battling the Ottawa River in order to deliver thousands of trees to Bytown, now known as Ottawa. He's also brought to life the long gone saloons and hotels once found on both sides of the river with his unique form of storytelling, capturing the colourful, and sometimes notorious images of these establishments that helped shape the history of the area.

One thing these films all had in common was they told the story of other cultures and nationalities and how these diverse people came together and proudly embraced their new home.

However, LeMay is especially proud and excited with his recent appointment.

For the next year the man behind the lens will have the funding and resources to be able to tell the story of the Métis in Canadian society and for this proud member of Métis Ontario, it is a rare opportunity to not only embrace his heritage of which he is fiercely proud of, but it establishes his rise as one of Canada’s eminent documentary filmmakers.

“When this is all over I hope to achieve one of my goals I set for myself over the next year,” he said. “I really hope to use this platform to share the story of the Métis to a much wider audience across Canada so people realize the history and important role that both Metis and Indigenous people have played in the growth and development of Canada as a nation.”

LeMay’s dossier of films go far beyond lumberjacks and saloons. As Canadian Geographic stated in its media release announcing his appointment, his past work already touches on the history of Canada’s First Nations.

“He has channelled his passion for social issues impacting First Nations and Métis communities into documentaries that showcase the power of Indigenous storytelling and the importance of protecting our natural environment,” the release stated. “LeMay’s captivating storytelling and innovation in the field of educational documentary film make him the perfect choice for this prestigious new role.”

For over a decade LeMay has been doing documentary films with a strong focus on reconciliation working with Indigenous groups in Canada, as well as the environment. Last spring he was hired by Canadian Geographic just prior to COVID hitting to direct a documentary in Saskatchewan called, “The Future of Michif.”

Michif is the language of the Métis in Canada, LeMay said.

“It was basically working with the Métis people in Saskatchewan to tell their story,” he explained. “That’s where it started and the relationship has just grown since then. I had the chance to also meet and work with them when some of the staff were in Ottawa before COVID took over our lives and I am sure that went a long way to the appointment.”

LeMay said there was not a national call for submissions for the residency nor was it a recommendation process.

“They knew me, they were excited about my projects and they understood my commitment to not only telling the story of our Indigenous people, but they knew about my commitment to environmental issues and my pride of being Metis.”

“I think they really like my work and appreciated what I’d been doing as a filmmaker and there were a lot of synergies in our values,” he added. I had already been doing work with Canadian Geographic so not only did they gain a better understanding of my work, but they got to know me as a person. They said they were creating this position and they wanted me to take it on which was just amazing.”

Staff at Canadian Geographic reviewed his other work with the Métis Association of Ontario, on residential schools and with the Assembly of First Nations, some of which had earned him national awards.

“And I’ve done quite a bit of work with a variety of Indigenous organizations and I’ve done a lot of films in that space, as well as environmental ones,” added LeMay. “They recently just got into doing documentary productions, so this is something that is relatively new to them. So this is like a whole new avenue that we’re going to explore together.”

LeMay’s commitment to societal causes is not limited to his promotion and raising awareness of Métis and Indigenous issues. He is a strong environmentalist and he has embraced his recent appointment as a chance to bring his two passions together.

Both he and his father, Mike LeMay, a retired school teacher and currently in the second term of office as the Mayor of Pembroke, are quiet and reserved by nature. He jokes that his father is sometimes too quiet to be a politician.

But when it comes to talking about their Métis heritage or the environment, both men can be very vocal.

“We see climate change happening and even here in the Ottawa Valley, some years we see just have crazy flooding on the river and this year it seems like it’s bone dry,” LeMay said. “Over the last 18 months I’ve produced 30 educational documentaries and I’ve done five that are on Amazon in the U.K. and the U.S.”

“The possibilities are endless in terms of how we can promote environmental awareness and hopefully one day the crises that have been created over generations can be slowed down,” he said. “Just imagine a world when these crises have stopped. That will only happen when all of us just take the time to understand that we may be totally unaware that our actions have led to where we are today in terms of environmental disasters. Most of us do not set out to cause environmental issues, so that is why these films will help us correct our actions.”