Poutine Documentary... So Far

For my second documentary I have turned my attention to artists of a different kind… people who make Poutine! As a proud Canadian and junk food enthusiast, this concoction of French fries, cheese curds and gravy is a give-in for guilty pleasure of the year (along with pizza, chocolate, and really most fatty foods). But more than that I think it has become a symbol of Canada. So I wanted to find out why.

To be honest the idea started as a joke, something I might shoot over the summer for fun, but my instructors were genuinely enthusiastic about the idea, so I set out on a path of weight gain and discovery. Over the next couple of posts I will talk about the places my journey has taken me, and the delicious discoveries I made along the way, but first here are three things I learned about the documentary process as I got started

1. Accessibility is key, and a lot of the time all you have to do is ask, and people will be more than willing to help.  I was amazed at how accommodating these restaurants have been in allowing me into their kitchens, and just taking the time to answer my questions.  
2. You cannot over shoot. Even if you get everything you wanted when you were shooting, you may not have everything you needed for editing.
3. Food documentaries are the way to go! Every place I have shot at has been kind enough to let me sample their poutine on the house. For Zak’s I knew what I was getting, I had eaten there before a number of times, but Petit Bill's Bistro, Smoke’s Poutinerie, and most recently Frenchie’s Super Fries were all new experiences for me. And all come very highly recommended.

I’ll hopefully have a trailer up by the end of the week, as a sample of some of the things I’ve seen so far in my investigation into Quebec’s controversial culinary concoction.

Until then I have some editing to do.