My Winnipeg: revisted

This week’s class gave me the opportunity to watch the movie My Winnipeg by Guy Maddin. The movie loosely follows the story of a young man in his quest to leave his hometown of Winnipeg. In the process, he reminisces about his memories of the city, and the hallmark events that have defined Winnipeg.

Maddin mixes factual information about Winnipeg with gross errors and even unbelievable, implausible falsehoods. One may interpret this to be deceitful or even detrimental to Winnipeg tourism, as outsiders may watch this movie and believe that there really are frozen horse heads on Winnipeg’s rivers and homeless people living on Winnipeg rooftops. I, on the other hand, saw these inaccuracies as Maddin’s attempts to create “inside jokes” that only true Winnipegers would truly appreciate. Maddin discussed the Paddlewheel Restaurant, a hallmark of Winnipeg dining institutions. I laughed out loud when he discussed the orange Jell-O they served there, because this was and is quite true.

How does My Winnipeg relate to technology education? For me, I saw a constant theme of anti-modernism throughout the movie. Maddin discussed two significant recent events in Winnipeg history: the demolition of the Eaton’s building, and the demise of the Winnipeg Jets (which led to the subsequent demolition of the Winnipeg Arena). Maddin spoke at length about the negative consequences of these events, which Maddin suggests were due to short-sightedness and lack of business savvy. What others saw as economic progress, Maddin sees as horrific mistakes. Maddin clearly suggests that there is value in culture; the cultural history of a historic building like the Eaton’s building was more significant than any revenue that the current MTS Centre can generate for the local economy. Maddin held a reverence for the almost mythical cultural value of the Winnipeg Arena. He clearly states that the demolition of this building made a profoundly negative effect on the culture of the city.

The anti-modernist theme of the movie continued with Maddin’s choice of filming technique: most of the movie was shot in black and white with footage from old family home-videos spliced with grainy, handheld shots of Winnipeg streets. The blurry focus, overexposure, and shaky camera movements suggest a rejection of modern filming methods that rely on high-definition cameras and computer generated perfection. Most of the film locations were in historical Winnipeg: the Exchange District, Wolsey, the Legislature, and downtown. The music in selected for the movie are gems from decades ago. Consider the narrator’s method of travel: an old fashioned train whose constant pulse over the tracks serve as the backbeat of the movie. All of these aspects of the movie create a sense of nostalgia, a yearning for simpler times when the Winnipeg Jets reigned supreme and the Eaton’s Center provided all anyone in Winnipeg could desire.

Last week I visited my old elementary school, a Catholic school in River Heights. It is a school that is over one hundred years ago, and I had graduated from it in 1988. When I visited, I was amazed at all the things that have changed. The old music room has been replaced by fresh bright Nursery and Kindergarten rooms. The old library has been reorganized into a computer lab. Several of the classrooms now have SMART boards on their front walls which, ironically, used to be where all classrooms used to have their prayer centers: a small table, a Bible, and a candle for morning prayers.

I was impressed at the modern facelift the school has received in the twenty-two years since I was taught there. And yet, I was saddened to see so much of the school’s history had been painted over, replaced, or removed. Could this be another chapter to My Winnipeg? Is it progress when libraries, music rooms, and prayer centers are replaced by SMART boards and new classrooms? What cultural impact is disposable technology having in schools? By disposable, I mean all the electronic equipment that will only last for a few years or less.

In my visit, I saw my old grade seven teacher, Brenda, who is still teaching today after more than thirty years of experience. She was like a breath of fresh air, a familiar face from the past. In her classroom, I smiled as I saw her green chalk board, which served students for probably well before Brenda started teaching. Despite all the other changes in the school, Brenda’s old green chalkboard had somehow survived all the renovations. I wondered if this was Brenda’s way of holding onto the past, a small reminder of the school’s storied history.

As educators prepare students to become 21st century learners and infuse technology into the learning environment, we must be cognizant of the cultural impact of these changes. The historical artifacts of a school community have significant cultural value that cannot be replaced by modern disposable technologies. One must be mindful of protecting what matters from the past, while making informed decisions about the future.