Who we are ?
The Alter-Ciné Foundation was created in the memory of Canadian filmmaker, Yvan Patry, who passed away on October 14, 1999. Patry was a co-founder of the production company Alter Ciné and directed numerous documentaries and current affairs programs in Africa, Latin America and Asia: "… documentaries should go against the tide," he said, "they should bear witness and spur us to action."

His films have been screened around the world:

"Chronicle of A Genocide Foretold" (Rwanda) won the Canadian Chalmers Prize for Excellence and Creativity, and the Award for Best Feature Documentary at the HotDocs! Festival in Toronto.
"The Forbidden Land" (Eritrea) took the Prix du Jury at the Nyon Festival (Switzerland), and the Blue Ribbon Award at the American Film and Video Festival.
"Denial" (El Salvador) was awarded Quebec's Judith-Jasmin Award.
"Alonso's Dream" (Mexico) won the Dirk Van Der Sypen Award for the Best Documentary shot in Latin America.

Patry's documentaries have contributed to tearing down walls of silence, denouncing injustice and barbarism, and giving voice to victims of horror.

The Alter-Ciné Foundation is inspired by this ethics. The Foundation offers a yearly grant to young film and video makers from Africa, Asia and Latin America to direct a documentary film on the theme of rights and freedoms, including social and economic rights, women's rights, the right to culture and artistic creation.

[...]
The Foundation particularly supports documentary films that dare to go against the tide, that take the side of the defenceless and question common assumptions by giving a voice to the voiceless, enriching our understanding of the world and helping us reflect on the possibility of changing the world from a perspective of peace, justice, equality and respect for differences.

In the past 12 years, 1,107 film projects from 75 countries have been submitted to the Foundation. 39 filmmakers, including 17 women, have received grants to assist in the production of their vitally important documentaries. A jury of Quebec filmmakers, producers, human rights activists and international development experts convene each year to select the winners. There's a great diversity to the themes [...].

These emerging filmmakers are determined to express their realities. To do so, they often struggle against enormous odds, using the limited means at their disposal. They are motivated by a profound conviction that films can make a difference, increasing awareness, building bridges, stimulating and moving audiences to reflect and to take action. These filmmakers are convinced that documentary films constitute an "intelligent", non-violent weapon for change. And they sincerely believe that efforts to denounce injustice and defend individual and collective rights and freedoms can contribute to make the world a better place.

Many recipients of our foundation's grants have won at important festivals around the world [...].

The Alter-Ciné Foundation's Board members:
Jocelyne Clarke, filmmaker
Madeleine Desnoyers, consultant
Julien Élie, filmmaker
Daniel Ferguson, filmmaker
Ole Gjerstad, filmmaker
Danièle Lacourse, filmmaker
Gilles Lacourse, architect
Claire Lapointe, producer, translator and development expert
Pierre Patry, engineer, former CEO Soprin
Erica Pomerance, filmmaker
Alexandre Trudeau, filmmaker