Trailer for A Centre-Sud Tale.
Danic Champoux grew up in a rough, low-income neighborhood of Montreal. He lived across the street from a Hell's Angels compound. Now an adult, he understands the values he learned from living within limited means. Turning his camera towards his children, his mother, Barbara (Mémé), and local residents, Champoux highlights the empathy, beauty and humour in the Centre-Sud community he still calls home. As Mémé and her youngest granddaughter go about their day, whether to the food bank or the soup kitchen, they encounter a camaraderie among those in similar situations. Subverting the dominant images of low-income urban centres, Champoux frames his film through personal narration in the form of fairy tale prose. There is a genuine warmth and affection for his subject matter, but his observational approach presents a difficult reality. Make no mistake, his subjects have not had easy lives and their circumstances aren't glamorous, but they find dignity, joy and virtue in forced frugality.