Reading Response #4

I really enjoyed watching and interacting with the story of Pine Point. It was by far my favourite of the reading response articles this semester. From a technical standpoint, I really liked the way the information was presented in this interactive story fashion, which allowed the viewer to progress through at a pace that felt right to them. Another aspect I really enjoyed was the choice of soundtrack, it works perfectly for the pace and type of content and really added to the story. I also really appreciated the selection of photos used for the project, they all felt very natural and unedited, which I really enjoyed. It felt like I was going through an old family photo album.

For me, there was a lot of personal connection with the story and photos from Pine Point, as I spent a lot of my childhood in a small Northern Quebec town called Kipawa (population 474), which bordered the slightly larger mill-town of Témiscaming (population 2,385). The town was small; it had a hockey rink, a Tim Hortons, and a main drag (grocery store, bank, Canada Post, and a Home Hardware). Despite being on the decline with the mill downsizing, the town has mostly stayed the same. While the younger generation has all moved on and out, the older generation remains, to the point where everyone knows everyone. The photos I included were all found online of the small town of Kipawa and its neighbouring Témiscaming, Quebec. Next time I return home I will go through our old family albums and scan and upload our photos of the towns.

Old photo of Kipawa main drag. Only the very square white building with the angled dock and the farthest right building remain.
Témiscaming main drag. The bank still remains.
The Tembec pulp and paper mill.
KIpawa Bait and Tackle – Still around today. I’m pretty sure (not 100%) that the farthest right boat with the red top was my grandpa’s old boat. I spent many nights on that thing. They sold it after a nearby heart attack / drowning incident that they were present for (I don’t remember the whole story).
Hunter’s Point. An old village on Lake Kipawa that was originally set up in the 1800s by the Hudson’s Bay Trading Company as a trading post. Has long since been abandoned but is seasonally occupied by Wolf Lake First Nation’s people. When the damn was built to create the lake the area was all sent underwater.