Priska Morrissey, Gilles Mouëllic, André Gaudreault et Rennes 2 President Christine Rivalan Guégo.
The most prestigious academic distinction was awarded to André Gaudreault on December 9, 2021, during an honorary ceremony that was as joyful as it was moving. A specialist in early cinema and a pioneer in film narratology, the Quebec researcher is particularly interested in the advent of editing, the phenomenon of opera retransmission in cinemas, technological innovations considered from an "archaeological" perspective, and the impact of digital technology on the media world.
Christine Rivalan Guégo, President of Rennes 2 University, opened the ceremony by declaring: "By awarding you this honorary doctorate this morning, Rennes 2 University wishes to pay tribute to the content and quality of the scientific and academic relations that you have established and, beyond that, to affirm its links with the Montreal University, which are indeed the conditions for fruitful exchanges of knowledge and learning. The importance of these relations and links in the construction of a progressive and emancipating world is more than ever necessary in the times we live in."
André Gaudreault's longtime collaborator, Gilles Mouëllic, Rennes 2 University Professor in film studies, researcher in the Arts, Practices and Poetics research unit, delivered the first speech, detailing the richness of his research career; he was followed by Priska Morrissey, Lecturer in film studies and Director of the Department of Performing Arts, who spoke about the many collaborations initiated and developed by André Gaudreault and the importance of his work for the discipline. The international dimension of his research and cooperation was made clear throughout the ceremony - André Gaudreault is notably one of the founders of Domitor, the International Association for the Development of Research on Early Cinema.
With a lot of humor - and numerous puns -, André Gaudreault recounted his connections with the West of France. On a more serious note, he also stressed that the research project on film techniques and technologies, Technès, would not have been such a success without the strong involvement of Rennes 2 University. The audience, composed of university vice-presidents, professors, staff and students, shared their great emotion, at the conclusion of an event that reflected André Gaudreault's personality brilliantly.
