Winnipeg student’s COVID-19 documentary gets international audience

Matthew Shoup's 'Covid Choir" documentary looks at how the pandemic affected his school choir program

How do you teach choir when you are not allowed to sing?

That is the question behind the documentary ‘Covid Choir,’ which was directed by a 16-year-old Winnipegger and is gaining international attention.

Garden City Collegiate student Matthew Shoup was selected as one of ten participants to take part in the ‘Gimme 10 in 30! Documentary Challenge,’ where 10 budding filmmakers were asked to make a documentary in 30 days that was no longer than seven minutes.

“It really forced me to think very quickly about what I wanted to do,” said Shoup. “I didn’t have time to think about different subjects. You kind of just had to go, go, go until you had it finished.”

He chose choir. It was something he had been participating in since he was 11, but as a 15-year-old in 2021, the activity was far from familiar. Pandemic-related lockdowns and health orders almost made singing a restricted activity.

The film also has a connection to the Winnipeg Jets.

As part of the project, Shoup interviewed his choir teacher Stacey Nattrass Brown, who happens to be the long-time anthem singer for the Winnipeg Jets.

The film premiered at the ‘Gimme Some Truth Documentary Film Festival’ in December and has since gone international, as an official selection at the ‘The Paus Premieres Festival’ in the United Kingdom.

“It was only supposed to be up for 24 hours but then it got extended for four days because it was so in demand. It’s really, really exciting,” Shoup said.

The plan now is to expand upon the concept by examining how the pandemic has affected other arts departments like band and theatre.