See “the beauty of the world” before losing your sight: a film about a Quebec family’s trip around the world

The fruit of a 15-month trip to 15 countries by a family from Boucherville, whose goal was to give a “full view” to their children who will become blind, will soon be on our screens.

It is not without emotion that Édith Lemay speaks about this documentary entitled Blink and produced by National Geographic, which will be presented in theaters across the province, starting October 4.

“The children were moved [lorsqu’ils ont vu le film]even if they have experienced everything. They were sad that it was over,” says the mother of four.

She does the narration in English, but specifies that the dialogues between the members of the family are in French.

“There are some touching, very moving bits, but it’s a family-oriented film. There are some very funny bits, it’s in our image,” explains M^me Lemay.

Stuck in… two cable cars

The production team accompanied the family last year to four of their destinations, namely Malaysia, Nepal, Egypt and Ecuador, where, among other things, they were stuck for 10 hours at an altitude of 3,500 meters, in one of the highest cable cars in the world, in Quito.

“The crew was supposed to arrive the following week, but when they heard we were stuck, they sent a cameraman who did a hike for almost two hours in the jungle to come and take images of our adventure,” says M^me Lemay laughing.

Ironically, the family also got stuck in the cable car that was supposed to take them to the presentation room for their film, which had its media premiere last September, during the Telluride Film Festival, in Colorado. Fortunately, the ordeal only lasted a few minutes this time.

“We accepted that it was coming”

During this journey, dotted with a thousand and one adventures, Mia, 13 years old, Léo, 11 years old, Colin, 9 years old and Laurent, 7 years old, were able to check off many wishes on their list.

Unfortunately, three of them, Mia, Colin and Laurent, suffer from retinitis pigmentosa and will lose their sight when they reach the age of thirty. No medication can slow the progression of the disease, emphasizes the mother.

“It’s going to be ups and downs. We know that we are going to have a lot of grieving to do” says M^me Lemay.

Only Leo was spared from this genetic defect. “As he grows up, he realizes and says that he is going to be there for his sister and his brothers later,” says the mother.

“Drink juice on a camel”

Around the globe, children have fulfilled their dream of going on safari, three times rather than once, in Namibia, Zambia and Tanzania, they swam with dolphins in Zanzibar, saw elephants in three countries, slept in a train and even drank juice on a camel (Laurent’s wish)!

Although several wishes have been “checked off”, others have yet to be fulfilled, including “going to Japan to see Pokémon” and “seeing the Great Wall of China”.

Still thirsty for adventure, the family could eventually hit the road again, with the aim of ticking all the boxes, suggests M^me Lemay.

“That’s the problem when you travel. You check off a lot of themes, but you also add a lot of them!” she says.

The beauty of the world in memory

A book, written by the mother, was also recently published, with the aim of passing on this unforgettable experience in words to her children, who one day will no longer be able to see.

The book, titled Full their eyes is currently on sale in bookstores.