The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) will be at the 40th annual Rendez-vous Québec Cinéma (RVQC) with 11 productions and co-productions, two of which will be premieres: the North American premiere of Hélène Magny's Je pleure dans ma tête (Unspoken Tears) and the festival premiere of Mathieu Fournier's Dans l'ombre du Star Wars Kid (Star Wars Kid: The Rise of the Digital Shadows). Both are feature-length documentaries.
The 11 NFB works selected to screen at the RVQC-four feature-length documentaries, three short documentaries, three animated shorts and one animated web series-span an array of topics and creative approaches. Together, they offer up unique perspectives on today's world, ranging from the deeply personal to the universal. The RVQC is also an opportunity to discover or revisit films that made their mark on the festival circuit. Other NFB productions will also be featured at two special events: the festival's 40th-anniversary screening and a tribute to filmmaker Danic Champoux, who passed away earlier this year. This edition of the RVQC, an annual retrospective of Quebec cinema, will take place from April 20 to 30, 2022, online throughout Canada and in theatres in Montreal.
Quick facts
- Je pleure dans ma tête (Unspoken Tears) by Hélène Magny (NFB) - NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/unspoken-tears
How can refugee children integrate into Quebec's school system, given the unspeakable violence they've experienced? This luminous and powerful film follows a psychologist specializing in conflict-related trauma and pays tribute to the admirable resilience and survival strategies of these "small adults," whose spirit the bombs and camps have not completely crushed, at a time when it is vital to raise awareness in Western societies of migration-related issues and children's rights. The film had its world premiere at the One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival in Prague.
- Dans l'ombre du Star Wars Kid (Star Wars Kid: The Rise of the Digital Shadows) by Mathieu Fournier (URBANIA/NFB) - FESTIVAL PREMIERE
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/star-wars-kid-the-rise-of-the-digital-shadows
In this documentary on the first viral phenomenon of the digital age, Ghyslain Raza (the "Star Wars Kid") breaks his silence and reflects on his story for the first time, meeting with renowned figures along the way. In doing so, he also explores our collective experience living in an online world in which we have to make peace with our digital shadows.
Feature-length documentaries
Whether viewed online or at a festival, these films have touched audiences everywhere.
-
Dear Audrey (Chère Audrey) by Jeremiah Hayes (Cineflix Media/NFB) - in-person screening only
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/dear-audrey
- À pleine voix (In Full Voice) by Saïda Ouchaou-Ozarowski (NFB)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/in-full-voice/
Short documentaries
These three films, some of which have won awards, continue to screen in Quebec, Canada and beyond.
-
Honour to Senator Murray Sinclair (Hommage au sénateur Murray Sinclair) by Alanis Obomsawin (NFB) - in-person screening only
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/honour-to-senator-murray-sinclair/
-
Mary Two-Axe Earley: I Am Indian Again (Mary Two-Axe Earley: Je suis redevenue indienne) by Courtney Montour (NFB)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/mary-two-axe-earley-i-am-indian-again/
-
Perfecting the Art of Longing (Peaufiner l'art de languir) by Kitra Cahana (NFB)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/perfecting/
Animated shorts
These films have been acclaimed at many festivals in Canada and abroad.
- Chroniques du Centre-Sud (Centre-Sud Chronicles) by Richard Suicide (NFB)
- Le syndrome de la tortue (The Turtle Syndrome) by Samuel Cantin (NFB)
Press kit (for both films): mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/chronicles-2021
- Mauvaises herbes (Bad Seeds) by Claude Cloutier (Unité centrale/NFB)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/bad-seeds
Animated web series
This playful, offbeat series will be presented online only.
- La liste des choses qui existent - saison 2 (The Great List of Everything - Season 2) by Francis Papillon (La Pastèque/NFB, in collaboration with Télé-Québec, and with the financial participation of the Shaw Rocket Fund)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/the-great-list-of-everything-season-2
Special screening to highlight the RVQC's 40th anniversary
Included in the RVQC lineup will be Pierre Perrault's feature-length documentary La bête lumineuse (The Shimmering Beast), first released 40 years ago.
Tribute to Danic Champoux
This special event will include the late filmmaker's first documentary short, Mon père (My Father, NFB, 2000), which won him the Prix Pierre et Yolande Perrault at the RVQC.
- 30 -
Stay Connected
Online Screening Room: NFB.ca
NFB Facebook | NFB Twitter | NFB Instagram | NFB Blog | NFB YouTube | NFB Vimeo
Curator's perspective | Director's notes
