#BREAKINGNEWS: Here’s what’s playing at FNC

Xavier Dolan. His film Tom à la ferme is competing for the Louve d’Or

The 42nd Festival du Nouveau Cinéma (FNC) will take over the city Oct. 9–20. The fest, which celebrates the endurance of cinematic creation in every form and for every audience, will highlight films from newcomers and established filmmakers alike.

They will screen 273 films (146 features and 124 shorts) from 47 countries, including 39 world premieres, 33 North American premieres and 47 Canadian premieres.

OPENING AND CLOSING FILMS
The fest opens with Robert Lepage and Pedro Pires’s Triptyque, an adaptation of Lepage’s play Lipsynch. The film is a search for meaning through the mysteries of neuropsychology.

On Oct. 19, the FNC closes with the North American premiere of La Danse de la réalité (La Danza de la Realidad) (France/Chile), a film directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky. Contrasting shadow and light, religious belief and atheism, reverie and brutal reality, Jodorowsky Sr. delivers an inspired work that shows his imagination to be as breathtakingly vivid as ever.

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION: LOUVE D’OR
The International Competition showcases personal, visionary works and singular viewpoints culled from around the world over the last few months. This year, 16 films are in competition for the Louve d’Or:

Arwad, Samer Najari and Dominique Chila (Quebec), a bittersweet story of the search for identity.
Au nom du fils, Vincent Lannoo (Belgium), a fierce saga of blood-soaked vengeance.
Blind Dates, Levan Koguashvili (Georgia), a tragicomic tale of middle-aged romance.
Bluebird, Lance Edmands (United States), a solemnly elegant drama set in the snowy Maine countryside.
Die Welt, Alex Pitstra (Holland/Morocco), about the dilemma facing young Moroccans: stay or leave?
L’Escale, Kaveh Bakhtiari (Switzerland/France), a superb documentary about day-to-day life for illegal migrants living underground in Greece.
Floating Skyscrapers, Tomasz Wasilewski (Poland), an artful coming-of-age tale.
Heli, Amat Escalante (Mexico), a stark look at violence in Mexico, winner of the Best Director Award at Cannes.
Ilo Ilo, Anthony Chen (Singapore), a tale of integration, winner of the Caméra d’or at Cannes.
In Bloom, Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Gross (Georgia), which chronicles teens in Tbilisi the day after the fall of the Soviet empire.
L’Inconnu du Lac (Stranger by the Lake), Alain Guiraudie (France), part delightful romance, part nail-biting thriller, winner of the Un Certain Regard Best Director award at Cannes.
Miss Violence, Alexandros Avranas (Greece), a shocking, extraordinary work reminiscent of Yorgos Lanthimos’s Dogtooth (Louve d’or at the 2009 FNC) and a double award-winner at Venice.
Pelo Malo, Maraiana Rondon (Venezuela), which delves into gender identity with humour and finesse.
Salvo, Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza (Italy), a disturbing first-time noir that generated a buzz during Critics’ Week at Cannes.
Soldate Jeannette, Daniel Hoesl (Austria), the kind of decadent punk parable that’s to be expected when a former assistant director of Ulrich Seidl is inspired by Fassbinder’s Katzelmacher.
Tom à la ferme, Xavier Dolan (Quebec/France), a lyrical big-screen adaptation of the eponymous play, winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at the most recent Venice Film Festival.

SPECIAL PRESENTATION
Traditionally devoted to the great masters of contemporary cinema, the Special Presentation section is back again this year with an outstanding selection of 26 works curated from the world’s most prestigious festivals, presented in a rare preview:

A Touch of Sin (TianZhu Ding), Jia Zhang Ke (China/Japan), winner of the Best Screenplay award at Cannes.
All is Lost, J.C.Chandor(United States)
L’Amour est un crime parfait (Love is the Perfect Crime), Arnaud Larrieu and Jean-Marie Larrieu (France)
Closed Curtain, Jafar Panahi (Iran)
Le Démantèlement,Sébastien Pilote (Quebec)
Le Dernier des injustes (The Last of the Unjust), Claude Lanzmann (France)
Devil’s Knot, Atom Egoyan (United States)
Gare du Nord, Claire Simon (France) who on October 14 will give a master class at Excentris
Goltzius and the Pelican Company, Peter Greenaway (United Kingdom)
La Grande Bellezza, Paolo Sorrentino (Italy)
Les Grandes Ondes (Longwave), Lionel Baier (Switzerland)
Henri, Yolande Moreau (France)
Histoire de ma mort (Story of my Death), Albert Serra (Spain), Golden Leopard at Locarno
The Husband, Bruce McDonald (Canada)
La Jalousie (Jealousy), Philippe Garrel (France)
The restored version of Lola, Jacques Demy (France/1966), presented both outdoors and in the theatre.
Our Sunhi, Hong Sangsoo (South Korea)
Les Rencontres d’après minuit (You and the Night), Yann Gonzalez (France)
Sacro GRA, Gianfranco Rosi (Italy), the Golden Lion of Venice.
Stray Dogs, Tsai Ming-Liang (Taiwan), Grand Jury Prize at Venice.
Tableau Noir, Yves Yersin (Switzerland)
Like Father, Like Son (Soshite Chichi Ni Naru) , Hirokasu Kore-Eda (Japan), Jury Award at Cannes.
‘Til Madness Do Us Part, Wang Bing (China)
Tip Top, Serge Bozon (France)
When Evening Falls on Bucharest or Metabolism, Corneliu Porumboiu (Romania)

PANORAMA
Exploring cinematic forms from around the world, the 41 films in the International Panorama section have been grouped into three special programs that offer resounding juxtapositions:

SUR LA ROUTE (ON THE ROAD) proposes a reinvention of the road movie through six innovative works:
Disappearing Landscape, Vladimir Todorovic (Singapore)
Dummy Jim, Matt Hulse (United Kingdom)
Le Grand’Tour, Jérôme Le Maire (Belgium)
Je sens le beat qui monte en moi (Beauty and the Beat) + LE QUEPA SUR LA VILNI!, Yann Le Quellec (France)
Leones, Jazmin Lopez (Argentina)
Swandown, Andrew Kötting (United Kingdom)

BRÉSIL NOVO, a look at new Brazilian cinema in all its fascinating diversity through six features and 10 shorts. The features are:
Avanti Popolo, Michael Wahrmann
Breath (Sopro), Marcos Pimentel
The Days with him (Os dias come ele), Maria Clara Escobar
Girimunho, Helvecio Marins Jr & Clarissa Campolina
Housemaids (Domestica), Gabriel Mascaro
The Moving creature (O que se move), Caetano Gotardo
Two programs of shorts will complete the selection.

STOP MAKING SENSE presents eight films that give music a key role:
The Jesus Lizards: Last, Tony Ciarrocchi (United States)
Out of Our Minds, Melissa auf der Maur (United States)
Chitchat with Oysters (Le Festin des huîtres), Adrian Maben (France)
Ramon Ayala, Marcos Lopez (Argentina)
Sacrificial Youth, Joe Losurdo (United States)
Sado Tempest, John Williams (Japan)
Suuns Europe 2011, Andi State (Quebec)
Vincent Moon sur les traces des musiques brésiliennes, Vincent Moon (France)

The Panorama section also presents an array of significant international works:
Ali Blue Eyes, Claudio Giovannesi (Italy)
Après la nuit (Até ver a luz), Basil da Cunha (Portugal/Switzerland)
Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari, Alexey Fedorchenko (Russia)
Costa da morte (Coast of Death), Lois Patino (Spain)
Cowjews and Indians, Marc Halberstadt (United States)
Exposed, Beth B (United States)
Sanctuary (Faro), Frederik Edfeldt (Sweden)
Gay Gardens, Happy Gardens, Marcelo Bendotti (United States)
Goodbye Gauley Mountains: An Ecosexual Love Story, Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens (United States)
IRL: In Real Life, Jonas Elmer (Denmark)
La Bataille de Solférino (Age of Panic), Justine Triet (France)
La Jaula de oro, Diego Quemada-Diez (Mexico)
Mambo Cool, Chris Gude (Colombia)
Mouton, Gilles Deroo and Marianne Pistone (France)
Six Acts, Jonathan Gurfinkel (Israel)
Sunshine Boys, Tae-gon Kim (South Korea)
The Hour of the Lynx, Soren Kragh-Jacobsen (Denmark)
Twenty Million People, Michael Fick (United States)

FOCUS presented by Air France
Strong, independent works from Quebec and Canada. This section opens on Oct. 10 with Diego Star by Frédérick Pelletier (Quebec). An astute mix of personal and political, the film is a nuanced study of the complexity of human relationships, backed by its two talented leads, Issaka Sawadogo and Chloé Bourgeois.

12 films will compete for the Grand Prix Focus presented by Air France:
Chez Lise, Jeanne Pope and James Galwey (Quebec)
Diego Star, Frédérick Pelletier (Quebec)
La Ferme des humains — version définitive, Onur Karaman (Quebec)
Gerontophilia, Bruce La Bruce (Canada)
Vann “Piano Man” Walls — The Spirit of R&B, Steven Morris (Quebec)
Rhymes for Young Ghouls, Jeff Barnaby (Quebec)
Secondaire V, Guillaume Sylvestre (Quebec)
Spring & Arnaud, Katherine Knight and Marcia Connolly (Canada)
Un parallèle plus tard, Sébastien Landry (Quebec)
Une vie pour deux, Luc Bourdon and Alice Ronfard (Quebec)
Uvanga, Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Madeline Piujuq Ivalu (Quebec)
Whitewash, Emanuel Hoss-Desmarais (Quebec)

6 films will also screen out of competition:
2 Temps 3 mouvements, Christophe Cousin (Quebec)
All the Wrong Reasons, Gia Milani (Canada)
La Croisée des chemins, Francine Pelletier (Quebec)
Érection Canada : L’Histoire du parti Rhinocéros du Canada de 1963 à 2013, Mélanie Ladouceur and François Yo Gourd (Quebec)
Found, Mitchell Stafiej (Canada)
From Neurons to Nirvana: The Great Medicines, Oliver Hockenhull (Canada).

TEMPS Ø
As it does every year, Temps Ø puts the accent on surprise, fun and originality. An explosive cocktail of genres and flavours, the 2013 version gets going with the highly anticipated R 100, the latest from Hitoshi Matsumoto: a kinky S&M comedy in the form of an ode to ecstasy.

Other works from Japan follow, including Sion Sono’s Why Don’t You Play in Hell? (winner of the People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award at TIFF), an extravagant, gloriously grindhouse neo-punk comedy that’s sheer visual pleasure; and the Canadian premiere of Sabu’s Miss Zombie (presented in partnership with the Montreal Zombie Walk), a tale about motherhood that, by tipping the zombie film over into existentialist tragedy, sits somewhere between Polanski’s Repulsion and Pasolini’sTheorem.

Not to be missed is the North American premiere of Yutaka Tsuchiya’s GFP Bunny (winner of the award for best Japanese film at Tokyo 2012), a controversial work of metafiction about the plight of Japan’s disenchanted youth; as well as Tetsuaki Matsue’s sensational Flashback Memories 3D (Audience Award, Tokyo 2012), which blends concert footage with music by Goma to create a 3D trancelike experience that takes viewers on an intense and hypnotic spiritual journey.

Festivalgoers can also catch L’Étrange couleur des larmes de ton corps (The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears), the new work from Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani, directors of Amer (2010 Temps Ø People’s Choice Award). A 90-minute exercise in high intensity where each shot is a tour de force and each scene dizzyingly complex, it’s hands-down the year’s most dazzling and sensory cinematic experience.

Also to be noted are the North American premiere of Gonzo mode d’emploi by John B. Root. The French porn producer and director extraordinaire (21 features, 1,500 videos for cable and satellite TV) serves up a “making of” of his last film that aims to lay bare the inner workings of the X-rated genre once and for all. Mission accomplished!

Last but not least, there’s the Canadian premiere of Wrong Cops by Quentin Dupieux, master of absurdist comedy and the strangeness of the everyday, with — surprise! — Marilyn Manson among the cast. And the world premiere of Go in the Wilderness, a strong, ambitious standout work by young Quebec director Elza Kephart that reworks the myth of Lilith, the original female rebel, as a road movie à la Bergman.

Also screening this year are Ben Wheatley’s new film, A Field in England, described as “the love child of Ken Loach and Quentin Tarantino”; the Canadian premiere of Los Chidos by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez; two highly anticipated animations, namely, Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury by Luiz Bolognesi (Grand Prize winner at Annecy 2013) and The Life of Budory Gusuko by Gisaburo Sugii.

And that’s not all, since Temps Ø also has a few more riveting works up its sleeve: the North American premiere of Brigitte Fontaine: reflets et crudité by Thomas Bartel and Benoît Mouchart; the scandalous mock doc Interior. Leather Bar by James Franco (yep, the guy from Spring Breakers etc etc) and Travis Matthews; and the year’s biggest Bollywood blockbuster, Rohit Shetty’s Chennai Express.

And let’s not forget Teenage, the amazing documentary by Matt Wolf that posits adolescence as a concept invented after the Second World War, a key period in the emerging identity and desires of young people.

SHORT FILMS — INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION: LOUP ARGENTE
41 films in seven programs make for an explosive celebration of cinema of every form and genre.

Not to be missed! A program of films in 3D that push the boundaries of perception:
Subconscious Password by Chris Landreth (Ryan), Grand Prize winner at this year’s Annecy
Cochemare by Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski (Madame Tutli-Putli)
Works by filmmakers like Joséphine Derobe (the 3D mastermind behind Wim Wenders’ Pina) and Theodore Ushev, whose visions and talents are defining the cinema of tomorrow.

In a completely different register are a number of other must-see works:
Mille soleils (grand prize winner at the FID Marseille), Mati Diop’s amazing tribute to his uncle, Djibril Diop Mambéty.
New films from Mike Hoolboom (Buffalo Death Mask), Bill Morrison (Just Ancient Loops), João Rui Guerra Da Mata and João Pedro Rodriguez (Mahjong), Bertrand Mandico, Deco Dawson, Yan Giroux, Nicolas Provost, Sandro Aguilar, Mika Taanila, Virgil Vernier and more.

From documentary to experimental by way of fairy tales and fables, get set for 41 discoveries, 41 revelations, 41 new ways of looking at things to dream up a better world or just see it in all its splendour and beauty . . . and monstrosity.

SHORT FILMS — GRAND PRIX FOCUS presented by Post-Moderne
The 35 short films in the running for the Grand Prix Focus — short films are divided into five programs.

The much-awaited works from three filmmakers — Monia Chokri (Quelqu’un d’extraordinaire, a winner at Locarno, an exuberant film with an irresistible cast), Maxime Giroux (La tête en bas, a stunning journey into three solitudes) and Joel Vaudreuil (Le courant faible de la rivière, noted at Annecy) — join those from a number of FNC regulars.

Last year’s Grand Prix Focus winner Olivier Godin is back with Full Love; Jean-Guillaume Bastien with his cinematographic tour-de-force Je ne suis pas un grand acteur; and the ever-popular Félix Dufour-Laperrière with his latest work, the gorgeous Le jour nous écoute. There are also revelations in every genre, from fantasy (Kaveh Nabatian’s Dive) to experimental (watch out for Charles-André Coderre’s new film H2T), and from surrealism (Smile Stealers) to poignant documentary (Coming Home to Boon). This year, short films stand tall.

TRIBUTE / RETROSPECTIVE
Django Project:
After the success of the Nikkatsu retrospective, the FNC teams up once again with the Fantasia International Film Festival to present the Django Project, a two-part look at the history of the Western. The second component of the Django Project retrospective comprises seven films, six of which will screen in the framework of the FNC:
Ride The Whirlwind, Monte Hellman (1966); The Mercenary, Sergio Corbucci (1968); The Shooting, Monte Hellman (1966); Navajo Joe, Sergio Corbucci (1967); The Big Gundown, Sergio Sollima (1966) and Streets of Fire, Walter Hill (1968).

Jonas Mekas:
Recipient of the LOUVE D’HONNEUR Life Achievement Award
Born in Lithuania, filmmaker and multimedia artist Jonas Mekas emigrated to the United States in 1949. There, he founded the New York Filmmakers Coop and Anthology Film Archives. Now in his nineties, Mekas has continually used daily life as his touchstone, amassing fragments of events as they unfold around him — a day-to-day endeavour that has been perpetually stimulated by his exploration of new techniques. This year’s FNC affords a look at some of the key pieces from his body of work made using a Bolex. A number of his videos and multimedia works will also be presented from October 10 to 26 at the PHI Centre show Éloge de l’ordinaire. The artist will attend the exhibition opening.

Les Blank:
An artist of multiple interests, prolific American filmmaker Les Blank (1935-2013) left a legacy of over 40 vibrant, poetic, lyrical and loopy films that chronicled the characters and customs of the Southern United States. His work’s authenticity stems directly from his creative process: “I do what I do. I just film. I stick things together in a way I think they should be put to make a picture of what it was I saw.” The FNC pays him tribute through four programs (Love All: Cinema + Food + Women, Music Legends + Culture, Carnivals and Cajuns, Tea and Sympathy) as well as a master class entitled A Well Spent Life featuring his son Harrod Blank and his longtime collaborator Gina Leibrecht.

Jean Dansereau:
A legend on the Quebec film scene, producer Jean Dansereau, who died earlier this year, was known as a fierce defender of the works he took on and a tireless champion of Quebec’s cinematic creation. As a tribute, André Forcier’s first film Bar Salon, which Dansereau produced, will be presented in a restored version courtesy of Quebec film archive Éléphant. His brother, filmmaker Fernand Dansereau, will attend the screening.

Karen Black:
Some of the standout roles in Karen Black’s extensive filmography are her early turns as a drugged-out prostitute in Easy Rider and a country singer in Nashville. Sadly, she left us in August. To pay tribute to a true punk icon, we will be screening a restored copy of Robert Altman’s Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. If you haven’t seen it, here’s your chance to check out her acclaimed performance as Joanne.

Hélène Loiselle:
She’s best remembered from the films Mon oncle Antoine and Les ordres, but she was also memorable in her stage and TV roles. Hélène Loiselle proved her talent as a great actress with every one of her roles. In Simon Lavoie’s medium-length film Une Chapelle blanche, she once again delivers an exquisitely nuanced performance.

Arthur Lamothe — The Eye of the Caribou
For once, filmmaker Arthur Lamothe won’t be physically present for this screening, but he’ll certainly be there in spirit! As a producer, director, screenwriter and editor, Arthur Lamothe devoted most of his impressive film career to the First Nations, particularly the Innu and their heritage. He earned his place as a leading figure of Quebec cinema through both his work and his social commitment. In his memory, we’ll present two of his early films, Un homme et son boss and Bûcherons de la Manouane, the latter his first short film and a forerunner of cinema vérité.

P’TITS LOUPS
On weekends at 3 p.m. at Cinéma du Parc, the entire family can enjoy a lineup for kids aged 3 and up: Tom le cancre, Manuel Pradal (France); Boduri, Gisaburo Sugii (Japan); Jeannot l’intrépide, Jean Image (France); The Little Fugitive, Ray Ashley, Morris Engel & Ruth Orkin (U.S.); Avec les autres, Daphnée Cyr, Loic Darses & the kids from the Ptits Loups camp (Quebec).

EVENTS
At Festival headquarters . . .

As is our tradition, the Festival will celebrate its 42nd edition by hosting a series of free events at its headquarters, a space for all festivalgoers to mix and mingle:
On Wednesday, October 9, right after the screening of the opening film, we’ll kick off the festivities with an open invite to our headquarters, fitted out with a digital installation by artists APM 300, where you can dance to the rhythms of DJ Vincent Lemieux.

The next day in the same space, we’re throwing a big party for the 10th anniversary of Métafilms, the production house responsible for such films as Diego Star by Frédérick Pelletier, screened as the opening film of the Focus section earlier in the evening.

The three-night Kino Kabaret will take place on October 12, 14 and 17, offering something special for its 12th edition: all screenings will be inspired by the vision of a different filmmaker.

On Saturday, October 12, Cult MTL teams up with the Festival to host free concerts by Montreal bands Le Matos and Le Couleur.

Starting Tuesday, October 15, we take the pulse of what’s going on now with a series of events at Festival headquarters: Wakiponi Mobile, where young First Nations directors present their best short films; a concert by Bliss, the band behind the soundtrack of the documentary Chez Lise by Jeanne Pope and James Galwey; the 15th edition of Sprint for your Script, followed by the launch of the TV5 Fund Web series; and later in the evening, Les Minutes, a visual and auditory exploration through video with a 60-second time constraint.

Sashay into the world of fashion with the Soirée Mode Montréal, presented by the Montreal Fashion Bureau, where surprise performances and video works will take over Festival headquarters.

Then the time will come when we’ll have to say good-bye, but let’s get glamorous and do it up right! The closing party, Sous le signe du Brésil, highlights the Brazilian part of the Panorama section, with DJs Matteo Grondini, Bowly, Rilly Guilty and Bruxo on the turntables.

. . . and around town
Other venues will also host festive special events over the course of the 11 days and nights of the Festival:
First of all, this year, the FNC is pleased to present four free outdoor screenings in collaboration with the Quartier des spectacles Partnership, Air France and the STM. From Thursday, October 10 to Saturday, October 12 at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, October 13 at 6:30 p.m., feature films will be shown on the Parterre of the Quartier des spectacles. The films are:
Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii by Adrian Maben
Lola by Jacques Demy
La chute de la maison Usher by Jean Epstein, featuring live music by the band Rock Forest
Sergio Leone’s Western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

Once again, the Festival will also work with the Montreal Fashion Bureau to present Fashion in Film. On the menu this year: a retrospective of the little-known genre of fashion films, featuring screenings of some thirty films selected by none other than Diane Pernet, founder of the A Shaded View on Fashion Film festival (ASVOFF), who will attend the event on Friday, October 18.

The celebration will continue around the city with Mégaphone, an interactive project-slash-public soapbox on the Promenade des Artistes in the Quartier des spectacles, and a photo exhibit of the actresses from the fashion film The Ideal City on the Parterre of the Quartier des spectacles. The film itself, by Agence Triptyque and SLA Productions, will be screened on October 18 at Excentris.

A new event to keep in mind in the Festival lineup: screenings with live commentary by the directors. Two internationally renowned Quebec films — and their directors — will be part of the experience: Sarah préfère la course by Chloé Robichaud, on Friday, October 11 at the Pavillon Judith-Jasmin annexe (cinéma 1), and VIC+FLO ont vu un ours by Denis Côté on Wednesday, October 16 at Cinéma du Parc. The second screening will be followed by the film Un ours by Daniel Karolewicz, shot on the set of VIC+FLO ont vu un ours. Here’s a chance for audiences to watch a film while listening to commentary, anecdotes and behind-the-scenes info from the two Quebec directors.

And after showing last year that it’s possible to be hypnotized by film, Albert Nerenberg is back with his provocative performance Altered States on Saturday, October 19 at Cinéma du Parc. The idea is to send audiences into a different state of consciousness through film and hypnosis!

CARTES BLANCHES
On the heels of the successful Cartes Blanches produced by the Festival over the last two years, we’re repeating the exercise for the 42nd edition. This year, six filmmakers have been given free rein to direct a short film on a given topic:
Sophie Goyette with La fragilité du verre
Mariana Gaivao with First Light
Olivier Godin with Le Plantain
Chloé Robichaud with Les Best
Collectif en Masse (fragments) with En Masse
Triptyque with La Cité Idéale.

The films will be gradually revealed on the website nouveaucinema.ca in the days leading up to the Festival’s opening and screened in theatres throughout the event. Cartes Blanches is made possible by support from SODEC, Telefilm Canada, Post-moderne and Main Film. TFO will broadcast the films during its winter 2014 schedule.

FNC LAB: INSTALLATIONS/PERFORMANCES, FILMS, INTERACTIVE WORKS / WEB PROJECTS, TAKS
FNC Lab continues its exploration of experimental, expanded and multidisciplinary cinematic forms at the crossroads of cinema, art and new technologies.

For the third year running, a selection of interactive works and Web projects will be in competition for the Innovation Prize. The jury will vote for the best of the 12 projects selected this year.

The projects are:
Alma, une enfant de la violence by Isabelle Fougère and Miquel Dewever-Plana
Cuts by Lech Kowalski
EM.BED.DE/D | AUGMENTED REaL by Yung Jake
Offshore by Brenda Longfellow and Glen Richards
Gridflow by Reynald Drouhin
Iranorama by Yann Buxeda and Ulysse Gry
Jazz Petite-Bourgogne by David Eng
Last Room/Dépli by Pierre Carniaux and Thierry Fournier
The Defector: Escape from North Korea by Ann Shin
Une contre-histoire des internets by Julien Goetz and Jean-Marc Manach
Will Love Tear Us Apart by Gordon Gallejaand
Journal d’une insomnie collective by Guillaume Braun, Bruno Choinière, Thibaut Duverneix and Philippe Lambert.

This year, FNC Lab will feature a varied lineup of performances, installations, talks and screenings that include:
The documentary Une contre-histoire de l’Internet, by Sylvain Bergère, which will be shown on the big screen. David Dufresne, a collaborator on the project, will be in attendance.

In the (Hi)stories in Motion cycle, filmmaker Gustav Deutsch will present Shirley: Visions of Reality, a major cinematic work based on a series of Edward Hopper paintings. For the occasion, the Austrian director will give a master class along with his co-director Hannah Schimek as well as presenting the installation Monday, August 28th 1939, New York, 10 P.M. The event is organized in collaboration with McGill University.

Musician Melissa Auf der Maur will be making a stopover in her hometown for a very special presentation of work by her father, journalist Nick Auf der Maur.

An Aldo Tambellini retrospective, presented in collaboration with Hors champ, will highlight the work of this pioneer of the underground scene of the ’60s and ’70s; the Black Films and Black TV lineups as well as the performances Moondial and Films inédits will be featured, with the artist in attendance.

Syrie en cour(t)s will feature a series of films made in the midst of the Syrian revolution. To round out the lineup, clarinetist Kinan Azmeh and visual artist Kevork Mouradwill perform live, documenting in music and images the emotions tied to specific episodes of Syria’s recent history.

Other performances by local and international artists will embody an out-there vision of cinema using a wide range of methods: animation filmmaker Nicolas Brault will present the very first performative version of his immersive installation Corps étrangers, while his animated sketches inspired by medical imaging will be accompanied by vocal and body percussion group Boom JACAK.

Choreographer Aurélie Pédron will present La maison chair, a performance-installation for one spectator at a time; filmmaker Dominic Gagnon, accompanied by Érick d’Orion, will present a new version of his Society’s Space project; the pair of video relic hunters Animal Charm will present Video Campfire, made with the help of video mapping, while Zoomwooz, by Andrés Beladiez and Karla Kracht, is a live cinema performance featuring an exploding cardboard micro-society.

This year, FNC Lab will also host two performances taking place at the Satosphère (inside the SAT): Rouge Mékong, a creation by the Collectif Lebovitz, and VjGraph, 40 years of archives from the Vidéographe collection, remixed and spatialized by Yan Breuleux with musical accompaniment by Julien Robert.

Once again this year, some outstanding examples of contemporary experimental cinema will be part of the FNC Lab lineup. The eight films include:
The Great Flood by Bill Morrison, an account of the Mississippi flood of 1927
Norte, the End of History, a Dostoyevskian epic by Filipino director Lav Diaz
A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness, an existential meander co-directed by Ben Rivers and Ben Russell
Déjeuner avec Gertrude Stein, an exhilarating adaptation by Isabelle Prim of Olivier Cadiot’s Fairy Queen.

FNC PRO presented by Vision Globale
On October 15, 16 and 17 at the PHI Centre, FNC Pro presents a series of activities exploring the major issues related to the ever-changing film and media landscape. Talks, round tables, case studies and networking cocktail parties give guests and participants, both pillars of the industry and up-and-coming players, a chance to discuss what they’ve learned, make connections and develop new working relationships. Where creation, production and new technologies come together, speakers and panelists share their experiences and raise problematic issues.

With distribution platforms in constant flux, Jean-Marc Juramie (Canal+), Jonathan Marlow (Fandor) and Joëlle Stemp (Yu Centrik) will discuss tools that can help improve and renew the user experience.

In a context of ever-increasing content, how do you reach and retain your audience? Sylvain Attal (France 24/Iranorama), Pascal Plante (Nemesis Films/Les Jaunes), Marc Lustigman (Darjeeling/A Summer with Larry Clark’s Kids) and Jean-Sébastien Defoy (ONF/L’Atelier McLaren) will talk about the steps they’ve taken to showcase innovative, original content.

Roxane Girard (FMC), Claire Dion (Bell Fund), Serges Thibaudeau (Quebecor Fund) and Benoit Beaudoin (TV5 Fund) will give a presentation on solutions for funding digital media.

Push the limits of imagination! Joséphine Derobe and Antoine Le Bos (Cross Channel Film Lab) will explain how the use of 3D is pushing the development of a new cinematic language. Pierre Raymond (Hybride), Marc A. Rousseau (Mokko Studio), Benoît Touchette (Framestore) and Nicolas Delval (Buf) will break down the development of the visual effects industry in Montreal.

FNC Pro is presented by Vision Globale in collaboration with the Canada Media Fund and the PHI Centre. Le Lien MULTIMÉDIA is the official media partner.

AWARDS
In the International Competition — Feature Films, three awards are handed out: the Louve d’or presented by Quebecor, which recognizes the best film in the competition and, for the fourth year running, includes a $15,000 prize; this year, the jury will also award a Special Jury Prize. The Daniel Langlois Innovation Award will also be given to a work that stands out for its daring aesthetics, creative use of new technologies or groundbreaking treatment of sensitive subject matter.

The jury is made up of Louise Archambault, Violette Chauveau, Pierre Even, Robert Gray and Podz.

The AQCC Award will be handed out by the Association québécoise des critiques de cinéma to the best film in the International Competition. The jury is made up of Serge Abiaad, Luc Chaput and Nicolas Gendron.

The Focus section also includes a competitive section, with the Grand Prix Focus presented by Air France, which includes $5,000 in cash and two return airline tickets to Europe, recognizing the section’s best feature from Quebec or Canada. The jury, made up of Sophie Bourdon, Georges Goldenstern, Vanja Kaludjercic, Michel La Veaux and Sébastien Pilote, will also award a Special Jury Prize.

Audiences will also be asked to play their part, as they do every year, and vote for the best feature in the Temps Ø section, which will take home the Temps Ø Audience Choice Award, presented by TFO and accompanied by $5,000 in cash.

In the International Competition — Short Films, the Loup argenté will be given to the best film in the section. The jury members are Mélissa Bouchard, Ève Duranceau and Scott Miller Berry.

The Grand Prix Focus — Short Films presented by Post-Moderne, including $5,000 in cash and $10,000 in postproduction services, will be awarded to the best short film from Quebec or Canada in the Focus section. The jury is made up of Jukka-Pekka Laakso, Ralph McKay and Samuel Prat. New this year: the Creativity Prize, presented by MAtv and including $1,000 in cash, in recognition of the most original work.

In the FNC Lab section, the Innovation Award — Interactive Works/Web Projects, given to the most innovative work making use of new platforms, will be accompanied by a $1,000 grant. The jury is made up of Mylène Chollet, Mathieu Dugal and Antoine Le Bos.

TICKETS AND INFORMATION
PRE-SALES are from October 5 to 8 at the main ticket office, Festival headquarters (Agora Hydro-Québec in UQÀM’s Cœur des sciences at 175, av. du Président-Kennedy/corner Jeanne-Mance, Place-des-Arts metro, 80 bus) from noon to 8 p.m. Individual tickets, ticket booklets and PASSES will be available for purchase.

Individual tickets, booklets and passes can also be purchased by phone at 514 790-1111 or 1 866 908-9090 and online at www.ticketpro.ca et www.nouveaucinema.ca.

Tickets: regular $12; students/seniors $8; children under 12 $7; with Accès Montréal card $10 (upon presentation of the card, for all FNC screenings Monday to Friday, matinées only, including 5 p.m. screening). Booklet of 6 tickets for $60.

PASSE FNC (all screenings, catalogue and poster): regular $150; students/seniors $125.

PASSE FNC PRO (access to all three FNC Pro days, October 15, 16 and 17, catalogue and poster): three-day Passe $295; one-day Passe $150.

PASSE FNC+ (FNC + FNC Pro, catalogue and poster, not including opening and closing): regular $395.

The FNC, in partnership with the STM, the official transportation of the Festival, offers OPUS card holders a 2-for-1 deal on regularly priced tickets for screenings at the Imperial Cinema and the Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin upon presentation of their card from Monday to Friday (except October 14).

For screenings in the P’tits Loups section, buy one adult ticket and get five children’s tickets free upon presentation of your OPUS card.

Upon presentation of the Allo Stop membership card, get 2 for 1 on all FNC screenings except the opening and closing films.

Starting Saturday, October 5, the official catalogue of the Festival will be available at a cost of $7 and the poster at a cost of $5. The schedule is free. ■

-Festival du Nouveau Cinéma