A virtual 49th edition of
Festival du nouveau cinéma
Celebrating film and creation across Canada together online from October 7 to 31 at the FNC
Following the sudden ruling to cancel theatrical screenings in Montreal for its 49th edition, in accordance with current public health standards, the Montreal Festival du nouveau cinéma will take place exceptionally and exclusively online, from October 7 to 31, while also being available to everyone across Canada.
Faithful to its mandate, with a lineup that is both strong and daring, composed of nearly 200 works from all sections, including more than 50 feature films, the Festival will allow the public to discover anticipated flagship titles as well as new auteur filmmakers from the current cinema as well as virtual reality works. Major special events will also be accessible for free to moviegoers online.
The Montreal Festival du nouveau cinéma will take place exceptionally and exclusively online, from October 7 to 31, while also being available to everyone across Canada.
“During the past spring, we made the decision to hold our 49th edition in a hybrid form combining both online and physical screenings. I would like to congratulate us today on this judicious choice which allows us to offer cinephiles across the country a special edition filled with discoveries and anticipated films as part of FNC’s usual tradition. Our entire team has done a remarkable job in delivering high-caliber and high-quality programming. I would also like to thank all the distributors and partners who have renewed their confidence in us and allowed us, from October 7 to 31, to celebrate cinema… to escape and continue to dream!” says Nicolas Girard Deltruc, executive director at the Festival du nouveau cinéma.
International Competition: Louve d’or presented by Québecor
Aimed at introducing audiences to the emerging voices of worldwide cinema, the Festival’s flagship section highlights the unique perspectives of the artists who will shape tomorrow’s new cinema.
Wim Wenders, desperado – Campino et Eric Friedler
The 10 films in the running for the Louve d’or include a number of titles that stood out on the international festival circuit this past year: ATLANTIS, Valentyn Vasyanovych (Ukraine); BAD ROADS, Natalya Vorozhbit (Ukraine); THE CLOUD IN HER ROOM, Zheng Lu Xinyuan (China, Hong Kong); DESTERRO, Maria Clara Escobar (Brazil, Portugal, Argentina); ÊXTASE, Moara Passoni (Brazil, United States); KILL IT AND LEAVE THIS TOWN, Marius Wilczynski (Poland); SERVANTS, Ivan Ostrochovsky (Slovakia, Romania, Czech Republic, Ireland); THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE SEVEN SONGS, Pushpendra Singh (India); THIS IS NOT A BURIAL, IT’S A RESURRECTION, Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese (Lesotho, Italy, South Africa); and TOPSIDE, Logan George and Celine Held (United States).
National Competition
“The closing of movie theaters and the postponement of many Quebec film releases have unfortunately shaken up both their schedule and the announced selection of the festival. While affected by the current circumstances, the National Competition section is nonetheless proud of its strong and highly original titles, fully anchored in the most important fights or open towards pure freedom.” – claims Zoé Protat, director of programming at the Festival du nouveau cinéma.
‘The 10 films in the running for the Louve d’or include a number of titles that stood out on the international festival circuit this past year.’
Festival-goers will be able to discover the following premieres: THERE ARE NO FALSE UNDERTAKINGS, Olivier Godin (Quebec/Canada); SIN LA HABANA, Kaveh Nabatian (Quebec/Canada, Cuba); VIOLATION, Dusty Mancinelli and Madeleine Sims-Fewer (Ontario/Canada) and JUDY VERSUS CAPITALISM, Mike Hoolboom (Ontario/Canada).
Sin La Habana – Kaveh Nabatian
Les Incontournables
Top international names usually compose this selection and 2020 will be no exception here!
Here are the titles offered to the audience: CONFERENCE, Ivan Tverdovskiy (Russia, Estonia, U.K., Italy); THERE IS NO EVIL, Mohammad Rasoulof (Iran, Germany, Czech Republic), Golden Bear winner at Berlin; UNDINE, Christian Petzold (Germany, France), which bagged Paula Beer the best actress award at Berlin; UPPERCASE PRINT, Radu Jude (Romania); and the documentary WIM WENDERS, DESPERADO, Campino and Eric Friedler (Germany).
Undine – Christian Petzold
Temps Ø
With the Temps Ø selection, the public will be able to discover several avant-garde feature films.
The different titles include: the french anti-racist comedy TOUT SIMPLEMENT NOIR, by Jean-Pascal Zadi and John Wax. The film stars rapper JoeyStarr and Mathieu Kassovitz. Also in selection: the highly anticipated SIBERIA, Abel Ferrara (Italy, Germany, Mexico); THE BOOK OF VISION, Carlo S. Hintermann (Italy, U.K., Belgium); CAUGHT IN THE NET, Vít Klusák and Barbora Chalupova (Czech Republic, Slovakia); SHELL AND JOINT, Isamu Hirabayashi (Japan), THALASSO and THE KIDNAPPING OF MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ, Guillaume Nicloux (France); RED POST ON ESCHER STREET, Sion Sono (Japan); THE TREMOR, Balaji Vembu Chelli (India);
‘Nearly 200 works, including more than 50 feature films, will allow the public to discover anticipated flagship titles as well as new auteur filmmakers from the current cinema as well as virtual reality works.’
Les nouveaux alchimistes
Made by artists from varied backgrounds, the films in this section stand out for their boldness and originality.
Dedicated to formal exploration, new approaches and experimentation, this year’s lineup consists of eight boundary-pushing features: the monumental DAU. NATASHA, Ilya Khrzhanovsky and Jekaterina Oertel (Germany, Ukraine, U.K., Russia); KHAMSIN, Grégoire Orio and Grégoire Couvert (France, Lebanon); LAST AND FIRST MEN, Jóhann Jóhannsson (Iceland); LÚA VERMELLA, Lois Patiño (Spain); MAGGIE’S FARM, James Benning (United States); NIGHT HAS COME, Peter Van Goethem (Belgium); THE REPUBLICS, Huw Wahl (U.K.); and TO THE MOON, Tadhg O’Sullivan (Ireland).
Apples – Christos Nikou
Panorama international
A section that showcases remarkable lives as it probes the current state of affairs. From Brazil to Vietnam, Argentina to Greece, the lineup includes socially engaged works that highlight uniquely subjective experiences and views that shake up the status quo.
Available through video-on-demand, the 11 features in this year’s Panorama are: A YELLOW ANIMAL, Felipe Bragança (Brazil, Portugal, Mozambique); APPLES, Christos Nikou (Greece, Poland, Slovenia); COCOON, Leonie Krippendorff (Germany); DROWSY CITY, Dung Luong Dinh (Vietnam); LA HIJA DE UN LADRÓN, Belén Funes (Spain); MAMÁ, MAMÁ, MAMÁ, Sol Berruezo Pichon-Rivière (Argentina); MOVING ON, Yoon Dan-Bi (South Korea); OASIS, Ivan Ikic (Serbia, Slovenia, Netherlands, France); SI C’ÉTAIT DE L’AMOUR, Patric Chiha (France); SISTERS WITH TRANSISTORS, Lisa Rovner (U.K.); and WISDOM TOOTH, Liang Ming (China).
Special presentations and events
Initially scheduled to hit theaters and act as the closing title of the Festival, the latest feature by Philippe Falardeau, a prominent regular at the FNC, will symbolically close this special edition on October 17 with MY SALINGER YEAR which will be available online for 24 hours. Screened during the opening night of this year’s Berlinale, the film stars Sigourney Weaver, Margaret Qualley, Douglas Booth, Colm Feore and Théodore Pellerin.
Another highly anticipated title is SAINT-NARCISSE, directed by Bruce LaBruce, which was presented at the Venice Film Festival earlier this year. The enfant terrible of Canadian queer cinema promises to surprise moviegoers once again.
Les ordres – Michel Brault
The Rendez-vous #Cinémad’ici presented by Quebecor
To mark the 50th anniversary of the October Crisis, Quebecor, presenting partner of the FNC, will offer, in collaboration with Éléphant: mémoire du Cinéma québécois, the restored versions of two outstanding works retracing the events of October 1970: LES ORDRES by Michel Brault, on Friday October 16, and OCTOBRE by Pierre Falardeau, on Saturday October 10. The Rendez-vous #Cinémad’ici presented by Quebecor will be free and online.
Films for Peace – a Wapikoni special
For the 49th edition, the Festival will present a program of short films created during Wapikoni mobile’s international jaunts, in line with the organization’s unique approach to promoting Indigenous stories and narrative sovereignty through film.
Wapikoni mobile
The films will be available through video-on-demand but to get the full experience, fans can attend the Wapikoni special – Films for Peace event on Thursday, October 15 at 7 pm. To expand the experience, the screening will be followed by a discussion with international experts, livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube. Presented by BNP Paribas and Wapikoni mobile in association with the Peace Network for Social Harmony as part of the closing event of Peace Days 2020.
‘The films will be available through video-on-demand but to get the full experience, fans can attend the Wapikoni special – Films for Peace event on Thursday, October 15 at 7 pm.’
Short films
With over 88 short films from 30 countries, the selection will showcase both established and emerging filmmakers whose work stood out over the last year on the festival circuit.
The program includes FILIPIÑANA by Rafael Manuel Mendoza, winner of this year’s Silver Bear at the Berlin Festival; PLACES by Lithuanian director Vytautas Katlus, shown at the Venice Festival; this year’s best short film winner at Locarno, RED ANINSRI; OR, TIPTOEING ON THE STILL TREMBLING BERLIN WALL by Thailand’s Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke; and SUN DOG by Dorian Jespers, winner of best short film at Rotterdam. Several FNC standbys will also be back, including Marie Losier with WHICH IS WITCH?; Bertrand Mandico with THE RETURN OF TRAGEDY; Rainer Kohlberger with THERE MUST BE SOME KIND OF WAY OUT OF HERE; THE END OF SUFFERING (A PROPOSAL) by Jacqueline Lentzou, focus of an FNC Spotlight in 2018; and THE UNSEEN RIVER by Vietnamese director Phạm Ngọc Lân, who returns to the FNC after winning the Loup argenté in 2019.
Atlantis – Valentyn Vasyanovych
Audiences can also discover the excellence of national talents with films such as ANISHKA by Vincent Toi, COMME UNE COMÈTE by Ariane Louis-Seize and POINT AND LINE TO PLANE by Sofia Bohdanowicz fresh from this year’s TIFF, as well as BENJAMIN, BENNY, BEN by Paul Shkordoff (Cannes label 2020) and AUGUST 22, THIS YEAR by Graham Foy (Critics’ Week and NYFF). The full lineup of short films can be found HERE.
Talks, discussions and master classes
FNC Forum
For its 2020 edition, the Forum will adapt to the current context, running its programming online from October 7 to 18. On the lineup: networking activities, talks and workshops with a variety of experts to encourage the exchange of ideas among professionals. The FNC Forum program can be found HERE.
Master class by Philippe Falardeau, presented by DGC
A well-established director and screenwriter whose Monsieur Lazhar (2011) received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, Philippe Falardeau shoots in both French and English and is today one of the most recognized and respected Quebec filmmakers on the planet. During this master class, moderated by director/producer Daniel Roby with the participation of director Tristan Dubois, Falardeau will discuss his career and share his vision of today’s film industry online on Friday, October 16 at 11 am. This master class is presented by the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC/GCR) as part of the DGC Visionaries events.
Uri and Michelle Kranot master class
Animation virtuosi Michelle and Uri Kranot, whose approach transcends traditional animation to fuse painting, drawing and new technologies into contemporary experiences, will host a virtual master class on Saturday October 17 at 10:00 am. Their work is characterized by its poetic sensibility and fragmented narratives that straddle past and present, fact and fiction. Audience can also appreciate their mastery in THE HANGMAN AT HOME – VR, part of the FNC EXPLORE competition and freshly awarded the Grand Jury Prize for best VR immersive work at the 77th Venice Biennale.
‘For its 2020 edition, the Forum is adapting to the current context and deploys its online program from October 7th to the 18th.’
FNC Explore presented by HTC Vive’s Viveport
For the 11th year, audiences are invited to discover innovative, exciting immersive and narrative content through this section entirely devoted to new media works. On the lineup for this feast for the senses: interactive films, immersive works as well as two competitive categories for virtual reality works. This year, the entire FNC EXPLORE program will be available online throughout Canada on HTC Vive’s Viveport platform. The complete section can be found HERE.
Motto Live
Motto Live
Making its North American premiere, MOTTO LIVE, a performance inspired by the interactive experience Motto.io, will be broadcast live from Vincent Morisset’s studio and a handful of streets in Montreal’s Petite-Patrie neighbourhood. Actress Marie Brassard and author Sean Michaels will narrate. Composed of thousands of tiny videos, Motto.io moves fluidly between documentary and fiction, incorporating participants’ lo-fi, unstaged footage into its own emotional narrative.
Neither book nor film, it’s a mind-bending ghost story that takes shape through people’s unique perspectives on the world. MOTTO LIVE is an AATOAA production based on the work Motto.io, created by AATOAA and produced by the NFB. Free event upon registration. Reservations are now open here: eventbrite.ca
Prices and ticket sales
All tickets are now on sale. Please note that there will be no in-person sales this year. The box office is online-only on the FNC web site or the online platform: online.nouveaucinema.ca
FNC online offers a flexible experience that allows the festival-goer to rent a movie and then watch it at a chosen time between October 7 and October 31. Once a film has started, you will however have 30 hours to finish viewing it.
ONLINE FILM PRICES
Tickets on sale now
• Individual ticket – feature film: $10 (taxes included)
• Individual ticket – short films program: $6 (taxes included)
BUNDLE SECTION
The bundle section rate includes all films in one section (online)
• For the feature bundle, every feature in the same section is $8
• For the short films bundle, every short films program is $5
FNC FORUM PRICE
FNC FORUM pass (professional activities): $50
FNC EXPLORE PRICES
HTC Vive’s Viveport platform: mostly free, prices vary depending on the work
The 49th Montreal Festival du nouveau cinéma
The 49th Montreal Festival du nouveau cinéma (FNC) will take place online throughout Canada from October 7 to October 31. Headed by Nicolas Girard Deltruc, the FNC is presented by Québecor and made possible through financial support from SODEC, Telefilm Canada, the City of Montreal, the Ministère du Tourisme, the Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l’Habitation, Tourisme Montréal, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, Canadian Heritage and the Canada Media Fund. The FNC would also like to thank its private partners and official suppliers and all the distributors for their support.
More information on the programming of the 49th edition of the Festival du nouveau cinéma
Images: courtesy of the Festival du nouveau cinéma de Montréal
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