Montreal – The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) will be represented in the 2025 Rendez-vous Québec Cinéma (RVQC) program with several productions.
Le tableau (The Painting) by Michèle Lemieux (animation, 11 min 56 s)
Screening: Sunday, February 23, 6:15 p.m., Fernand Seguin Theatre, Cinémathèque québécoise (“Maître dans l’art” program)
- Animated on the pinscreen, this troubling yet tender film revisits the tragic fate of Queen Mariana of Austria and her 1652 portrait by painter Velázquez.
LOCA by Véronique Paquette (animation, 5 min 19 s)
Screening: Sunday, February 23, 6:15 p.m., Fernand Seguin Theatre, Cinémathèque québécoise (“Maître dans l’art” program)
- With a mastery of both dance and animation, the filmmaker combines mixed techniques to channel the essence of tango through evocative imagery of bodies that are equally furtive and powerful. Following its world premiere at the 2024 Sommets du cinéma d’animation in Montreal, LOCA went on to be selected by close to 20 festivals.
Ninan Auassat: Nous, les enfants (Ninan Auassat: We, the Children) by Kim O’Bomsawin (documentary, 93 min)
Screening: Tuesday, February 25, 7:45 p.m., Theatre 12, Cinema Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin
- This documentary from Abenaki filmmaker Kim O’Bomsawin celebrates the power and vitality of Indigenous youth, speaking for themselves. The film won awards at the Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) and the Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) in 2024.
Cohabiter (Living Together) by Halima Elkhatabi (documentary, 75 min)
Screening: Wednesday, February 26, 5:30 p.m., Fernand Seguin Theatre, Cinémathèque québécoise
- Against the backdrop of the housing crisis, young people looking for the ideal roommate open up about themselves in this engaging portrait of a generation accustomed to playing all their identity cards. The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
En surface (In the Shallows) by Arash Akhgari (animation, 4 min)
Screening: Wednesday, February 26, 9:30 p.m., Hydro Québec Theatre, Cinémathèque québécoise (“Qui bouge, perd” program)
- En surface is a deep dive into the shallow and fragmented world of news, entertainment and ads. The film won the DGC Award for Best Canadian Animation at the Ottawa International Animation Festival.