Canadian Short Films – Centquatre Paris
An NFB programme
Le Centquatre
October 02nd, 2024 - October 06th, 2024
Discover at the Village de la Francophonie four programmes of Canadian short films presented by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) around the diversity and dynamism of the Canadian Francophonie.
These events are part of the programming of the Canada Pavilion at the Village de la Francophonie from October 2 to 6, 2024 at CentQuatre in Paris, a place for exchanges and cultural discoveries on the sidelines of the 19th Francophonie Summit.
More information: festivalfrancophonie2024.org
PROGRAMME 1
CANADIAN SHORT FILMS
MERCREDI 2 OCTOBRE 2024 – 15h30 (AGORA ECURIES)
THE GREAT LIST OF EVERYTHING | Francis Papillon | 2022 | Animation | 30 MIN
Based on a French-language comic book, “The Great List of Everything” features artists Cathon and Iris, two wildly imaginative young women who share their unbridled passion for everyday objects. The two friends’ quirky humour, broad knowledge, and endless curiosity will make you want to learn more about these objects. Travel with them through history as they explain the origins of everything from the fishing rod to the refrigerator to the toothbrush. But don’t believe everything you hear! Voiced by Angela Galuppo and Cat Lemieux, both seasons of The Great List of Everything were produced by La Pastèque and the National Film Board of Canada in collaboration with Télé-Québec, and with the financial participation of the Shaw Rocket Fund.
PROGRAMME 2
LOOKING FOR MY TRUE SELF – 34 MIN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024 – 1:00 PM (AGORA ECURIES)
This compilation addresses the struggles that come with discovering one’s identity and independence. It reveals the perspective of Saskatchewan’s French-speaking residents on the future of their unique Prairie culture. Through an autobiographical animated short film, Diane Obomsawin recounts with humor and lucidity the major milestones of her childhood, spent between Montreal and France. At the family cottage, singer-songwriter Alexis Normand interweaves excerpts from old home movies and current conversations to highlight the struggles and victories involved in regaining her French-Canadian identity in the Prairies.
THE GRASSLANDS PROJECT – LES FRANSASKOIS | Scott Parker | 2016 | Documentaire | 7 min
This short documentary from The Grasslands Project zooms in on the Prairies’ francophone minority. The southern Prairies are overwhelmingly anglophone, yet a strong and vibrant francophone population persists in the small rural communities that dot this landscape. Gravelbourg is considered the centre of French language and culture in the region, and this short film hears from the Fransaskois (a term combining French and Saskatchewan) on the challenges and future of their unique prairie culture.
HERE AND THERE| Diane Obomsawin | 2006 |Animation | 9 min
In this animated short, filmmaker Diane Obomsawin shows how childhood can be a chaotic time, especially if you’re bouncing back and forth between two continents.
With engaging candour and gentle humour, Obomsawin fleshes out an uncertain identity and takes control of her life. Using drawings on paper and digitized snippets of fabric, she creates a whimsical world of simple lines and pastel tones.
FRENCH ENOUGH | Alexis Normand | 2022 | Documentaire | 18 min
At her family’s cabin on Wakaw Lake, Saskatchewan, renowned Fransaskois singer-songwriter Alexis Normand invites audiences into a series of candid exchanges about belonging and bilingualism on the Prairies. Weaving together old home movies with current conversations, French Enough illuminates the struggle and triumph of reclaiming francophone Canadian identity. As parents, children and grandchildren sing, play and celebrate, in both French and English, the act of carrying a language forward finally becomes a thing of freedom and joy.
The screening will be followed by a meeting with Fransaskoise director and singer-songwriter Alexis Normand.
PROGRAMME 3
CANADIAN SHORT FILMS
FRIDAY OCTOBER 4, 2024 – 12PM (AGORA ECURIES)
TRECARRE: EXPLORING THE SAINT MARY’S BAY SOUND| Natalie Robichaud | 2024 | Documentaire | 30 MIN
Musical culture is part of the DNA in the Nova Scotia Acadian community of Baie Sainte-Marie. Brimming with talent, members of the local music scene are reinventing tradition and taking their vibrant rhythms far beyond the region’s boundaries. Rich in dialect and bursting with local tunes, Trécarré invites us to discover the magic of music that asks us not just to listen, but to share it, dance to it and live it.
PROGRAMME 4
CROSS-COUNTRY CARTE BLANCHE
FRIDAY OCTOBER 4, 2024 – 3:30 PM (ROOM 200)
NORTH STAR (Observation) | Patrick Bossé | 2023 | 16 min
Laurie Rousseau-Nepton is a young, Quebec-born Innu astrophysicist who’s leading a massive research project at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. Drawing on a worldview rooted in a love of nature, as well as her talents as a science communicator, she shares her passion for the study of celestial objects. Ranging from Ashuapmushuan to Wendake, Hawaii and Mont-Mégantic, Laurie’s inspiring journey will leave viewers starry-eyed. North Star is directed by Patrick Bossé.
Laurie returns to the Ashuapmushuan Wildlife Reserve to meet with her father. Here, as a child, she honed her sense of observation, which today serves her well in her astronomy career.