Saturday, March 1
The Screening Room
7:00 pm
Sunday, March 2
The Screening Room
10:00 am
The bold tale of a hunting trip that goes far off the rails, this whip-smart thriller by Montreal’s Annick Blanc rates as one of the most striking and bracing Canadian debut features in recent years. The film’s principal power source is Nahéma Ricci, who KCFF audiences will know from her electrifying breakout performance in Sophie Deraspe’s ANTIGONE, the Festival’s opening night film in 2020. Here she stars as Nina, a sex worker who’s none too happy to be stranded in the woods with a group of hunters out for a bachelor party weekend. Though the balance of power soon tips in the favour of the small but steely newcomer, the arrival of another outsider raises the stakes yet further. Gripping, stylish and sometimes surreal, Blanc’s film boasts no lack of energy or audacity.
Histoire audacieuse d’une chasse qui dérape totalement, ce thriller ingénieux d’Annick Blanc figure parmi les premiers films canadiens les plus marquants de ces dernières années. Le principal atout du film est Nahéma Ricci, que les spectateurs du KCFF connaissent pour sa prestation remarquable dans ANTIGONE de Sophie Deraspe. Ici, elle joue Nina, une travailleuse du sexe furieuse de se retrouver coincée dans les bois avec des chasseurs en weekend d’enterrement de vie de garçon. Bien que l’équilibre des pouvoirs change rapidement en faveur de la petite mais coriace nouvelle venue, l’arrivée d’un autre étranger élève encore les enjeux. Intense, stylisé et parfois surréaliste, le film de Blanc déborde d’énergie et d’audace.
Thanks to our friends and supporters at Le Centre Culturel Frontenac for providing translation services!
Director: Annick Blanc
Cast: Marc Beupré, Maxime Genois, Alexandre Landry, Bruno Marcil, Frédéric, Millaire-Zouvi, Noubi Ndiaye, Nahéma Ricci
Language: French (with English subtitles)
Runtime: 79 minutes
Content advisory:
Annick Blanc, Director
Annick Blanc is a Canadian film director and producer, known for her work in both short and feature-length films. She has received two Canadian Screen Award nominations for Best Live Action Short Drama, as producer of Plain and Simple (Tout simplement) in 2018 and as director of The Color of Your Lips in 2019. Blanc co-founded the Midi La Nuit film studio with Maria Gracia Turgeon and made her feature directorial debut with HUNTING DAZE in 2024.
Maria Gracia Turgeon, producer
Maria Gracia Turgeon is a Canadian producer and two-time Academy Award nominee. She co-founded Midi La Nuit with Annick Blanc in 2015, producing celebrated short films like Pre-Drink (TIFF 2017), Fauve (Oscar nominee, 2018), The Color of Your Lips (Canadian Screen Award nomination), and Brotherhood (Oscar nominee, 2018). A 2018 TIFF Producer Accelerator Program alum, she is now developing feature films with talented storytellers.
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