MONTRÉAL, Sept. 27, 2016 /CNW
Telbec/ - Quebecor is proud to present the Festival du nouveau
cinéma (FNC) for the 8th consecutive year. From
October 5 to 16, movie buffs of all
stripes will gather for the 45th annual FNC film
festival to share their passion for cinema. Quebecor is equally
devoted to film. That is why it supports the FNC with a financial
contribution and a large-scale promotional campaign in all its
media outlets. In this anniversary year, Éléphant: The memory of
Québec cinema will also be at the festival, paying tribute to
two great Québec directors by presenting free screenings of four
restored feature films.
"Supporting Québec cinematic talent and bringing it to a wide
audience is our mission and the reason we back this major
festival," said Pierre Dion,
President and CEO of Quebecor. "Québec movies have always spoken to
our hearts and our sense of wonder. So too does the FNC. I tip my
hat to the organizers and wish them every success with this year's
festival."
Quebecor is honoured to present the prestigious Louve
d'Or award for best film in the International Competition. The
winner is chosen by a jury of movie professionals. It is
accompanied by a cash prize from Quebecor to support the director's
future work. Several Quebecor subsidiaries are also supporting the
FNC, including MAtv, which is presenting the Prix Créativité
in the Focus section (short films) and TVA Films, which is
screening the film A Quiet Passion.
Éléphant screenings
Éléphant is proud to honour the
memory of filmmaker, author and actor André Melançon by presenting
the Canadian-Argentine co-production Fierro... l'été des
secrets (1989), a magnificent film that tells the story of
three children spending a summer on a ranch with their grandfather
and the ever-present horses. Fierro transports the viewer
into the untamed beauty of the Argentine pampas while remaining
focused on the children and their adventures with their
grandfather.
Fierro will be shown at the Pavillon Judith-Jasmin Annexe
(Salle Jean-Claude Lauzon) on
Sunday, October 16 at 5 p.m.
The second tribute will be to Jean-Pierre Lefebvre, a director who always
stayed clear of the cinematic beaten path. The Abel trilogy
starring Marcel Sabourin, a key part
of Lefebvre's impressive filmography, will be shown.
The first film in the trilogy, Il ne faut pas mourir pour
ça (1967), is a sensitive portrayal of a man at a turning point
in his life, a film about death and disillusion. The central
character's situation and his worries are bound up with the
complexities of his country, Canada, and the things about it he wants to
change.
Il ne faut pas mourir pour ça will be shown at the
Cinémathèque québécoise on Friday, October
14 at 7 p.m.
The second instalment in the trilogy, Le vieux pays où
Rimbaud est mort (1977), is one of Lefebvre's most accessible
works. The Quebecer Abel travels to the country of his ancestors
and discovers two lands, the France of the clichés and the France of human relationships.
Le vieux pays où Rimbaud est mort will be shown at the
Cinémathèque québécoise on Saturday, October
15 at 5 p.m.
Finally, in Aujourd'hui ou jamais (1998), Abel, once a
passionate aviator, has not flown since the death of his co-pilot
and best friend. Fifteen years later, now in his 50s, he gets into
the cockpit again. But things do not go exactly as planned.
Aujourd'hui ou jamais will be shown at the Pavillon
Judith-Jasmin Annexe (Salle Jean-Claude
Lauzon) on Sunday, October 16
at 7 p.m.
About Éléphant: The memory of Québec
cinema
Éléphant: The memory of Québec cinema was
launched in 2007 as a large-scale project to digitize, restore and
preserve all the fictional feature films in Québec's cinematic
heritage and make them readily accessible. It is led by
co-directors Claude Fournier and
Marie-José Raymond. To date, 225 movies have been restored. They
are available 24/7 on Videotron's illico video-on-demand service
(channel 900), illico.tv and the illico app. The films are also
being gradually added, in the original version with subtitles, to
iTunes in Canada, the U.S.,
France and all other European and
African countries where French or English is one of the official
languages. The Éléphant website at www.elephantcinema.quebec
contains the largest existing database and bank of information on
Québec cinema.
The films restored by Éléphant can now be viewed on the
big screen at two major cultural institutions. Thanks to recently
formed partnerships, the public has been able to experience these
important feature films at the Cinémathèque québécoise and at the
Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec.
Éléphant: The memory of Québec cinema is fully funded by
Quebecor. It is a philanthropic enterprise from which
Quebecor derives no financial benefit. Aside from a small amount to
cover a portion of the platform's operating costs, all revenues
from distribution of the movies on illico goes to the rights
holders and filmmakers.
About Quebecor
Quebecor, a Canadian leader in telecommunications, entertainment,
news media and culture, is one of the best-performing integrated
communications companies in the industry. Driven by their
determination to deliver the best possible customer experience, all
of Quebecor's subsidiaries and brands are differentiated by their
high-quality, multiplatform, convergent products and services.
Quebecor (TSX: QBR.A, QBR.B) is headquartered in Québec. It
holds an 81.07% interest in Quebecor Media, which employs close to
11,000 people in Canada.
A family business founded in 1950, Quebecor is strongly
committed to the community. Every year, it actively supports people
working with more than 400 organizations in the vital fields of
culture, health, education, the environment and
entrepreneurship.
Visit our website: www.quebecor.com
Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/Quebecor
SOURCE Quebecor