Incendies

19/09/10 11:34

The City of Toronto Award for Best Canadian Feature went to Denis Villeneuve for Incendies, a wrenching drama about immigration and war. Distribution rights were acquired by Sony Pictures Classics. Incendies just hit theaters in Quebec. It was a great opportunity to work with Rodeo FX and Denis Villeneuve. We created matte paintings of destroyed cities. There are some examples on the matte painting page.

The film stars Maxim Gaudette and Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin as Montreal twins who, following the death of their mother, go to their notary (Rémy Girard), and are shocked to learn that their mother's last wishes is that they hand-deliver a letter to their father, whom they were sure was dead, and to a brother they didn't know existed. Belgian actress Lubna Azabal plays the mother. This leads the twins in a harrowing trip back to their homeland in the Middle East where they discover family secrets - and are thrust back into the horrors of the country's recent history. The film is produced by Luc Déry and Kim McCraw from micro_scope, one of Montreal's cooler production outfits. Incendies was set to have its Canadian premiere Monday night at the Toronto International Film Festival.