A little over fifteen years ago, the feature film West of Pluto (2008) hit the screens, shaking up the treatment hitherto of adolescents in fiction films in Quebec. With this tragicomedy, shot like a documentary, directors Henry Bernadet and Myriam Verreault wanted to do justice to the language, the emotional roller coasters and the concerns of a generation often portrayed in a caricatured or unrealistic manner.
Nearly a decade later, focused on television contracts and another film project, Henry Bernadet thought he was done with adolescence. This was before he met Chaimaa Zineddine, Chris-Juste Kanyembuga and Yassine Jabrane, and young people from the theater classes at the Georges-Vanier school, located in the Villeray district of Montreal, whose daily is at the heart of the feature film Gamma rays.
“In 2013, I left Quebec City to settle in Montreal, in Villeray. I was captivated by the multiculturalism and diversity of the neighborhood. Initially, I wanted to make a film which would take the form of a fresco and which would reflect the reality of the neighborhood. I didn’t particularly want to feature several teenagers. However, when Professor Sandrine Cloutier opened the doors of her class to me and I met these young people, I immediately understood that it was them that I had to talk about. »
For three years, the filmmaker offered improvisation and on-camera acting workshops to students. “I also distributed questionnaires in classes and organized discussions. I wanted young people to talk to me about their daily lives, tell me anecdotes, give me their opinion on certain current debates. I wanted to know them in all their authenticity, and I wanted that authenticity to shine through in my film. »
The easy path, very little for Henry Bernadet
Very quickly, Henry Bernadet fell in love with certain teenagers. “I discovered young people who were brilliant, bright, spontaneous, touching and, above all, very funny. With them there was no bullshit. They didn’t let it be imposed on them, and I had to earn their trust and respect. » The director also had to convince them to participate in his project and get involved in it. “It was very complicated,” he says, laughing. It’s almost a miracle that this film is hitting screens today. Many hesitated, others gave up along the way because they weren’t motivated enough. I then had to rewrite the character. »
Chris-Juste Kanembuga and Nizar Lehkim, two young actors in the film, can attest to this. They themselves weren’t sure they wanted to be part of the adventure at first. “I’m an athlete and I’m very busy,” says the first. It was my mother who insisted. She was right, because it allowed me to realize the potential within me and get out of my comfort zone. » The young man notably had to cut his hair for the role, in addition to learning how to sail a canoe. “I hate water,” he says, laughing.
Nizar Lehkim adds: “I am a rather solitary person, and I was afraid of not getting along with others. Ultimately, I loved my experience. Henry really helped us build our character and take part in the storyline, putting our touch and our personality. We could point out what we didn’t like or what we didn’t consider realistic. It gave a personal game that we don’t often see in Quebec films. »
Gamma rays features Abdel, whose quiet life is turned upside down by the arrival of an extroverted cousin whom he is hosting for the summer, and who is determined to introduce him to the jewels of Montreal. There is also Fatima, who struggles to find a job and thus get away from bad people. Then, there is Toussaint who, after finding a telephone number in a washed-up bottle, begins a correspondence with a stranger who changes his outlook on the world.
“The film is them”
The scenario is a meeting between the plots initially imagined by the co-writers, and the daily lives and personalities of the young people. Several anecdotes and themes covered in the film are also inspired by what they told during the various workshops. The result is strikingly realistic, a realism exacerbated by Henry Bernadet’s decision to give the actors carte blanche in the delivery of their lines. The voices of young people bring to life the spontaneous and poetic vernacular of adolescents, as well as the many influences that run through it.
This working method, although far from simple, is a way for the filmmaker to access a form of truth. “This encounter with a reality that is not mine could not have happened in a more traditional way. Yes, it is important to call on professional actors, but I would not have succeeded in talking about the daily lives of young people and the neighborhood without including them. The film is them. »
The logic serves the work well, which manages without any heaviness to explore themes little exploited on Quebec screens. Through the journey of adolescents from all backgrounds, the viewer gains access to a fair and sensitive representation of certain socio-economic realities and the experience of immigration. “I didn’t necessarily want to tackle immigration head-on. I wanted to depict the daily lives of these young people and, necessarily, their experiences bore witness to certain experiences with racism or isolation. I didn’t want to talk about what I didn’t know. So I put in the film what I saw for real, and that’s what it came out with. »
Nizar Lehkim and Chris-Juste Kanyembuga, for their part, left delighted with their experience. “If I’m asked again, I’m up for it,” says the first. This is my new passion. » “Even if I focus on soccer, I won’t let an opportunity that interests me pass by,” adds the second. We can only hope that Henry Bernadet will not be the last to showcase such potential.
The film Gamma rays will be on display on November 10.