The Plein(s) Ecran(s) festival will offer, from Wednesday, until January 29, the crème de la crème of Quebec short films. A completely free event that has established itself for several years by pushing the limits of online broadcasting.
The founders of this incomparable event probably had no idea they were aiming so well seven years ago when they launched the Plein(s) Ecran(s) festival. Several years before the pandemic, they bet on the virtual, in order to democratize the short film and increase its discoverability.
With its program of some forty works, Plein(s) Ecran(s) casts a wide net. From animation to documentary, through genre film, there is something for everyone. “It’s really eclectic this year,” says spokesperson Catherine Brunet. According to the actress, who was a member of the jury at the last edition, the particular context of recent years may have contributed to the originality of emerging works.
I have the impression that with the pandemic and its share of constraints, the filmmakers did not have the choice to be inventive to create. There’s a lot of variety and it’s really refreshing.
the festival’s spokesperson, Catherine Brunet
Each day, four films will be available on Facebook (or Instagram, for the shortest of them) for a duration of 24 hours. Broadcasting on these platforms makes it possible to reach a less informed audience, which does not necessarily go to festivals, where short films are usually shown. And that’s the magic of Plein(s) Ecran(s), according to its spokesperson.
“Films are shared outside the circles of cinephiles. I can send a film to my mother or my grandmother, telling them that it reminded me of them. Anyone on the networks can access it! »
For the initiated… and the less initiated!
The duration of the films allows the public to travel from one horizon to another in a short time. If feature films can sometimes put off the less initiated, the short can be a good first contact with the seventh art. “A two-hour experimental film, there aren’t many people I’m going to be able to drag to the Cinéma Moderne to go see it. Whereas a film of five or six minutes is better consumed and more accessible. It’s a good gateway,” explains Catherine Brunet.
Some of the films offered are funded by councils or organizations, others are student films. Like what we can make cinema with all kinds of budgets.
PHOTO JOSIE DESMARAIS, THE PRESS
For young people, it can really be inspiring to see that you can make art without setting the big machine in motion.
Festival spokesperson Catherine Brunet
“I find that the short film is punk. Applying for a grant, waiting for the money and finally making a film with the sweat of your brow that lasts a maximum of 20 minutes that 250 people will see… it takes willpower. People really do this for the love of cinema. »
Remember that short films also concern more experienced creators. “There are movies like Sikiitu, written among others by Eric K. Boulianne, who has been making successful feature films for a long time. It is not because an artist paints huge canvases that he will not do small ones at some point”, illustrates Catherine Brunet. “For me, snubbing the short film is like going into a museum and just looking at canvases of a certain size. It does not make sense ! »
The Plein(s) Ecran(s) festival takes place from January 18 to 29.
The five favorites of Catherine Brunet will be offered throughout the festival on the platform of the Cultural Factory.
Our Suggestions
Municipal Relaxation Moduleby Matthew Rankin
IMAGE PROVIDED BY FULL SCREEN(S)
scene of Municipal Relaxation Module, by Matthew Rankin
The Winnipeg filmmaker behind the exquisite The twentieth century (2019) once again imposes itself as the king of the absurd with this hilarious short which stages the backstage of the installation of the park bench, on the edge of a very ordinary road in the Manitoban capital.
Municipal Relaxation Module will be offered on January 26 on the Plein(s) Ecran(s) Facebook page.
Bird nestNadia Louis-Desmarchais
IMAGE PROVIDED BY FULL SCREEN(S)
scene of Bird nestby Nadia Louis-Desmarchais
Director Nadia Louis-Desmarchais signs a touching fiction in which Léna, a young girl who is teased at school because of her hair, tries to be assimilated to others. A hard-hitting film about the consequences of beauty standards that exclude racialized bodies.
Bird nest will be offered on January 20 on the Plein(s) Ecran(s) Facebook page.
No titleby Alexandra Myotte
IMAGE PROVIDED BY FULL SCREEN(S)
scene of No titleby Alexandra Myotte
We will not soon forget the character of Louisiane Gervais, blind and iconoclastic sculptor, told through the memories of a country journalist. Alexandra Myotte signs here a film that is at once psychedelic, poetic, deep and funny. A captivating exploration of the relationship between the artist, his work and his audience.
No title will be offered on January 25 on the Plein(s) Ecrans(s) Facebook page.
beautiful riverby Guillaume Fournier, Samuel Matteau and Yannick Nolin
IMAGE PROVIDED BY FULL SCREEN(S)
Scene of beautiful riverby Guillaume Fournier, Samuel Matteau and Yannick Nolin
Magnificent documentary on the spring floods of the Mississippi and its consequences on the inhabitants of Pierre-Part, in Louisiana. The speakers are irresistible, recounting their resilience with both feet in the water, on superb aerial images of the river which threatens to overflow.
beautiful river will be offered on January 19 on the Plein(s) Ecrans(s) Facebook page.
Tetanusby Alexandre Lefebvre
IMAGE PROVIDED BY FULL SCREEN(S)
scene of Tetanusby Alexandre Lefebvre
Free adaptation of Steve Gagnon’s text I’ll be proud territory and you’ll lay down your furniturepublished at Atelier 10, Tetanus explores the father-son relationship and generational silence. Through the silences and the black and white photography that serves the film so well, a powerful parallel is revealed between the recovery of scrap metal and those who work there.
Tetanus will be offered on January 18 on the Plein(s) Ecran(s) Facebook page.