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La déesse des mouches à feu

Goddess of the Fireflies
Generation 14plus 2020
© Laurent Guérin
“It sounds like waves. Listen. Waves pushing a boat against a dock. Beautiful, isn’t it? Like a tsunami. A giant tsunami.”

When Cat is high, life becomes a warm, poetic rush. First love, first sexual experiences and her parents’ scorched-earth divorce combine to bring the 16-year-old to a turning point. In her new circle of friends, she encounters mescaline, which is known for inducing ecstatic states and soon rules Cat’s everyday routine. Such deep intoxication helps to liberate her from the verbal and emotional brutality of conflicts at home, while her clique provides her with support and diversion. It’s the mid-90s in provincial Canada – punk rock, Kurt Cobain’s suicide and the Mia Wallace look are animating teens to try to get free themselves. Filmed with great immediacy, an unflinching portrait of a maturing rebel emerges, as strong and as weak as a lost goddess.
by Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette
with Kelly Depeault, Éléonore Loiselle, Caroline Néron, Normand D'Amour, Robin L’Houmeau, Noah Parker, Antoine Desrochers, Marine Johnson Canada 2020 French 105’ Colour World premiere

With

  • Kelly Depeault (Catherine)
  • Éléonore Loiselle (Marie-Eve)
  • Caroline Néron (Mother)
  • Normand D'Amour (Father)
  • Robin L’Houmeau (Kevin)
  • Noah Parker (Fred)
  • Antoine Desrochers (Pascal)
  • Marine Johnson (Mélanie)

Crew

Director Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette
Screenplay Catherine Léger based on the novel by Geneviève Pettersen
Cinematography Jonathan Decoste
Editing Stéphane Lafleur
Music Mathieu Charbonneau
Sound Design Sylvain Bellemare
Sound Maryne Morin
Production Design André-Line Beauparlant
Sound Mixing Bernard Gariépy Strobl
Costumes Sophie Lefebvre
Make-Up Kathryn Casault
Assistant Director Pascal Elissalde
Casting Murielle La Ferrière, Marie-Claude Robitaille
Production Manager Virginie Léger
Producer Luc Vandal
Executive Producer Tim Ringuette

World Sales

WaZabi Films

Produced by

Coop Vidéo de Montréal

Photos

Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette

© Eva-Maude TC

Born in Montreal, Canada in 1979, the director was named Artiste pour la Paix in 2012. She has made several award-winning documentaries including Se souvenir des cendres, which follows the creation of Denis Villeneuve’s Incendies. Her feature films Le ring and Inch’Allah screened in the Berlinale Panorama, where she won the 2013 FIPRESCI Jury award and a Special Mention from the Ecumenical Jury. She has also published several literary works to great critical and public acclaim. She is currently working on the adaptation of Romain Gary’s novel “Chien blanc”.

Filmography

2000 Les Petits Princes des Bidonvilles 2001 Les Mots bleus; short film · Buenos Aires no llores; short film · Sorcières comme les autres; short film 2004 Les mains du monde; documentary · Ceux qui savent encore rêver; documentary 2005 Si j'avais un chapeau; documentary 2007 Le ring · Tap-tap; documentary 2009 Les petits géants; documentary 2010 Se souvenir des cendres - regards sur incendies; documentary · Les voix humaines; documentary series 2011 Sept heures Trois fois par année; short film, co-director: André Turpin · Marie pleine de grâce; documentary series 2012 Ina Litovski; short film, co-director: André Turpin · Inch'Allah 2013 Prends-moi; short film, co-director: André Turpin 2014 Le plancher des vaches; documentary, co-director: Émile Proulx-Cloutier 2017 Ma fille n’est pas à vendre (My Daughter Is Not for Sale); documentary · Je me souviens - Charles de Gaulle à Montréal; short film 2020 La déesse des mouches à feu (Goddess of the Fireflies)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2020