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Gaby’s Hills

A FILM BY ZOÉ PELCHAT

Short Film – Québec – 2023 – 21 min
Color | French English subtitles | 16:9 | 5.1

SYNOPSIS

Thirteen-year-old Gaby arrives in the Magdalen Islands to spend the summer with her father, as she does every year. She is thrilled to find the sea she loves so much, the childhood friends, the winding hills on the horizon, and the warm joy of her dad’s home. But this time something is different: she hit puberty, and her life will never be the same.

Cast

Lou Thompson, Gaspard Chartrand, Emmanuel Bilodeau, Catherine De Léan, Robin L’Houmeau, Léon-Charles Arseneau.

Crew

DIRECTOR : Zoé Pelchat
WRITER : Zoé Pelchat
PRODUCERS : Véronique Charbonneau (Papillon films)
CINEMATOGRAPHY : Gabriel Brault Tardif
PRODUCTION DESIGN : Catherine K Pelletier
SOUND DESIGN : Francis Gauthier
EDITING : Amélie Labrèche
MUSIC : Laurence Lafond-Beaulne

Director statement

With Gaby’s Hills, I wanted to express the disconnect puberty creates between the head and the body, and illustrate how this pivotal moment affects our relationships with others. Navigating between the woman she’s becoming and what others expect of her femininity, Gaby tries to find her own unique and beautiful way of existing as a woman in this world.

DIRECTOR’S BIOGRAPHY

After studying communications at Concordia and film directing at renowned film school l’Inis, Zoé Pelchat began her career directing music videos before devoting herself fully to fiction and advertising.

Her web series “Dominos” (2018-2020), broadcast on TV5/Unis and Tou.tv, was her first success. The two seasons travelled around the world and won several awards, including the trophy for Best Digital Series at Canneseries. Zoé followed this up with her first short, “Lune” (2020), presented in competition at the prestigious Clermont-Ferrand festival, and then selected in more than forty international festivals. The film won five awards and numerous mentions for the touching performance of its lead actress, Joanie Martel. It was also nominated for the Iris for best short film at the Gala du Cinéma Québécois.

Zoé is currently pursuing her advertising career within the Cinélande banner, as well as developing her first feature film, Douce Prière. In 2022, she will release two new shorts, Atlantis and Gaby les collines. Her works all carry her very personal signature: sharp dialogue, an intoxicating visual universe and an undeniable love for human beings.

FILMOGRAPHY

GABY’S HILLS I 2023

ATLANTIS I 2023

MOON I 2020

FESTIVALS & AWARDS

Berlinale Generation, 2023

IndieLisboa International Film Festival, 2023

Festival UII NU – Andorre, 2023

BIKY Busan International Kids and Youth Film Festival, 2023

New Directors New Films, 2023

Cinema Jove – Valencia, 2023

CineFest Miskolc, 2023

Off-Courts Trouville, 2023

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), 2023 *HONOURABLE MENTION – SHORTCUTS SHARE HER JOURNEY AWARD

Festival du Nouveau Cinéma (FNC), 2023 *MENTION SPÉCIALE

Edinburgh Film Festival, 2023

Mill Valley Film Festival, 2023

Filem’On Brussels, 2023

FIFF Campus Namur, 2023

International Young Audience Ale Kino!, 2023

Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, 2023

Festival de Cinéma International en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (FCIAT), 2023

Anchorage International Film Festival, 2023

Festival Images en Vues,  2023 *PRIX DU JURY

Big Water Film Festival, 2024

Plein(s) Écran(s), 2024

Canada’s TIFF Top Ten, 2024

RVQC, Février 2024