Press Kit - Films 53/12

A FILM BY
JULIE HIVON
FUNFILM DISTRIBUTION PRESENTS
A FILMS 53/12 PRODUCTION
WHAT ARE
WE DOING
HERE?
A FILM WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY JULIE HIVON
WITH
SOPHIE DESMARAIS
MAXIME DUMONTIER
CHARLES-ALEXANDRE DUBÉ
JOËLLE PARÉ-BEAULIEU
FRÉDÉRIC MILLAIRE ZOUVI
AND GUYLAINE TREMBLAY
RUN TIME
97 MINUTES
PRODUCTION
FILMS 53/12
2205, RUE PARTHENAIS #311
MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC, H2K 3T3, CANADA
T +1 514 508 5312 F +1 514 507 9812
WWW.FILMS53-12.COM
[email protected]
PRESS
IXION COMMUNICATIONS
JUDITH DUBEAU AND HENRY WELSH
190A, AV. DE L’ÉPÉE
MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC, H2V 3T2, CANADA
T +1 514 495-8176
JUDITH.DUBEAU@
IXIONCOMMUNICATIONS.COM
FACEBOOK.COM/QUESTCEQUONFAITICI
DISTRIBUTION AND INTERNATIONAL SALES
FUNFILM DISTRIBUTION
1055, BOUL. RENÉ-LÉVESQUE EST, #900
MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC, H2L 4S5, CANADA
T +1 514 272-4956 F +1 514 272-9741
FUNFILM.CA
[email protected]
SYNOPSIS
Long-time friends Yan, Simon, Roxanne, Maxime and his sister Lily are in their early 20s,
the age when anything is possible.They are just embarking on their careers.
Then one fine summer day,Yan is involved in a fatal car accident.The young man is killed
instantly.The rest of the gang is thrown into turmoil.
Maxime refuses to accept that his best friend is gone. He goes off the deep end and starts
getting into trouble. Roxanne, in denial of her true feelings for Maxime, does an about-face
and starts sleeping around, while Simon, a die-hard romantic, tries in vain to get back
together with a lost love.
And Lily? With Yan by her side, she could live day to day while figuring out what to do with
her life. He was her happiness, but with him gone… She suddenly feels the need to build
something more solid. So she decides to set things in motion. Lily says yes.
Four friends buffeted from all sides. All four of them somewhat lost, trying to get their
bearings, to find a deep meaning to give to their existence. All four of them… together.
A summer when everything changes dramatically, when the poles reverse for a brief
moment. Friends who lose each other and then find each other again. Death, friendship,
love - life, in other words.
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NOTES
What are we doing here? The question may seem banal, yet it’s as important
as they get.
Why do we find ourselves in a situation where we’re stuck in a role we’ve
created for ourselves without quite knowing why? Why don’t we do what
we want to do (like Lily)? Why do we agree to compromise our convictions
to better fit in with business culture (like Maxime)? Why don’t we love ourselves (like Roxanne)? Why don’t we fall in love with the right person (like
Simon)? Why do we find ourselves “painted into a corner” when the horizon
is so vast (like many people)?
I’ve often looked around me, examined paths taken and wondered,“How did
that happen?” But more than anything,“Do I feel good about where I am?
What would I change? And why not shake things up now?”
Then for just an instant… I wanted to let my characters fall on their faces,
make fools of themselves, mess up, because this is what scares us in life,
often to the point of paralysis.
It’s a summer film set in my hometown, Granby, and it’s full of music, freedom and light. There’s a clown and a gorilla, and also a dam in the sunset…
I wanted this film to be like a hug, a smile in the Metro, a hello that warms
your heart, a breath of fresh air, because there is still beauty in this harsh
world. And at the core of the film, I go back to my favourite themes:
unwavering friendship, the search for others and kinship.
The story of What Are We Doing Here? is made up, but it’s a highly personal
film inspired by events that deeply affected me.
Through these characters, I feel like I’m reuniting with old friends. Through
these places and situations, I’m going back to my own youth.To me, the film
is not about death, but about life. It’s not about pain; it’s about the happiness
that comes afterward.
It’s not really a question, but it’s my answer.
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BIOGRAPHY OF JULIE HIVON
FILMOGRAPHY
2014
WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?
2010
SILENCE LIES
2004
LÀ-BAS (SHORT)
2001ICE CREAM, CHOCOLAT AND
OTHERS CONSOLATIONS
1997
IN THE PARK WITH YOU (SHORT)
1994
BAISER D’ENFANT (SHORT)
Julie Hivon studied cinema at Université du Québec à Montréal. She went on
to produce, write and direct two short films, Baiser d’enfant and In the Park
With You. Baiser d’enfant won several awards, including at the Yorkton Film
Festival (Canada) and Cinema Jove (Spain). In the Park With You was awarded
a special critics’ mention at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois.
She then co-produced, wrote and directed her first feature film, Ice Cream,
Chocolate and Other Consolations. The film won the audience choice award at
the Festival du film francophone in Moncton as well as the best film award
at the Turin Women’s Film Festival.
Julie Hivon also produced and directed her second feature film, Silence Lies,
which won two awards (audience choice and innovation) at the Montreal
World Film Festival in 2010.
She also works in television. She directed several episodes of the serial
drama Providence, took part in the series Chambre 13 and is a writer for the
series Toute la vérité and O’.
Alongside her TV and film work, Julie has also written a novel, Ce qu’il en reste
(published by XYZ éditeur), winner of the Jacqueline-Déry-Mochon Award,
several plays for young audiences as well as some literary short stories,
including Ballade pour une fin de millénaire, which won Voir weekly’s shortstory contest.
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CREDITS
CAST
LILY
MAX
ROXANNE
SIMON
YAN
NICOLE
WRITER AND DIRECTOR
JULIE HIVON
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
CLAUDINE SAUVÉ
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
GENEVIÈVE LIZOTTE
COSTUME DESIGNER
JULIE-ANNE TREMBLAY
CASTING
CATHERINE DIDELOT
EDITOR
NATALIE LAMOUREUX
MUSICAL DIRECTOR AND ORIGINAL SCORE
SERGE NAKAUCHI PELLETIER
SOUND
MARTYNE MORIN
MARTIN ALLARD
STÉPHANE BERGERON
PRODUCTION MANAGER
JASMYRH LEMOINE
PRODUCERS
FRANÇOIS DELISLE
MAXIME BERNARD
TECHNICAL INFORMATION ORIGINAL TITLE
QU’EST-CE QU’ON FAIT ICI ?
ENGLISH TITLE
WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?
SHOOTING FORMAT
4K
PROJECTION FORMAT
DCP
RUN TIME
97 MINUTES
ORIGINAL VERSION
FRENCH
SUBTITLESENGLISH
FRAME
2.35 : 1
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION
CANADA
YEAR2014
SOPHIE DESMARAIS
MAXIME DUMONTIER
JOËLLE PARÉ-BEAULIEU
CHARLES-ALEXANDRE DUBÉ
FRÉDÉRIC MILLAIRE ZOUVI
GUYLAINE TREMBLAY
A FILM PRODUCED WITH FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM: SODEC: SOCIÉTÉ DE DÉVELOPPEMENT DES ENTREPRISES CULTURELLES - QUÉBEC - / TELEFILM CANADA / REFUNDABLE TAX
CREDIT FOR FILM OR TELEVISION PRODUCTION - SODEC - / HAROLD GREENBERG FUND / CANADIAN FILM OR TELEVISION TAX CREDIT PROGRAM / CBC/RADIO-CANADA / SUPER ÉCRAN
FACEBOOK.COM/QUESTCEQUONFAITICI
Crédit d’impôt pour production cinématographique
ou magnétoscopique canadienne
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