Sous la montagne endormie (Under the Sleeping Mountain)
One summer, many years after his mother confided in him about her emotional difficulties with his father, a filmmaker questions his parents, curious about the state of their relationship. At first glance, their situation does not seem to have changed. Curious, he decides to inquire about it. Their activities and discussions both revive nostalgic and fearful emotions. He sees that his mother does not feel the same. From this moment he realizes the magnitude of the subject and that some things are not accessible to him.
Distribution and sales by La Distributrice de films
Short and medium length competition, RIDM 2021
“The winner of the Prix de la Relève in 2019, Charles Duquet returns to the RIDM with a highly personal work of great artistic maturity, powerfully evoking the mother-son bond. Through visual metaphors, the film manages to express what words struggle to communicate: that human relationships erode over time; that we sometimes have to climb the mountain in order to see how far we’ve come, and to see the horizon open before us.” (Programming Collective)
2021 / Documentary / 16 min / Canada, Italy, Iceland / French (eng sub)
Written, directed and filmed by Charles Duquet, editing Yousra Benziane, production Mérédith Gonzalez-Bayard, Charles Duquet co-produced with Carol Nguyen
Supported by Canada Arts Council, Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, PRIM aide à la création and the National Film Board of Canada.
Festivals and screenings
Nomination for the Best Documentary Short, Iris Awards, Gala Québec Cinéma 2022
Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal (RIDM), Short and medium length competition
Festival Les Percéides, In competition
Rendez-vous Québec Cinéma, In competition
Festival Vues de Rivière-du-Loup, In competition
FOFA Gallery, June 6 - 22, 2022, Montreal
L’Art est au 3e, Central 217, June 4th 2022, Granby, Quebec
Labocine, Mountain Panorama, November 2024, Streaming