François Delisle

Between 1987 and 1990, François Delisle directed several experimental short films, some of which were selected for various international festivals. In 1991, François Delisle came to critics' attention when he was named best new director of short- and medium-length films at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois film festival for his medium-length film Beebe-Plain. In 1994, Ruth, François Delisle's first feature film, was named best feature of the year and best screenplay at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois. Ruth drew critical acclaim and was screened in Canada and Europe. In 2003, François Delisle founded the company Films 53/12 to direct and produce his second feature, Happiness is a Sad Song. After winning the best feature award at the Festival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie and being nominated for the best film of the year award by the Association québécoise des critiques de cinéma, Happiness is a Sad Song went on to international recognition when it toured the world to over twenty festivals and film events. In 2007, François Delisle released his third feature film, You. In international competition at the Montreal World Film Festival, You was a shock for both audiences and critics. Fragile yet uncompromising, You has done the rounds nationally and internationally. In 2010, after appearing at festivals around the world, Twice a Woman, his fourth film, opened on Quebec screens. A critical and audience favourite here and around the world, the film appeared simultaneously in theatres and through video on demand, a first in Canada. Twice a Woman earned two nominations for the Prix Jutra in 2011. His fifth feature film, The Meteor, hit Quebec screens in March 2013 after its world premiere at the Sundance Festival and the 63rd Berlin Festival. The film was a hit with critics and audiences in Canada and around the world. The Meteor won the Association Québécoise des critiques de cinema award for best film of the year. In 2015, Chorus, his sixth feature, drew unprecedented international recognition. Shown in competition at the Sundance Festival and screened at the 65th Berlin Festival, the film drew critical raves when it was released. As a result, it was selected for film festivals and given a theatrical release in many countries around the world, contributing to its major international impact. In 2019, Cash Nexus hit Quebec theatres. The first part of the "collapse trilogy", Cash Nexus has been described as an allegorical fable and an uncompromising social portrait. This seventh feature explores the theme of inequality by setting its story in a bourgeois family broken by the wounds of the past. In the same year, François Delisle directed CHSLD, an intimate portrait of his mother made in the twilight of her life. This documentary short is shown in 2020 at REGARD - Saguenay International Short Film Festival. Films 53/12 is a space where François Delisle ardently champions personal, independent cinema through his involvement in both the creative and the production sides of film. He now pursues this commitment to film distribution through Fragments Distribution, which he founded in 2015.