Hochelaga, Land Of Souls
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''Hochelaga, Land of Souls'' () is a 2017 Canadian
historical drama film A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction such as c ...
directed and written by François Girard and starring Gilles Renaud, Samian and
Tanaya Beatty Tanaya Beatty (born February 12, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as List of Twilight cast members#Humans, Rachel Black in the movie adaptation of ''The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1'' as well as her starring roles a ...
. Dramatizing several centuries of Quebec history and the local
history of Montreal Montreal was established in 1642 in what is now the province of Quebec, Canada. At the time of European contact the area was inhabited by the St. Lawrence Iroquoians, a discrete and distinct group of Iroquoian-speaking indigenous people. They spo ...
in particular, the story depicts Quebec archaeology revealing the past of indigenous peoples, explorers and 1837 rebels. Girard had previously used an anthology approach in his films such as ''
The Red Violin ''The Red Violin'' () is a 1998 anthology Drama (film and television), drama film directed by François Girard and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Carlo Cecchi and Sylvia Chang. It spans four centuries and five countries telling the story of a myster ...
'', and was interested in another project that would depict Montreal. It was shot in Montreal, with performances in numerous languages. The film was screened in the Gala Presentations section at the
2017 Toronto International Film Festival The 42nd annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from September 7 to 17, 2017. There were fourteen programs, with the Vanguard and City to City programs both being retired from previous years, with the total number of films down by ...
. It won four
Canadian Screen Awards The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...
, including Best Cinematography for Nicolas Bolduc, and was Canada's submission for the
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
, but it was not nominated.


Plot

In the aftermath of a hard-fought battle between Indigenous warriors in 1267, when many Iroquoians were killed on the "Isle of Death", an Iroquois prophet gives the massacre's lone survivor the name Asigny. Centuries later, Asigny's descendant Baptiste Asigny is a graduate student studying Mohawk history. Baptiste struggles to pay rent and obtain research grants while studying under the
Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (; UdeM; ) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce on M ...
archaeology professor Antoine Morin. One night, a rainstorm opens a sinkhole in the field during a game at
McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...
's
Percival Molson Memorial Stadium Percival Molson Memorial Stadium (also known in French as ''Stade Percival-Molson''; commonly referred to as Molson Stadium in English or Stade Molson in French) is an outdoor football and multi-purpose stadium in Downtown Montreal, on the slopes ...
, killing one player. Observing the development, Morin theorizes that the sinkhole may lead to evidence of Hochelaga, where French explorer
Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...
contacted Indigenous peoples in Quebec in 1535. Morin obtains an order from the Ministry of Culture to be allowed to dig and hires Baptiste to lead an archaeological excavation of the field. The archaeologists dig over several days, finding that the "Isle of Death" was the site of a "purple fever" outbreak in 1687. French settler Étienne Maltais is involved in a sexual affair with a native woman named Akwi. He promises her that, next year, he will marry her not before God, but the
Great Spirit The Great Spirit is an omnipresent supreme life force, generally conceptualized as a supreme being or god, in the traditional religious beliefs of many, but not all, indigenous cultures in Canada and the United States. Interpretations of it v ...
. She notices sores on his body, which he dismisses as injuries caused by a fall during a hunt. Maltais falls gravely ill of purple fever and is committed to a hospital, where the Catholic chaplain accuses him of
sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...
over fornicating with a "savage". He resolutely orders the priest to stop haranguing him, and later dies. Baptiste finds that the sinkhole is located over a stream and finds the weapons which he believed could have belonged to Patriote rebels during the
Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...
in 1837. The two Patriotes had fled British loyalist forces led by Colonel Philip Thomas. They came upon the Walker property, though archaeologists note that Mr. Walker had been firmly loyalist. However, the widowed Sarah Walker gives the Patriotes sanctuary. The Patriotes are discovered and killed by the loyalists. Mrs. Walker tells Thomas that due to her advanced age, she does not believe that she will ever go to trial. At the end of the dig, Baptiste finds the cross of explorer
Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...
, who arrived to Hochelaga in 1535, claiming the land for the
Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...
. Cartier met with the chief Tennawake and presented him with the cross. The meeting is peaceful, though Tennawake and his people consider that more Europeans will come to Hochelaga. Cartier names the land Mont Réal (royal mountain). The football team returns to the field, and six years after the sinkhole opened Morin congratulates Baptiste on his research.


Cast

* Raoul Max Trujillo as Le Prophète *
Tanaya Beatty Tanaya Beatty (born February 12, 1991) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as List of Twilight cast members#Humans, Rachel Black in the movie adaptation of ''The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1'' as well as her starring roles a ...
as Akwi * David La Haye as Alexis Leblanc * André Simoneau as Marcus Walker * Gilles Renaud as Antoine Morin * Vincent Perez as Jacques Cartier * Linus Roache as Colonel Philip Thomas * Roman Blomme as Elie Campeau * Samuel Tremblay as Baptiste * Emmanuel Schwartz as Étienne Maltais * Sian Phillips as Sarah Walker * Martin Pelletier Jr as Charles Leblanc


Production


Development

Director François Girard said that the project grew out of his "tremendous affection for Montreal" and a desire to portray it in greater depth than in his 1998 feature ''
The Red Violin ''The Red Violin'' () is a 1998 anthology Drama (film and television), drama film directed by François Girard and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Carlo Cecchi and Sylvia Chang. It spans four centuries and five countries telling the story of a myster ...
''. Girard remarked "I grew more and more interested in showing where I live, and pay (''sic'') tribute to the ancestors who lived there before us". Girard conceived of the story as "spatially extremely limited", and about "waves of immigration", beginning with depictions of
Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...
and
Algonquins The Algonquin people are an Indigenous people who now live in Eastern Canada and parts of the United States. They speak the Algonquin language, which is part of the Algonquian language family. Culturally and linguistically, they are closely ...
, and later the French, English and Irish. He stated: :It’s a fantasy most of us have. You’re on a street corner in London, wondering who was standing there 1,000 years before. From my loft in Montreal, I can see
Mount Royal Mount Royal (, ) is a mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The city's name is derived from the mountain's name. The mountain is part of the Monteregian Hills situated between the Laurentian M ...
. I sometimes have the fantasy that 1,000, 2,000 or 3,000 years ago, somebody was in the same place, looking at the same mountain, the same sky, feeling the same winter. We have that connection by the land. That’s what the film talks about, looking at whoever has occupied that land, and then the connection between them. Historic episodes that inspired the story included the explorations of
Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...
in 1535, the 1837
Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...
and 1944 operations in the
Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital The Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital (MNI), also known as Montreal Neuro or The Neuro, is a research and medical centre dedicated to neuroscience, training and clinical care, located in the city's downtown core of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ...
. Other incidents, such as the 1267 battle and the Iroquois prophet played by Trujillo, were invented. The project required performances in French, English, Mohawk, Algonquin,
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
and
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
. Native leader Dominique Rankin served as a consultant. Other historical research required included a study on the evolution of the French language. Producer
Roger Frappier Roger Frappier (born April 14, 1945) is a Canadian producer, director, editor, actor, and screenwriter. Biography Roger Frappier worked in all areas of the film business, from film critic to television commercial director to director/ producer of ...
supported the project with a budget of $15 million, calling it his most complicated. Frappier cited the project as important, and as Girard's return to the form of ''The Red Violin'' and '' Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould'', but more locally based. While beginning to work on the screenplay, Girard was collaborating with composer
Terry Riley Terrence Mitchell Riley (born June 24, 1935) is an American composer and performing musician best known as a pioneer of the minimalist music, minimalist school of composition. Influenced by jazz and Indian classical music, his work became notab ...
and Terry's son Gyan Riley, also a musician, on developing a
score SCORE may refer to: *SCORE (software), a music scorewriter program * SCORE (television), a weekend sports service of the defunct Financial News Network *SCORE! Educational Centers *SCORE International, an offroad racing organization *Sarawak Corrido ...
, to assist the spiritual aspects of the story. On 26 April 2016,
Telefilm Canada Telefilm Canada is a Canadian Crown corporation that supports Canada's audiovisual industry. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm Canada provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in Vancouver, British Colu ...
announced $17 million in grants for 17 projects, including Girard's film, announced as a historical drama and starring Emmanuel Schwartz and
Yvan Attal Yvan Attal (; ; born ) is a French actor, scriptwriter and film director. Life and career Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, to History of the Jews in Algeria, Algerian-Jewish parents, he grew up in the outskirts of Paris. His acting debut was in Éri ...
.


Casting

In casting, artistic director André Dudemaine claimed that the Quebec film industry was skeptical of the project finding Indigenous actors, saying there were not enough in Montreal. The 1990
Oka Crisis The Oka Crisis (), also known as the Mohawk Crisis or Kanehsatà:ke Resistance (), was a land rights, land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec, Canada, over plans to build a golf course on land known as "The Pin ...
also left lasting distrust between communities. George Wahiakeron Gilbert helped the actors learn Mohawk lines, and also performed a chief in the Cartier scene. Trujillo embraced the project for its authenticity. Swiss actor Vincent Perez assumed the role of Jacques Cartier in October 2016, citing his interest in the 16th century and in visiting Quebec. The Algonquin rapper Samian (Samuel Tremblay) was cast in his first prominent performance in a film. Karelle Tremblay also had a role as Soeur Beatrice.


Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
began on 15 September 2016 and was expected to last 42 days, employing thousands of extras. All 300 extras playing Indigenous characters were portrayed by Indigenous people. Filming continued in Montreal in October 2016 to February 2017. The initial football scenes were shot at
Percival Molson Memorial Stadium Percival Molson Memorial Stadium (also known in French as ''Stade Percival-Molson''; commonly referred to as Molson Stadium in English or Stade Molson in French) is an outdoor football and multi-purpose stadium in Downtown Montreal, on the slopes ...
. Rainstorms delayed some production.


Release

In February 2017, Seville International adopted the film for distribution. It was also selected for the Gala Presentations section at the
2017 Toronto International Film Festival The 42nd annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from September 7 to 17, 2017. There were fourteen programs, with the Vanguard and City to City programs both being retired from previous years, with the total number of films down by ...
. Festival organizers chose it for screening at the 22nd Busan International Film Festival in October 2017. At Camerimage in October 2017, Nicolas Bolduc competed for the Golden Frog Award. ''Hochelaga, Land of Souls'' premiered in Montreal at the Place des Arts on 6 September 2017, before TIFF. The event marked Montreal's 375th anniversary and commemorations of the 150th anniversary of Canada. A second screening that night at the Imperial theatre was attended by prominent Quebecois cultural figures
Denis Villeneuve Denis Villeneuve Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, OAL (; ; born October 3, 1967) is a Canadian film director and screenwriter. He has received seven Canadian Screen Awards as well as nominations for four Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards, and two ...
,
Gilles Vigneault Gilles Vigneault (; born 27 October 1928) is a Canadian poet, Publishing, publisher, singer-songwriter, and Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist and Quebec sovereignty movement, sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Qu ...
and
Luc Plamondon Luc Plamondon (born March 2, 1942) is a French Canadians, French-Canadian lyricist and music executive. His work includes the musicals Starmania (musical), ''Starmania'' and Notre-Dame de Paris (musical), ''Notre-Dame de Paris''. He is the brot ...
, along with a speech by Ghislain Picard, the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec leader. While TIFF organizers would ordinarily wish to ensure a gala screening would be the premiere, Girard said president Piers Handling was sympathetic to Montreal seeing it first, given the subject matter. Before 25 September, the film was screening in
Medicine Hat Medicine Hat is a city in Southern Alberta, southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately east of Lethbridge and southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff, Alberta, R ...
, Alberta in order for it to be eligible for the
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
. A full theatrical release was planned for later in fall 2017.


Reception


Critical response

In '' La Presse'', Mario Girard hailed ''Hochelaga, Land of Souls'' as powerful and a meaningful way to mark Montreal's 375th anniversary. Girard especially cited its depiction of Indigenous peoples in Quebec. For ''
Le Devoir (, ) is a French-language newspaper published in Montreal and distributed in Quebec and throughout Canada. It was founded by journalist and politician Henri Bourassa in 1910. is one of few independent large-circulation newspapers in Quebec ...
'', Odile Tremblay praised the film as beautiful and a story of reconciliation, giving fair weight to different sociological nations. Franco Nuovo of ''
Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...
'' described being overwhelmed by ''Hochelaga'', comparing the cinematography to paintings and finding the abundant symbolism erased any dullness that the historic subject matter could have threatened. Dennis Harvey wrote in ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' that the film was "a worthy return to the strengths and ambitions of '' Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould'' and ''
The Red Violin ''The Red Violin'' () is a 1998 anthology Drama (film and television), drama film directed by François Girard and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Carlo Cecchi and Sylvia Chang. It spans four centuries and five countries telling the story of a myster ...
''". ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
''s John DeFore called the screenplay episodic and found hints the film suggests a vision of "all the region's inhabitants as a single human population".


Accolades

''Hochelaga, Land of Souls'' was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the
90th Academy Awards The 90th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2017, and took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was held on March 4, ...
. Despite showings in Los Angeles for the
Academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
, it was not shortlisted or nominated. It was also submitted to the
Hollywood Foreign Press Association The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) was a nonprofit organization of journalists and photographers who reported on the American entertainment industry for predominantly foreign media markets. It is best known for founding and conduc ...
for consideration of a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film nomination.


See also

*
List of submissions to the 90th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of submissions to the 90th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has invited the film industries of various countries to submit their best film for the Academy Award ...
* List of Canadian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hochelaga Land Of Souls 2017 films 2017 drama films Algonquian-language films Films about archaeology Canadian anthology films Canadian drama films English-language Canadian films Films directed by François Girard Films set in Montreal Films set in pre-Columbian America Films set in the 13th century Films set in the 1530s Films set in the 1680s Films set in the 1830s Films shot in Montreal Lower Canada Rebellion war films Mohawk-language films Canadian epic films French-language Canadian films 2010s English-language films 2010s Canadian films