Incendies

An exciting time begins for the twins, Jeanne and Simon, when they receive two letters from their late mother at the solicitor’s office. The first letter is addressed to their father, who, according to their mother’s stories, had been dead for a long time. When the second letter reveals that they also have a brother, Jeanne makes the connection with her mother’s silence in the final weeks before her death. A keen curiosity about their unknown family history takes Jeanne to the Middle East. Simon, however, is highly sceptical about the mysterious past of his cold, distant mother. Yet, out of love for his sister, he joins her on the heart-stopping quest that leads them into a world of violence, part of a painful history rife with war and hatred.

Director and screenwriter Denis Villeneuve made his definitive breakthrough with Incendies, a film with the allure of a classical Greek tragedy. This drama, based on the play of the same name by Wajdi Mouawad, earned him an Oscar nomination and won the Audience Award at the 2011 IFFR.