Quebec and Croneberg lead Genies

Café de Flore leads the field competing in the 32nd annual Genie Awards with a total of 13 nominations, including best picture and director. The film marks a virtuosic return to form for C.R.A.Z.Y director Jean-Marc Vallée after his rather subdued work-for-hire, The Young Victoria. By vaulting ahead of the pack in the Genie nominations, which were announced today, Vallée wins some vindication after being repeatedly upstaged  by Philippe Falardeau’s Monsieur Lazhar—which won TIFF’s $30,000 award for best Canadian feature, the Toronto Film Critics Association’s $15,000 Rogers Best Canadian Film Award—and was picked as Canada’s official submission slot at the Oscars for best foreign-language film. Monsieur Lazhar ranked third among the Genie nominations, scoring in eight categories, behind David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method, which received 11 nominations.

The big shock among the nominees was that Take This Waltz, the star-studded second feature from writer-director Sarah Polley received just two nominations—best actress for Michelle Williams and best make-up. That’s extraordinary given the depth of talent in the cast (Seth Rogen, Luke Kirby, Sarah Silverman) and the fact that Polley’s sensational feature debut, Away From Her, won seven Genies and received two Oscar nominations.

The Genies’ top three Canadian features—the same trio chosen by the TFCA—reveals once again the traditional strength of Quebec cinema compared to its English Canadian counterpart. The most nominated English Canadian films are, curiously, all co-productions: A Dangerous Method and The Whistleblower (which scored six nominations) are both German co-pros. The Bang Bang Club, with seven nominations, is a  South African co-pro.

It’s also worth noting that all these films are set outside Canada and based on true stories of non-Canadian characters. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that.)  A Dangerous Method is about Jung, Freud and the birth of psychoanalysis; The Bang Bang Club is about photojournalists braving the front lines in the last days of apartheid; and The Whistleblower, which premiered at TIFF 2010,  makes a heroine of Kathryn Bolkovac, a Nebraska cop who served as a peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia and outed the U.N. for covering up a sex scandal.

By contrast, writer-director Nathan Morlando’s impressive feature debut, Edwin Boyd, could not be more Canadian. The film, which received five Genie nominations, is based on the true story of a notorious Toronto bank robber who became a folk hero before his eventual arrest in 1952.

Here is the full list of Genie nominations:

BEST MOTION PICTURE

A DANGEROUS METHOD - Martin Katz, Marco Mehlitz, Jeremy ThomasCAFÉ DE FLORE - Pierre Even, Marie-Claude Poulin, Jean-Marc ValléeMONSIEUR LAZHAR - Luc Déry, Kim McCrawSTARBUCK - André RouleauTHE WHISTLEBLOWER - Christina Piovesan, Celine Rattray

ACHIEVEMENT IN ART DIRECTION

JEAN BÉCOTTE - FunkytownAIDAN LEROUX, ROB HEPBURN - Edwin Boyd: Citizen GangsterJAMES MCATEER - A Dangerous MethodPATRICE VERMETTE - Café de FloreEMELIA WEAVIND - The Bang Bang Club

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

MIROSLAW BASZAK, C.S.C. - The Bang Bang ClubPIERRE COTTEREAU - Café de FloreJON JOFFIN - Daydream NationJEAN-FRANÇOIS LORD - Snow & AshesRONALD PLANTE - Monsieur Lazhar

ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN

DENISE CRONENBERG - A Dangerous MethodFARNAZ KHAKI-SADIGH - Afghan LukeGINETTE MAGNY, EMMANUELLE YOUCHNOVSKI - Café de FloreHEATHER NEALE - KeyholeMARIE-CHANTALE VAILLANCOURT - Funkytown

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTION

DAVID CRONENBERG - A Dangerous MethodSTEVEN SILVER - The Bang Bang ClubJEAN-MARC VALLÉE - Café de FlorePHILIPPE FALARDEAU - Monsieur LazharLARYSA KONDRACKI - The Whistleblower

ACHIEVEMENT IN EDITING

JEAN-FRANÇOIS BERGERON - The Year Dolly Parton Was My MomMICHAEL CZARNECKI - In DarknessPATRICK DEMERS - JalouxSTÉPHANE LAFLEUR - Monsieur LazharRONALD SANDERS, C.C.E. A.C.E. - A Dangerous Method

ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKE-UP

CHRISTIANE FATTORI, FRÉDÉRIC MARIN - Café de FloreAMBER MAKAR - Amazon FallsVIRGINIE PARÉ - BumRushTAMMY LOU PATE - Snow & AshesLESLIE ANN SEBERT, DAVID R. BEECROFT - Take This Waltz

ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC - ORIGINAL SCORE

RAMACHANDRA BORCAR - JalouxMYCHA
MARTIN LÉON - Monsieur LazharPHILIP MILLER - The Bang Bang ClubHOWARD SHORE - A Dangerous Method

ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC - ORIGINAL SONG

JAY BRANNAN - Cloudburst - My Love My LoveCAROLE FACAL - Starbuck - Quelque partMALAJUBE - Good Neighbours - Oeil pour OeilSTEVEN PAGE - French Immersion - A Different Sort of SolitudeJEAN ROBITAILLE, STEVE GALLUCCIO - Funkytown - Waiting for your Touch

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

FELLAG - Monsieur LazharGARRET DILLAHUNT - Oliver ShermanMICHAEL FASSBENDER - A Dangerous MethodPATRICK HUARD - StarbuckSCOTT SPEEDMAN - Edwin Boyd: Citizen Gangster

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

ANTOINE BERTRAND - StarbuckKEVIN DURAND - Edwin Boyd: Citizen GangsterMARIN GERRIER - Café de FloreTAYLOR KITSCH - The Bang Bang ClubVIGGO MORTENSEN - A Dangerous Method

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

CATHERINE DE LÉAN - Nuit #1PASCALE MONTPETIT - The Girl in the White CoatVANESSA PARADIS - Café de FloreRACHEL WEISZ - The WhistleblowerMICHELLE WILLIAMS - Take This Waltz

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

ROXANA CONDURACHE - The WhistleblowerHÉLÈNE FLORENT - Café de FloreJULIE LEBRETON - StarbuckSOPHIE NÉLISSE - Monsieur LazharCHARLOTTE SULLIVAN - Edwin Boyd: Citizen Gangster

ACHIEVEMENT IN OVERALL SOUND

STÉPHANE BERGERON, YANN CLEARY, LISE WEDLOCK - Marécages / WetlandsPIERRE BERTRAND, SHAUN NICHOLAS GALLAGHER, BERNARD GARIÉPY STROBL - Monsieur LazharJEAN MINONDO, JOCELYN CARON, GAVIN FERNANDES, LOUIS GIGNAC - Café de FloreLOU SOLAKOFSKI, STEPHAN CARRIER, KIRK LYNDS - The Bang Bang ClubOREST SUSHKO, CHRISTIAN COOKE - A Dangerous Method

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING

FRED BRENNAN, JAMES BASTABLE, GABE KNOX, JOHN SIEVERT - You Are HereCLAUDE BEAUGRAND, OLIVIER CALVERT, NATALIE FLEURANT, FRANCINE POIRIER - Marécages / WetlandsWAYNE GRIFFIN, ROB BERTOLA, TONY CURRIE, ANDY MALCOLM, MICHAEL O’FARRELL - A Dangerous MethodMARTIN PINSONNAULT, BLAISE BLANCHIER, SIMON MEILLEUR, MIREILLE MORIN, LUC RAYMOND - Café de FloreJEREMY MACLAVERTY, DANIEL PELLERIN, GEOFF RAFFAN, JAN RUDY, JOHN SIEVERT, JAMES MARK STEWART - In Darkness

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

ANNE ÉMOND - Nuit #1EILIS KIRWAN, LARYSA KONDRACKI - The WhistleblowerKEN SCOTT, MARTIN PETIT - StarbuckJEAN-MARC VALLÉE - Café de FloreRYAN WARD, MATTHEW HEITI - Son of the Sunshine

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY / MEILLEURE ADAPTATION

PHILIPPE FALARDEAU - Monsieur LazharRYAN REDFORD - Oliver ShermanDAVID SHAMOON - In DarknessSTEVEN SILVER - The Bang Bang Club

ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECTS

DENNIS BERARDI, MATHEW BORNETT, MIKE BORRETT, WILSON CAMERON, OVI CINAZIN, JASON EDWARDH, OLIVER HEARSEY, JIM PRICE, MILAN SCHERE, WOLCIECH ZIELINSKI - A Dangerous MethodÉVE BRUNET, JACQUES LÉVESQUE, PHILIPPE ROBERGE - Snow & AshesMARC CÔTÉ, STÉPHANIE BROUSSAUD, GARY CHUNTZ, VINCENT DUDOUET, CYNTHIA MOUROU, ERIC NORMANDIN, MARTIN PENSA, LUC SANFAÇON, SYLVAIN THÉROUX, NATHALIE TREMBLAY - Café de FloreGEOFFROY LAUZON – BumRushTOM TURNBULL, IAN BRITTON, ROBERT CROWTHER, TONY CYBULSKI - Edwin Boyd: Citizen Gangster

BEST FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY

BEAUTY DAY - Jay Cheel, Kristina McLaughlin, Kevin McMahon, Roman PizzacallaFAMILY PORTRAIT IN BLACK AND WHITE - Julia Ivanova, Boris IvanovTHE GUANTANAMO TRAP - Thomas Wallner, Amit Breuer, Patrick CroweLA NUIT, ELLES DANSENT / AT NIGHT, THEY DANCE - Isabelle Lavigne, Stéphane Thibault, Lucie LambertWIEBO’S WAR - David York, Nick Hector, C.C.E., Bryn Hughes, Bonnie Thompson

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY

75 WATTS - John CullenDERAILMENTS - Chelsea McMullanSIRMILIK - Zacharias Kunuk, Joel McConvey, Kristina McLaughlin, Kevin McMahon, Michael McMahon, Geoff Morrison, Ryan J. Noth

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT DRAMA

DOUBLES WITH SLIGHT PEPPER - Ian HarnarineHOPE - Pedro Pires, Phoebe Greenberg, Penny MancusoORA - René Chénier, Philippe BaylaucqLA RONDE - Élaine Hébert, Sophie Goyette

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

CHOKE - Michelle LatimerLA CITÉ ENTRE LES MURS / INNER CITY - Alain FournierMUYBRIDGE’S STRINGS - Koji Yamamura, Michael Fukushima, Shuzo John Shiota, Keisuke TsuchihashiROMANCE - Georges Schwizgebel, René Chénier, Marc BertrandWILD LIFE - Amanda Forbis, Wendy Tilby, Marcy Page, Bonnie Thompson

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