October 11, 2022 – Montreal – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

The NFB returns to the Festival du cinéma international en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (FCIAT) this year with two works: the documentary feature En attendant Raif (Waiting for Raif) by Luc Côté and Patricio Henriquez, co-produced with Macumba Média and having its world premiere at the festival, and the animated documentary series Caresses magiques (Magical Caresses) by Lori Malépart-Traversy. The 41st FCIAT takes place in Rouyn-Noranda from October 29 to November 3, 2022.

Quick Facts

En attendant Raif (Waiting for Raif) by Patricio Henriquez and Luc Côté (150 min) – WORLD PREMIERE
Co-produced by Luc Côté and Patricio Henriquez for Macumba Média and Colette Loumède for the NFB’s Quebec, Canadian Francophonie and Acadian Documentary Studio
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/waiting-for-raif
Festival screening: 7 p.m., Sunday, October 30, at the Théâtre du cuivre

• Filmed over a period of eight years, the documentary tells the tragic tale of a family torn apart by the Saudi monarchy’s intransigence, as it follows Ensaf Haidar’s inspiring battle to free her husband, prisoner of conscience Raif Badawi. The film offers a moving look at the personal and political implications of the affair, providing an inside view of the challenges faced by a young refugee mother of three, both in her adopted home of Quebec and on the global stage.
• Born and raised in Chile, Patricio Henriquez moved to Montreal following the overthrow of the Allende government. After creating a number of news reports for Quebec television, in 1996 he co-founded the production house Macumba International, through which he’s directed a dozen political and social documentaries, including Under the Hood: A Voyage into the World of Torture and Uyghurs: Prisoners of the Absurd. These films have won more than 70 awards around the world. En attendant Raif (Waiting for Raif) is the second film he’s co-directed with Luc Côté.
• Since age 14, Luc Côté has been directing and producing social-issue documentaries that capture the diversity of human experience. A co-founder of Adobe Productions, he’s won many awards for his work over the years, including the IDFA Special Jury Prize for his first collaboration with Patricio Henriquez, You Don’t Like the Truth: 4 Days Inside Guantanamo.

Caresses magiques (Magical Caresses) by Lori Malépart-Traversy (5 × 4 min)
Produced by Julie Roy and Christine Noël for the NFB’s French Program Animation Studio
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/magical-caresses
Screening: 7 p.m., Thursday, October 27, at the FCIAT’s Espace court

• The animated documentary series Caresses magiques (Magical Caresses), winner of the Fonds Bell prize at the FCIAT, comprises five shorts that take a playful and uninhibited look at solo sexuality. Several of the films have been selected by national and international festivals, from Annecy to Ottawa, and one of them won an award at the 2022 Sommets du cinéma d’animation in Montreal.
• Born in Montreal in 1991, animation filmmaker Lori Malépart-Traversy studied visual arts and animation at Concordia University. Her graduation film, Le clitoris, was an international hit both on the festival circuit and online. With Caresses magiques (Magical Caresses), she continues her exploration of the wide-ranging topic of female sexuality.

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Media Relations

For En attendant Raif (Waiting for Raif)
Judith Dubeau
Publicist
IXION Communications for the NFB
C.:514 495-8176
judith.dubeau@ixioncommunications.com

For Caresses magiques (Magical Caresses)
Nadine Viau
NFB Publicist
C.: 514-458-9745 | n.viau@nfb.ca

Lily Robert
Director, Communications and Public Affairs, NFB
C.: 514-296-8261
l.robert@nfb.ca

French version here | Version française ici.