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World premiere of Christine Chevarie-Lessard’s NFB documentary O Fear, O Night at Toronto’s Rendezvous with Madness Film Festival. Still Night, Burning House by Carol Nguyen also featured.

PRESS RELEASE
02/10/2026

October 2, 2026 – Toronto – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

Two powerful National Film Board of Canada (NFB) feature documentaries will offer deeply personal perspectives on mental health issues at the Rendezvous with Madness Film Festival in Toronto.

Taking place October 22 to November 1, the festival will host the world premiere of O Fear, O Night, filmmaker Christine Chevarie-Lessard’s exploration of her own anxiety, with the director and producer Pierre-Mathieu Fortin in attendance. Fresh from its world premiere at TIFF, Still Night, Burning House (Metafilms/NFB/Portage Films) follows director Carol Nguyen’s family on a journey through intergenerational trauma and loss.

Quick facts 

O Fear, O Night (La peur, la nuit) by Christine Chevarie-Lessard (70 min)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/o-fear-o-night

  • At a time when everyone is talking about anxiety, Christine Chevarie-Lessard tries to understand the ever-present fear inside her by meeting with an Anxiety Anonymous group, a singing scientist, a sociologist who wants to be a bullfrog, a philosopher who fears for democracy, and some imaginary figures for good measure. In a story that blends introspection, emotion and humour, fear is shown to be at times dangerous, at times transformative, but always powerful and universal.
  • Montreal director and writer Christine Chevarie-Lessard’s first feature-length documentary, A Delicate Balance, premiered at RIDM in 2018, winning the Women Inmate Jury Award at the festival and earning a Gémeaux nomination. She’s also directed the short films Linda Rabin: Everything Is Moving, The Vigiland Quand tout est possible, as well as several documentaries for television or radio that have received nominations and awards.  

Still Night, Burning House by Carol Nguyen (76 min; Metafilms/NFB/Portage Films)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/still-night-burning-house

  • In her deeply personal debut feature, Carol Nguyen charts her Toronto family’s first reunion since her uncle’s mysterious death. Travelling together to Vietnam, the family embarks on a revelatory—and at times uncanny—journey through intergenerational trauma and many-layered loss. With care and probing curiosity, Nguyen guides her loved ones as they navigate unsealed medical records and a decades-long silence, ultimately leading them back to each other. A metaphysical poem for complex mourning, Still Night, Burning House shows how storytelling can transform grief into collective healing.
  • Carol Nguyen is a Montreal-based, Vietnamese-Canadian filmmaker whose films explore themes of cultural identity, family and silence. Still Night, Burning House is the follow-up and companion to her 2019 short No Crying at the Dinner Table, which was named to Canada’s Top Ten and presented at VIFF 2019. 

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Press release – PDF here.

Version française ici.

Media Relations

  • About the NFB

    Founded in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is a one-of-a-kind producer, co-producer and distributor of engaging, relevant and innovative documentary and animated films. As a talent incubator, it is one of the world’s leading creative centres. The NFB has enabled Canadians to tell and hear each other’s stories for over eight decades, and its films are a reliable and accessible educational resource. The NFB is also recognized around the world for its expertise in preservation and conservation, and for its rich and vibrant collection of works, which form a pillar of Canada’s cultural heritage. To date, the NFB has produced more than 14,000 works, 7,000 of which can be streamed free of charge at nfb.ca. The NFB and its productions and co-productions have earned over 7,000 awards, including 12 Oscars and an Honorary Academy Award for overall excellence in cinema.