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Kuessipan

Directed by Myriam Verreault
Canada, 2019 (fiction, 117 minutes, colour, French / Innu-aimun)
Also known as "a tebe je red", "A világ mögött", "La fille au ventre rond"
Kuessipan
Image: © Filmoption International

Film Description [in French] :
"Deux amies inséparables grandissent dans une communauté innue. Mikuan vit au sein d'une famille aimante, tandis que Shaniss recolle les morceaux d'une enfance bafouée. Enfants, elles se promettent de toujours rester ensemble, coûte que coûte. Mais à l'aube de leurs 17 ans, leur amitié se craquelle lorsque Mikuan s'amourache d'un Blanc et se met à rêver de sortir de cette réserve trop petite pour ses ambitions."
-- Québec Cinéma (source)

Film Description:
"Adapted from Naomi Fontaine's critically acclaimed novel of the same name, Kuessipan follows two girls growing up as best friends in a Quebec Innu community. While Mikuan (Sharon Fontaine-Ishpatao) has a loving family and is destined for a promising life outside of her hometown, Shaniss (Yamie Grégoire) is picking up the pieces of her shattered childhood. As children, they promised each other they'd stick together no matter what. But as they grow older, issues of race and class boil to the surface and Shaniss begins to feel abandoned when Mikuan falls for a white boy and starts to dream of a life beyond the one they know. [...]"
-- Ravi Srinivasan (source)


Film Credits (partial):
Written by: Myriam Verreault, Naomi Fontaine
Based on: Kuessipan, a novel by Naomi Fontaine
Produced by: Félize Frappier, Sylvie Lacoste, Réginald Vollant
Principal Cast: Sharon Fontaine-Ishpatao, Yamie Grégoire, Étienne Galloy, Cédrick Ambroise, Caroline Vachon, Mike Innu Papu McKenzie, Douglas Grégoire, Brigitte Poupart
Cinematography: Nicolas Canniccioni
Film Editing: Amélie Labrèche, Myriam Verreault, Sophie Leblond
Music: Louis-Jean Cormier
Production Company: Max Films Media
(sources)

Notes about Kuessipan

(sources)

Quote about Kuessipan

"Kuessipan definitely brought me back to my time growing up in my own First Nations community. Overall I found the film to be an endearing take on what it can be like for youth growing up on 'the rez'. It also skips all of the tired Indigenous stereotypes while still being able to incorporate Indigenous cultural and spiritual beliefs."
-- Erica Commanda (source)

Bibliography for Kuessipan

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

Web Sites about Kuessipan


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