MONTREAL – Montreal-born filmmaker Kim Nguyen’s child-soldier drama “Rebelle” (“War Witch”) will be Canada’s entry in this year’s Oscar race.
Telefilm Canada says it’s confident the harrowing French-language feature “will win over the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences” in the competition for best foreign-language film.
“Rebelle” stars newcomer Rachel Mwanza as a teen who is forced to fight with, and become a sex slave for, a rebel commander in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The 15-year-old, who used to live on the streets in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa, has won best-actress trophies at the 2012 Tribeca and Berlin film festivals for the role.
Canada is one of 65 countries that will submit films in the foreign-language category for consideration before a long list is announced by the academy. Five finalists will ultimately be in the running when Oscar nominations come out Jan. 10.
The Academy Awards have been kind to Quebec films in recent years. At this year’s Oscars, Philippe Falardeau’s tender tale “Monsieur Lazhar” was a final nominee, but was edged out by Iran’s “A Separation.”
The previous year, Denis Villeneuve’s “Incendies” made the ultimate list of finalists, but was beaten by Denmark’s “In a Better World.”
Both of those films were from the Quebec producing team of Luc Dery and Kim McCraw.
The last time a Canuck film won the category was in 2004 for Denys Arcand’s “The Barbarian Invasions.”
The 85th Academy Awards will be handed out on Feb. 24.
In a statement, Nguyen said he was touched by the announcement.
“After 10 years in development and a production marked by many adventures that have provided me with everlasting memories of the Congo and its people, this recognition warms my heart,” he said.
“It was truly a team effort and this recognition is sincerely shared with everyone who worked on this film, from the writing, to the creation and production, as well as with all our financial partners who believed in us despite the risks.”
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