The Time Thief
2021 Canadian film by Francis Leclerc
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The Time Thief (French: L'Arracheuse de temps) is a 2021 Canadian period drama and fantasy film directed by Francis Leclerc, based on the 2009 story by Fred Pellerin of the same name. It stars Jade Charbonneau, Marc Messier, Céline Bonnier, Guillaume Cyr, Émile Proulx-Cloutier, Marie-Ève Beauregard, Pier-Luc Funk, Sonia Cordeau, and Geneviève Schmidt. The film was theatrically released by Les Films Séville on November 19, 2021.
by Fred Pellerin
| The Time Thief | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| French | L'Arracheuse de temps |
| Directed by | Francis Leclerc |
| Screenplay by | Fred Pellerin |
| Based on | L'Arracheuse de temps by Fred Pellerin |
| Produced by | Antonello Cozzolino |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Steve Asselin |
| Edited by | Isabelle Malenfant |
| Music by |
|
Production company | Attraction Images |
| Distributed by | Les Films Séville |
Release date |
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| Country | Canada |
| Language | French |
| Budget | > $7 million[2] |
| Box office | $894,308[3] |
Premise
An illness-worn grandmother tries to convince her 11-year-old grandson that death does not exist. She tells him about the adventures of her youth in Saint-Élie-de-Caxton, in 1927, when she had tried to eliminate death in the village.[4]
Cast
- Jade Charbonneau as a young Bernadette[5][6][7]
- Michèle Deslauriers as an older Bernadette[8][7]
- Marc Messier as Méo, a barber[5][6][7]
- Céline Bonnier as La Stroop[5][6][7]
- Guillaume Cyr as Riopel, a blacksmith, and father of Lurette[8][7]
- Émile Proulx-Cloutier as Toussaint Brodeur, a merchant and Jeannette's husband[9][6][7]
- Marie-Ève Beauregard as Lurette, Riopel's daughter[8][7]
- Pier-Luc Funk[5][6]
- Sonia Cordeau as Jeannette, Brodeur's wife[10][7]
- Geneviève Schmidt as Madame Gélinas[5][7]
Production
Development
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Fred Pellerin wrote the story L'Arracheuse de temps in 2007 shortly after the death of his father.[11] On March 30, 2016, it was announced that a feature film adaptation of the story had been in the works from the production company Attraction Images.[12] While working on the 2017 film Barefoot at Dawn with director Francis Leclerc, Pellerin wrote part of the initial screenplay for the film.[13] On January 18, 2019, Leclerc revealed that he would direct the film, from a now-completed screenplay written by Pellerin.[14] On April 8, 2019, the film's screenplay was submitted to SODEC, who announced on December 16, 2019, that they would be funding the film.[15][16]
Filming
Filming for The Time Thief was divided into two filming blocks; the first began on October 13, 2020, in Saint-Armand, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec.[2][17] Filming for the first block, which was mainly focused on shooting exterior scenes, continued in areas around the municipality of Montérégie, and concluded on October 30, 2020.[18][19] Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fred Pellerin was not allowed to visit the film's set until October 15, 2020.[20] The second filming block took place in April 2021 in areas around Montreal, with the intentions of shooting the film's interior scenes in a studio.[4][21]
Release
Accolades
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Screen Awards | 2022 | Best Adapted Screenplay | Fred Pellerin | Nominated | [22] |
| Best Art Direction/Production Design | Arnaud Brisebois, Jean Babin, Ève Turcotte | Won | |||
| Best Costume Design | Josée Castonguay | Nominated | |||
| Best Hair | Janie Otis | Nominated | |||
| Best Visual Effects | Alain Lachance, Loïc Laurelut, Eric Clément, Marie-Claude Lafontaine | Nominated | |||
| Prix Iris | 2022 | Best Supporting Actor | Guillaume Cyr | Nominated | [23] |
| Best Supporting Actress | Céline Bonnier | Nominated | |||
| Best Screenplay | Fred Pellerin | Nominated | |||
| Best Art Direction | Arnaud Brisebois, Jean Babin, Ève Turcotte | Won | [24] | ||
| Best Costume Design | Josée Castonguay | Nominated | [23] | ||
| Best Cinematography | Steve Asselin | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Music | Éloi Painchaud, Fred Pellerin | Nominated | |||
| Best Sound | Olivier Calvert, Yann Cleary, Luc Boudrias | Nominated | |||
| Best Hairstyling | Janie Otis | Nominated | |||
| Best Makeup | Adriana Verbert, Bruno Gatien | Won | [24] | ||
| Best Visual Effects | Alain Lachance, Loïc Laurelut, Éric Clément, Marie-Claude Lafontaine | Won | |||
| Best Casting | Isabelle Thez Axelrad, Brigitte Viau | Nominated | [23] | ||
| Public Prize | Antonello Cozzolino, Francis Leclerc, Fred Pellerin | Nominated |