REGARD has long been rooted in the Saguenay region. Now more than ever, this competition invites us to gather and reaffirm our love for the regions — for the places that nourish imagination and shape singular voices. These filmmakers choose to put down roots and create from where they stand, even as the industry continues to gravitate toward major urban centres. In Au Cœur du Remous, we are drawn into the intimate space between a daughter and her father, where long-standing tensions slowly give way to a reparative vulnerability grounded in love. Nous sans toi tells the touching story of a father attempting to reconnect with his son; through a period of fragility emerge precious moments of grace. In Pulsions harmonieuses, musical creation becomes inseparable from emotion, each note echoing the rhythms of the heart. In Tant que nous sommes immortelles, Lisa chooses to confront the knots of a relationship without allowing herself to be diminished. In Un froid mordant, an icy distance settles between Catherine and Mathieu. Will their relationship withstand this winter retreat? Finally, with sharp absurdity, L’Estropié casts a playful yet biting eye on romance and deception. From the Eastern Townships to the Lower St. Lawrence, via Lac-Saint-Jean, Centre-du-Québec, and Quebec City, these stories are deeply rooted in their territories while resonating far beyond them. Grounded, sensitive, and vibrant, they remind us that regional stories are, above all, universal ones.

* Screened as part of a double feature with the Indigenous Perspectives program