Denis Villeneuve, David Cronenberg, Jean-Marc Vallée, Atom Egoyan… These big names in cinema have two things in common: they’re Canadian and they’ve all cut their teeth in short films. The second largest country in the world, stretching from one ocean to the other, Canada is nevertheless often relegated to the humble status of the United States’ first cousin. But the country is a ferment of cultures and Culture, with a wealth of diverse communities (anglophone, Québec, native) and an extremely rich cinematic heritage.

In 2019, to celebrate the country’s 150^th anniversary, the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival will give Canada a proper toast, from Vancouver to Montreal, with a retrospective of short films spanning the past twenty years – never-before-seen films as well as the first efforts of some of today’s great filmmakers. So don your tuque, grab a two-four, don’t be a hoser (and make sure to study your Québécois expressions): this coming February you’ll fall in love with Canada, for sure!