Montreal's 1st Critics' Week closed with a 98% occupancy rate

Photo: pixelleX

On Sunday, January 19, Montreal's 1^st Critics' Week came to a close with the screening of the double bill "Where Is My Friend’s House?" at the Cinémathèque québécoise, featuring Matthew Rankin's Universal Language (Chantal Akerman Audience Award at the 2024 Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes) and the North American Premiere of Abdolreza Kahani's A Shrine.

This final screening in front of a packed house brought to a close a first edition that exceeded all the expectations of the festival team. With an occupancy rate of 98% across the festival's 19 films the event also brought together over 25 panelists for 7 discussions, in addition to selling out the weekly passports reserved for the public.

As on other festival evenings, the closing-night screening was followed by a conversation, this time with Matthew Rankin, Abdolreza Kahani and Nabil Mohamad (columnist for Liberté magazine) moderated by Mathieu Li-Goyette (General Manager of Montreal Critics’ Week, film critic for Panorama-cinéma).

The day before, at Cinéma Moderne, Justine Smith (member of the programming committee, film critic for Cult MTL) hosted a discussion following the Quebec Premiere of Spiders Web with Ben and Oliver Roberts, co-directors of the film (with Frank "Spider" Dunsten), as well as Brian M. Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky (directors of A Man Imagined, which opened the festival). The discussion was followed by a closing party featuring DJ Aqua Marina.

On Friday evening, the festival was proud to welcome Ralitsa Doncheva (director of Let the Red Moon Burn) as well as Carson Lund (director and co-writer of Eephus, 2024 Director’s Fortnight) along with his co-writer Michael Basta. The panel was rounded out by Helen Faradji (Programming Director at FCVQ, film critic for Radio-Canada) and Michel Nareau (author and columnist for Liberté magazine), and moderated by Mélopée B. Montminy (programming committee member, film critic for 24 images).

The first two sold-out screenings at the Cinémathèque québécoise were also attended by filmmakers Brian M. Cassidy, Melanie Shatzky, Winston DeGiobbi, Matias Meyer and Roberto Tarazona.

Recordings of the panels, by filmmakers Renaud Després-Larose and Ana Tapia Rousiouk (The Dream and the Radio), will be made available on YouTube in the coming weeks.

An abridged version of the festival will take place in April at Collège de Maisonneuve, with panels formed by students from the film program.

Finally, the 2^nd Montreal Critics’ Week will take place from January 12 to 18, 2026.

An initiative of the online magazine Panorama-cinéma, the 1^st Montreal Critics’ Week inaugurates an annual event aimed at creating a space for discovery and reflection on cinema. This non-competitive festival showcases new talent by drawing on the thematic, political and formal ramifications of the works chosen, through double or triple bills.

Programming for the 1^st Critics’ Week was put together by a committee made up of Ariel Esteban Cayer, Mathieu Li-Goyette and Olivier Thibodeau (Panorama-cinéma) as well as Mélopée B. Montminy (24 images) and Justine Smith (Cult MTL).

Partners

Panorama-cinéma and Montreal Critics’ Week would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Conseil des arts de Montréal, as well as that of our presenting partners, Cinéma Moderne and Cinémathèque québécoise. The festival would also like to thank its associate partners: the Association québécoise des critiques de cinéma (AQCC), the Goethe-Institut Montréal, MUBI Canada, the Berlin Critics' Week (Woche der Kritik), the Collège de Maisonneuve and Plein(s) Écran(s), as well as its presentation partners: Tënk Canada, followed by the magazines 24 images, Liberté and Spirale.

The 2^nd Montreal Critics’ Week runs from January 12 to 18, 2026.

Information: www.semainedelacritique.ca 

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