THE MEETING BETWEEN CREATORS AND AUDIENCES: THE HEART OF THE FFKFF
The Knowlton Film Festival is, above all, a welcoming space for meaningful encounters between audiences and film professionals. Directors, screenwriters, and actors are invited to present their work and engage directly with festival-goers.
Discussions, masterclasses, and Q&A sessions led by national and international guests enrich the screenings and foster a genuine dialogue between creators and audiences.
2026 Juries
2026 JURY - FICTION
A major filmmaker in the Quebec film landscape, Francis Leclerc has directed six feature films, including Mémoires affectives, Pieds nus dans l’aube, and Le Plongeur. His work is distinguished by evocative direction and a profound sense of storytelling.
President of La Nouvelle Dimension in Florac, Pascale Parouty works at the crossroads of cinema, visual education, and local territories. She notably supports screenings, artist residencies, and the VUES du Québec festival.
A filmmaker attentive to people and everyday life, François Péloquin crafts powerful images imbued with truth. His journey across cinema, music videos, and theatre fuels a sensitive and moving approach to storytelling.
A founding figure of independent Quebec cinema, Claude Chamberlan co-founded the Festival du nouveau cinéma and contributed to the rise of iconic venues. For nearly sixty years, he has championed bold, world‑minded filmmaking.
Directrice des Correspondances d’Eastman, Elyzabeth Walling œuvre depuis plus de vingt ans au rayonnement de la littérature et du cinéma. Comédienne, productrice et stratège, elle porte sur les œuvres un regard sensible et profondément humain.
2026 JURY - DOCUMENTARY
Diane Magnoux is the Programming Director of the CINEMANIA Festival in Montréal. With experience at Cannes, Wild Bunch, UGC, and Pathé Gaumont, she joined CINEMANIA in 2021.
Sylvie Van Brabant has been running Productions du Rapide-Blanc since 1984, where she produces and directs socially and environmentally engaged documentaries. A filmmaker for 30 years (Planetary Visionaries, 2009), she is also an active advocate for auteur documentary filmmaking in Québec.
Steve Patry is a documentary filmmaker who gives a voice to the marginalized, with films such as De prisons en prisons, Waseskun, and Des chats sauvages, recipients of several nominations at Quebec and Canadian film awards.
Thomas Corriveau is a visual artist and filmmaker with over 40 years of experience in drawing, painting, and animation, exhibited in Canada and abroad. An independent director since 2010, his animated films have been showcased at numerous international festivals.
Nicole Giguère is a Quebecois director, co-founder of Vidéo Femmes, known for her documentaries on women's issues and social concerns. Winner of the Gémeaux Award for Best Documentary (1996) and the Gémeaux Artisans Award (2025).
2026 JURY - SHORT FILM
Christine Doyon is a content producer, screenwriter, and director. After several years working in documentary film, she is now developing fiction and children’s film projects. She co-wrote the feature film *My Stepmother Is a Witch* and directed the short films […]
Rachel Graton, a graduate of the National Theater School of Canada, is an actress, writer, and director known for the breadth and diversity of her projects. Since 2020, she has starred in the crime series *Portrait-robot*, and has captivated audiences […]
Rémi Fréchette is a director and screenwriter who specializes in genre films. A graduate of Concordia University, he developed his career in part through the Kino movement. His most notable projects include *Les Jaunes* (2013), *Montréal Dead End* (2018), *Première […]
VTIFF Executive Director since June 2023. Steve was Executive Artistic Director of Circus Smirkus, out of Greensboro, VT. Before this, he served for a decade as the Artistic Director of both the Flynn Center and the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival […]
Coming Soon
SHORT AND FEATURE FILM COMPETITION (Claire Léger Awards)
Since 2022, the Festival has included a competitive short film section. Each year, around fifteen works are selected and entered into competition for the Claire-Léger Awards, totalling $3,500.
Since 2023, this section has been complemented by two additional grants of $1,000 each, awarded to one narrative feature film and one documentary feature film.
These awards are presented by juries made up of film professionals from Quebec, Canada, and abroad. All competition films are screened at Théâtre Lac-Brome, a 161-seat venue equipped for digital projection.
Values
What guides us
Inclusivity
Creating an open, welcoming, and inclusive space for the entire film community and the Eastern Townships.
The Festival presents films in both official languages, with subtitles for original versions. This bilingual identity is also reflected in the Festival’s signature integrated into its logo: Festival du film de Knowlton Film Festival (FFKFF).
Accessibility
Offering free outdoor screenings, maintaining affordable ticket pricing, and presenting free or low-cost musical events to broaden access to the Festival. The goal is to reach a diverse audience and encourage the widest possible participation.
Artistic quality
Supporting and promoting high-quality cinematic works. The Festival selects striking, distinctive, and underexposed films. It showcases international works rarely presented in Quebec, alongside Canadian and Quebec auteur cinema that remains less accessible outside major urban centres.
Between local and international cinema
The Festival program is built around a carefully curated selection of competition films, featuring notable works from the year that are distinctive and often under-distributed. Nearly half of the films come from international cinema, some presented as Quebec or Canadian premieres. This contributes to bringing rarely screened works to regional audiences, alongside Quebec and Canadian auteur films that have limited visibility outside major cities.
At the same time, the Festival works to circulate local works internationally, within its capacity. Over the past three editions, international programmers have travelled to Knowlton to serve as jury members and discover the films in competition. Guests have included Orly Yadin, Claudia Puig, Joe Cultrera, Guillaume Sapin, and Mike Perreault. Since 2023, the Festival has also welcomed international artists. filmmakers and actors. Their presence fosters exchange between Quebec creators and international guests, and helps establish a space for dialogue between artists from here and abroad, as well as between works and audiences.
This year again, notably with the support of the Fonds franco-québécois pour la coopération décentralisée, the Festival will welcome several international partners, including programmers and representatives from festivals in the Occitanie region of France, as well as from the Maine International Film Festival.
A summer festival rooted in its community
Each year, at the end of August, in one of Quebec’s most beautiful villages, the Festival invites audiences to experience cinema differently. Alongside the competition screenings at Théâtre Lac-Brome, a free, friendly, and nomadic program unfolds outdoors. on the grass, by the water, or in cafés, vineyards, galleries, bars, and parks across the region. This territorial presence extends through the OFF Festival, a series of summer events. screenings, workshops, and musical evenings. taking place throughout the season.
The Festival also develops collaborations with local cultural organizations: special screenings with the Knowlton Players, projects with the Sherbrooke Youth Symphony Orchestra, and cinema-and-music events at Le Thirsty Boot bar. all opportunities where cinema, music, performing arts, and community come together.
Supported by an engaged community and loyal partners, the Knowlton Film Festival continues in 2026 to grow its presence in the Eastern Townships while expanding its reach.
FILM EDUCATION PROGRAM
Since 2023, the FFKFF has offered a film education program designed to help audiences see cinema differently. to understand it more deeply, and to use it as a lens for reflecting on the world. Workshops, meetings, and projects combining music and cinema bring together audiences of all ages around moving images.
FILM EDUCATION PROGRAM
Since 2023, the FFKFF has offered a film education program designed to help audiences see cinema differently. to understand it more deeply, and to use it as a lens for reflecting on the world. Workshops, meetings, and projects combining music and cinema bring together audiences of all ages around moving images.
Cinema day camp — Launched in 2025 in collaboration with the Town of Lac-Brome, this program offers young participants an immersive experience in filmmaking. from writing to editing, all the way through to the creation of a short film. The initiative will return in 2026.
Cinema Dinner Encounters and Film School — Open discussions with guests from the film industry, extended in 2026 through the creation of a Film School in collaboration with Bishop’s University. Eight students will take a credited course built around the FFKFF programming, combining screenings, workshops, and lectures led by guest filmmakers, under the supervision of Professor Gregory Brophy (Department of English Literature, Bishop’s University).
Cine-Concert — A meeting between silent cinema and live music that has become a must-see event. In 2025, works by Georges Méliès and Segundo de Chomón were accompanied live by the Sherbrooke Youth Symphony Orchestra. A new creation is currently in development for 2026.
Équipe
Anne-Marie Baribeau
Graphic Designer