Berlinale Bloggers 2023
The difficulties of becoming an adult

One film in particular caught the eye of the students of Collège Maisonneuve at the Berlinale: It is the short film "Gaby les collines" by Zoé Pelchat, which had its world premiere at the Berlinale.

By Thalia Bissonnette and Alessia Tomuleasa-Trelles

We enjoyed all the films during our stay, but as students from Montréal, one short film particularly excited us. It is the film Gaby les collines by Zoé Pelchat, a Montréal director with a unique and original aesthetic.

The film tells the story of Gaby, who returns after a year to the island where her father lives. There she is confronted with quite disturbing looks, mainly from men. The viewers can follow the development of the protagonist's identity and self-confidence. In other words, Gaby's path leads her to independence and adulthood. The topics dealt with in the short film appeal primarily to younger people, but the film can also arouse the curiosity of older generations. In Gaby les Collines, the themes of puberty and sexuality are addressed.

a transformation

It shows how a girl's body and appearance can affect other people's behavior. Although for most people puberty and the changes that come with it were a long time ago, it is easy to identify with the sexualization of Gaby's body. Regardless of our age, we can either identify with these issues or feel sympathy for the character.
The film offers a wide variety of personalities. For example, the two parental figures of Gaby: a somewhat anxious and protective father and a stepmother who encourages Gaby in her explorations. Two different types of parents that are often found combined in one family. Despite the film's short running time of about 20 minutes, a transformation is evident in our protagonist. She changes from an insecure, rather shy person to a self-confident person who knows exactly what she wants. Something that struck and intrigued us during the short film was the frequent return of the seagull. We wondered what it meant and came to the conclusion that it represents Gaby's freedom and new independence, especially the freedom of her body. The use of this symbol is a stroke of genius by Zoé Pelchat.

The color aesthetics also appealed to us, with blue and red representing the passion that Gaby inspires. Beyond that, it's impossible to forget the beautiful island setting of the Magdalen Islands that reminds us of home. We particularly liked this short film for technical reasons, but also for personal ones. It is obvious that the director is looking for a visually interesting approach in terms of the chosen settings, be it through the backdrops or the positions of the characters, but also through the repetitive and symbolic colors. Also the authentic acting of the actors made us forget that it was a fiction. We were proud of this achievement: it is rare to see projects from Canada, especially from Québec, in the film industry in general and especially at major festivals like the Berlinale. It is heartwarming to see a film from Québec on the Berlin screens, showing the art form we study every day and deserves to be shown all over the world!