Entertainment

Quebecois filmmaker gets call from Brad Pitt's production company

A young Quebecois filmmaker who was the toast of the Cannes Directors' Fortnight side event has apparently grabbed the attention of Brad Pitt. Xavier Dolan, who just turned 20, nabbed three trophies at Directors' Fortnight for his first film, J'ai tué ma mère ( I Killed My Mother).

A young Quebecois filmmaker who was the toast of the Cannes Directors' Fortnight side event in France has apparently grabbed the attention of Brad Pitt.

Xavier Dolan, who just turned 20, nabbed three trophies at the Directors' Fortnight gala on May 22 for his first film, J'ai tué ma mère (I Killed My Mother).

Dolan captured the Art Cinema prize, the Regards Jeunes award and the SACD prize for best French-language film.

Dolan says he recently got a call from Pitt's production company but has been busy preparing for the Montreal premiere of his film on June 5.  It opens in seven theatres across Quebec that day and will expand to another seven next week.

"With everything, with all of this, I don't have time, so I will call them back next week," said the Montreal-based writer, director and actor.

Dolan's coming-of-age drama tells the story of a teenager – played by Dolan – discovering his homosexuality while grappling with a love-hate relationship with his mother.

The auteur, who wrote the screenplay while he was still in his teens, has said the plot is not autobiographical.

"You can't think that the movie is some kind of documentary. It's inspired from what I lived with my Mom when I was younger and being a teenager at home," he said in an earlier interview.

A dozen foreign countries are picking up the film, while subtitled version will soon be made available for English-language audiences.

With files from The Canadian Press