Travelling Distribution

Brute

A film by

Jérémy Comte

Synopsis

Overwhelmed by crippling anxiety, a young sculptor finds himself trapped in his studio.

Highlights

Tags

2026

Drama

Fiction

Genre

Drama

Country

Canada (Quebec)

Year

2026

Length

18'43"

Themes

Mental Health

Work and Labor

With
Mattis Savard-Verhoeven
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Production
Jérémy Comte, Laurent Allaire (Brute Films)

Director
Jérémy Comte

Scenario
Jérémy Comte

Artistic Direction
Kenny Dorvil

Images
Kristof Brandl

Editing
Jérémy Comte

Sound
Theo Porcet, François Bélanger

Music
Daniela Andrade

Director's Statement

Having grown up in the countryside, I used to carve wood with my father, who would bring home leftover pieces from his construction sites. This simple, instinctive gesture profoundly shaped my relationship with creation.

In 2013, while finishing my studies at Concordia University, I went through a period of performance anxiety that led me into a depression. Although this experience was painful, it also gave me the time to reflect, to recharge, and to start anew, with fresh ways of thinking and creating what truly drives me.

By talking about this experience with those around me, I realized how many people shared this struggle. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to make a visceral, immersive film, with minimal dialogue, emphasizing sensation, metaphor, and interpretation.

The first script for Brute was written in 2014 and has continued to evolve ever since, in step with my own personal transformations. I wanted to make a universal film, one that immerses us in human experience and psyche, while exploring contemporary themes such as mental health and our increasingly neglected relationship with nature.

The creation of Brute was profoundly collaborative. Multidisciplinary artist Olivier Bonnard spent over a year carving cedars that had fallen during a storm to create the sculpture featured in the film. Engineer David Barabé and production designer Kenny Dorvil built a highly complex, custom-made, modular room that closes in on itself like the iris of a camera lens. Their commitment shaped the universe of the film as much as the script itself.

We shot in the Amazon rainforest, where there is more life per square meter; the lungs of the Earth. It’s a tribute to nature in an environment where brutal and unchecked deforestation continues to rise.

After more than 12 years of work on this film, I am thrilled to finally share it this year...

Jeremy Comte

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