Year: 2022

Runtime: 9 minutes

Director/Writer: Paule Beaudoin

Actors: Benjamin Déziel,Olivia Leclair

By Juli Horsford

“On My Way”(Neige) begins with some stunningly beautiful shots of snow falling on a street. Snow is piled on the road and director Paule Beaudoin manages to capture an intensity in the snowstorm that keeps these early scenes interesting. Then suddenly we’re inside a home with a man who has icicles on his eyebrows and eyelashes. He sees his daughter on the couch, reading a comic book. She’s had a nightmare and is avoiding sleep by reading. Instead of being angry he asks her to tell him about her bad dream. It involves an evil snowman and the two get busy drawing out the entirety of the snowman’s antics.

These sweet moments with his daughter are interrupted with intense scenes of the increasingly worse snowstorm outside. The cinematography here is very affecting with unique angles and suspenseful tracking shots that give you the feeling that something is not quite right. The editing here is also top notch, with snow scenes intercut with the dad and his daughter. The outdoor scenes create a jarring contrast with the happy, cozy living room scenes. It’s not immediately apparent what’s going on and you’ll have to wait until the end to truly understand, but “On My Way”(Neige) is intense and emotional particularly in the last few minutes with a great performance from Benjamin Déziel. This eight-minute short is well worth a watch with a twist at the end that gives it more meaning than you might think.