Cul-de-$ac

CUL-DE-$AC is the first feature film self-produced by Jean-Mathieu Bérubé (JIB) and Carlo Harrietha. The film is an extravaganza of stunts and special effects, a tour de force that took six years to shoot and required 127 volunteers and a $30,000 budget. It makes no apologies, mashing up genres like urban gangster movies and martial arts flicks with relish. For the occasion, the filmmakers founded the collective les Productions En Pleine Face, made up of volunteers from the circus, animation, television, costume design, contemporary dance, pyrotechnics and music fields. The result is a heady stew of theatre arts, different fighting styles and stage techniques galore. Fight scenes are choreographed by real martial artists. The eclectic and over-the-top production features dreamlike flights and an escalation of blood-soaked deaths. The approach is decidedly hardcore with a sense of fun and the spectacular.