Quebecers to watch at Cannes 2016

The 69th edition of the Cannes Film Festival gets underway today, with Quebec's contingent led by Xavier Dolan. Bythe tender age of 26, he'dalready won six prizes at the festival. Now 28, he's back with his latest feature film,Juste la fin du monde.

The festival runs May 11 to 22.

Here are the Quebecers to watch on the Promenade dela Croisettein the coming days:

Xavier Dolan

Montreal director Xavier Dolan returns to Cannes for the sixth time.

After a stint on the jury in 2015, Dolan is back with a feature film in the Official Competition for the Palme d'Or.

He's up against some stiff competition, including new films from Jim Jarmusch, Ken Loach, Pedro Almadovar, Olivier Assayas, Sean Penn, the Dardenne brothers and Denmark'sNicolas Winding Refn, with a new horror thriller starring Nicole Kidman.

Juste la fin du monde(It's Only the End of the World)is based on a French play by Jean-Luc Lagarceandstars the A-list of French cinema:Marion Cotillard, La Seydoux, Vincent Cassel, Nathalie Baye and Gaspard Ulliel.

• Xavier Dolan in official competition for Cannes Film Festival
• WATCH: Scenes fromIt's Only the End of the World

Dolan is seen as one of the Cannes' protgs, taking homethePrix du jury ex-aequo in 2014forMommy.

Actor Suzanne Clment shared the festival'sUn Certain Regard Award for Best Actress for her starring role inLaurence Anyways,directed by Dolan in 2012.

Dolan's first featureJ'ai tu ma mrewon the Prix Regards Jeunes, among other prizes,at the festival in 2009.

It's Only the End of the Worldpremieres on May 19at Cannes.

Xavier Dolan talks to Jeanette Kelly about video for Hello by Adele 8:15

Cinq a Six8:15Xavier Dolan talks to Jeanette Kelly about video for Hello by Adele

Dolan was asked by Adele's record label to make the video for the first single for her album, 25. So he accepted!

Kim Nguyen

The director makes his Cannes debutin the Director's Fortnight (Quinzaine des ralisateurs) section with a film shot in English in Iqaluit.

• Kim Nguyen, Nathan Morlando films bound for Directors' Fortnight at Cannes

Two Lovers and a Bearstars Canadian actor Tatiana Maslany (who plays clone upon clone of herself inOrphan Black) and American actor Dane DeHaan (Life).

In the name of authenticity, Nguyen shot outdoors in an Arctic winter. Shooting intemperatures that droppedto minus 50 C with the windchill, there's no question but that's real steam coming his actors' mouths.

"It came to the point where my makeup artist would literally grab my shoulders and say, 'You have 30 seconds,'" Nguyen said in an interview. "Because Tatiana...[in a]homage to water-skiing, where she is skiingon the ice andbeing pulled by a snowmobile ... would go 30 seconds before risking severe frostbite on her face."

Nguyen's previous feature,Rebelle(War Witch), won a special mention by at the Berlin Film Festival in 2012 and the Ours d'argent for Best Actress for Rachel Mwanza a teenager he rescued fromthe streets of Kinshasa after seeing her in a documentary about that city's street kids.

Rebellewas nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars in 2013.

RAW: Kim Nguyen on his Oscar nomination

12 years ago

Duration 5:37

Montreal director Kim Nguyen chats with CBC about War Witch's nomination for best foreign film

Sophie Nlisse

Montreal actor Sophie Nlisse plays the lead in a Canadian thriller,Mean Dreams, which is also in competition at the Director's Fortnight. It's directed by Nathan Morlando and stars Bill Paxton and Colm Feore.

The screenplay was co-written by a pair from Montreal'sWest Island: Ryan Grassby andKevin Coughlin.

Nlisse has been to the Oscars in 2012 withMonsieur Lazharby Philippe Falardeau, nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. She was the youngest to ever win a Genie for her role in that film.

• Montreal actress Sophie Nlisse stars in Quebec feature Endorphine

FranoisJaros

Filmmaker Franois Jaros is invited to the competition at the Semaine de la critique (International Critics' Week) with hisshort filmOh What A Wonderful Feeling,about a young woman who spends a night at a truckstop.

• Montreal director going to Cannes with short film

He calls his 14-minute filma "strange coming of age": Ayoung woman goes fromchildhood to adulthood in a single night, from "prey to predator."

Jaros is already an award-winning filmmaker with two Quebec Screen Awards forToutes des connes, a 5-minute story about a breakup, andMaurice, a portrait of a dying man.

AlisiTelengut

The Montrealerwho hascome the longest distance to get to Cannes is Mongolian-born Alisi Telengut. She arrived atConcordia University six years ago to study animation and has since won several awards.

• Montreal animation artist on her way to Cannes, by way of Mongolia

Her short filmNutag Homeland, done in under-the-camera animation, will be screened as part of Telefilm Canada's showcase Canada: Not Short on Talent.

Cinq a Six13:11Montreal animator Alisi Telengut - from Mongolia to Cannes

Alisi Telengut's latest short animated film called Nutag Homeland has just been selected by Telefilm Canada to be included in the sixth edition of 'Canada: Not Short on Talent' showcase at The Cannes Film Festival.