Nadia, Butterfly

Irish Premiere

Date & Time: Sunday 3rd at 4:00pm

Details: Pascal Plante / Canada / 2021 / 107 mins

Starring: Katarine Savard, Ariane Mainville, Hilary Caldwell

23-year-old Nadia makes the controversial decision to retire from professional swimming after the Olympic Games in order to escape a life of sacrifice. After her final race, the swimmer drifts out of control with nights of excess, but this momentary exhilaration is unable to hide her true inner struggle; to define her identity outside the world of elite sports.

After feeling frustrated with the way the world of sport was being depicted in cinema, former professional swimmer Pascal Plante decided to show the reality of high-level athletes.

“The film resolves as a deeply felt (almost anthropological) look at a rare butterfly in search of the second chrysalis she needs to spread her wings and become herself all over again.” Indiewire

“This is filmmaking of lean precision; with a documentary sensibility and a core of authenticity” Screen International

Best Canadian Feature Film, Vancouver International Film Festival, 2021