A thrilling prize, boisterous kudos from critics and peers, a well-attended promotional event and some fine international sales – thus the Riviera summary of Canadians’ stay at the Cannes Film Festival, which spanned May 12-23.

The National Film Board’s 9.5-minute animated short, When the Day Breaks, from celebrated directors Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis, cheered the beleaguered public producer when it carried off the Palme d’Or in the short film competition. The film is the story of a pig named Ruby who, after witnessing the accidental death of a stranger, searches for reasons to continue believing in life and hope. When the Day Breaks has also been selected in official competition at the international animation festival at Annecy, France, which runs May 31-June 5.

Joanne Leduc, head of international sales for the National Film Board, reports that the short has already landed a major sale, to Canal Plus in France. Just completed in time for Cannes, When the Day Breaks is currently a hot preview ticket for ‘a million and one people’ from all over the world, according to Leduc. She notes that the nfb, 60 years old in 1999, won its last Palme d’Or on its 50th anniversary, for the Gilles Carle film 50 Years.

Meanwhile, two Canadian features also garnered strong reviews from critics and audiences and a big push towards strong showings in international distribution.

Atom Egoyan once again impressed reviewers and audiences with Felicia’s Journey, tabbed as a Palme d’Or contender in the Official Competition, along with Pedro Almodovar’s All About My Mother. But the jury, headed by Canada’s David Cronenberg, confounded the odds by passing by both.

Michele Maheux, who travels to Cannes yearly with the contingent from the Toronto International Film Festival, sums up Journey as a very-well received effort: ‘Deftly directed, supremely well-acted, the film takes the Egoyan oeuvre the next step in what is possibly his most accessible film to date. Some critics preferred The Sweet Hereafter, but others thought Felicia’s Journey’ had a real chance for the top prize.

Jeremy Podeswa’s The Five Senses, in the Directors’ Fortnight, ‘delighted’ international distributor Alliance Atlantis when it received a standing ovation and ‘mostly’ rave reviews in the trade press. aac’s Charlotte Mickie, executive producer of The Five Senses, reports sales to theatrical exhibitors are approaching 40 territories, not counting some major markets such as Japan and others in Asia.

‘Jeremy Podeswa’s film is a knock-out,’ says Maheux. ‘He has delivered a thoughtful and smartly executed second film with an incredibly talented ensemble cast.’

The fourth Canadian title on the Croisette was Mark Sawers Shoes Off! Sawers has left the Riviera $30,000 richer after winning the Best Short Film Award for the film, which screened during the International Critics Week section of the festival.

The Canuck presence was also in the spotlight at Canada At Cannes, a standing-room-only session designed to ‘explain the advantages of shooting in Canada with Canadians.’ Organized by Debbie Nightingale and Asso87654321`ciates, the event brought more than 120 international producers and other industry professionals to the Martinez Hotel for a short course in subjects ranging from federal and provincial tax credits to the creative appeal of Canadian talent.

Panelists included The Five Senses producer Camelia Frieberg, Mark Prior of Bulloch Entertainment, Chris Dalton of Motion Picture Bond Co., Deborah Drisdell of Telefilm Canada and Lennox Gibbs of the cibc. First up for an interview with the panel was director Podeswa.