Montreal: The smash box-office hit Seraphin – Un homme et son peche (Cite-Amerique) leads all Prix Jutra finalists this year with nominations in nine categories, including best film, best lead actress (Karine Vanasse), best lead actor (Pierre Lebeau and Roy Dupuis), best photography (Jean Lepine) and best original music (Michel Cusson).

Seraphin is the winner of the Billet-d’Or-Desjardins with calendar ’02 box-office receipts of approximately $5 million. The film’s total take to date is more than $7 million.

Rounding out the Prix Jutra finalists for best film are the road-movie comedy Quebec-Montreal (Go Films) with seven nominations, including best director for Ricardo Trogi; the surrealistic Le Marais (Productions Thalie) with six nominations, including best direction and best screenplay for Kim Nguyen; and the thriller Le Collectionneur (Christal Films) with four nominations.

Trogi and Nguyen are first-time feature directors. Veteran directors Charles Biname (Seraphin) and Jean Beaudin (Le Collectionneur) were not nominated.

The recipient of this year’s Prix Jutra Hommage is veteran producer Rock Demers of Productions La Fete.

La Turbulence des fluides (Max Films/Europa Corp.) chimes in with four nominations. Films with three nods each include Le Neg (Productions 23/Coop Video de Montreal), including best direction for Robert Morin; Histoire de Pen (Baliverna Films); and The Baroness and the Pig (Media Principia), including best direction for Michael Mackenzie.

Also up for best actress are Pascale Bussieres (La Turbulence des fluides), Maude Guerin (Le Collectionneur) and Marie-Chantal Perron (La Mysterieuse Mademoiselle C.). Rounding out the best actor category are Paul Ahmarani (Le Marais) and Patrice Robitaille (Quebec-Montreal).

The nominees for best photography are Eric Cayla (The Baroness and the Pig), David Franco (La Turbulence des fluides), Jean Lepine (Seraphin) and Daniel Vincelette (Le Marais).

Nominations in each category are determined by a jury of peers. Best film nominees are determined by a vote of producers, distributors and exhibitors. The 7,200 members of the 11 professional film organizations that make up the Prix Jutra organizing body, Le Grand Nuit du Cinema, are eligible to vote in all categories for the final vote.

The Prix Jutra Gala, Soiree des Jutra, will be broadcast live from Theatre Maisonneuve at Place des Arts Feb. 23 on Radio-Canada. The host is Sylvie Moreau.