Canadian motorsports champion Gilles Villeneuve is the subject of a new narrative feature, directed by Montreal filmmaker Daniel Roby.

Villeneuve : L’ascension d’un champion is a Canada/France coproduction, produced by Christian Larouche of Montreal’s Christal Films and Jean Labadie of Paris-based Le Pacte. The film is co-written by Roby and Guillaume Lonergan, with production on the first block of filming underway this week.

Rémi Goulet portrays Villeneuve in the film, which explores how a young man from Quebec risked everything to make a name for himself in the world of motorsports. The cast also includes Fabien Cloutier, Paul Doucet and Étienne Galloy.

Filming for block one is taking place across Quebec, with locations including Valcourt, St-Rémi and Joliette. It is set to wrap on March 2. Block two will begin in summer and wrap in the fall.

Le Pacte is also distributing the film in France, and is working with Montreal’s Les Films Opale on international sales. It is slated for release in summer 2025.

Villeneuve : L’ascension d’un champion is produced with the financial participation of SODEC, Telefilm Canada, Radio-Canada, and federal and Quebec tax credits, and in collaboration with Crave, Tourisme Lanaudière and BRP.

Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images